What Is a Chow in Mahjong? Rules & Examples

A chow in Mahjong is a sequence of 3 consecutive numbered tiles in the same suit. Examples include 1-2-3 Dots, 4-5-6 Bamboos, and 7-8-9 Characters.

Chow examples

What Is a Chow in Mahjong? Rules & Examples: Tiles, Chow?, Reason

Tiles	Chow?	Reason
2-3-4 Dots	Yes	Consecutive ranks, same suit
7-8-9 Bamboos	Yes	Highest legal sequence
8-9-1 Dots	No	Ranks do not wrap
3 Dot + 4 Bamboo + 5 Character	No	Suits cannot mix
East + South + West	No	Winds have no numerical sequence
Red + green + white dragons	No	Dragons are honors, not ranks

Other names include chi, chii, and sequence. The exact spoken call depends on the language and variant.

The 3 requirements for a legal chow

Every ordinary chow must satisfy all 3 tests:

1. Numbered tiles: only Dots, Bamboos, or Characters can be used.
2. Same suit: all 3 tiles come from one suit.
3. Consecutive ranks: each rank is exactly 1 higher than the previous rank.

The possible rank patterns are 1-2-3 through 7-8-9. There is no 0 rank in a Chinese-style suit, and 9 does not connect back to 1.

Concealed and exposed chows

A concealed chow is formed from self-drawn tiles and stays in the hand. You do not announce each concealed sequence while playing; its grouping is resolved when the hand wins or is checked.

An exposed chow uses a legally claimed discard plus 2 matching tiles from your hand. Display the 3 tiles together according to the table’s convention. Once exposed, they cannot be rearranged into another concealed group.

Opening a chow reveals suit and range information. It may also remove access to concealed-only patterns or reduce a hand’s score, depending on the variant.

Who may claim a discard for a chow?

In many 4-player Chinese rules, only the player whose turn would come next may claim the immediately previous discard for a chow. MCR describes this as taking the discard from the player to your left. Riichi uses the call chii from the immediately preceding player in turn order.

The restriction prevents a sequence claim from jumping across the table. Pungs and winning claims have broader eligibility in many systems and usually take priority over a chow claim.

A tile used to win is different from an ordinary chow call. If any opponent’s discard completes your legal winning hand, the win-claim rules may allow it even when you could not call that player merely to expose a sequence.

How to call a chow

A common procedure is:

1. Confirm the newest discard completes a same-suit sequence.
2. Confirm you are the eligible next player.
3. Announce the chow within the claim window.
4. Reveal the 2 matching tiles from your hand.
5. Add and orient the claimed discard as required.
6. Discard 1 tile to end the turn.

Do not expose your 2 tiles before the claim is accepted. If another player has a higher-priority pung or win, the table resolves that call first.

Flexible shapes around a chow

Sequences overlap, which makes suited tiles flexible. A 3-4 shape can accept 2 or 5. A 4-5 shape can accept 3 or 6. A 3-4-5 group is complete, but the surrounding hand may divide in more than one way.

Edge shapes are narrower:

• 1-2 waits only on 3;
• 8-9 waits only on 7;
• a closed gap such as 2-4 waits only on 3.

This flexibility is one reason a concealed pair should not always be called as a pung. The same tiles may support stronger sequence development.

Chow vs pung

What Is a Chow in Mahjong? Rules & Examples: Chow, Pung

Chow	Pung
3 consecutive ranks	3 identical tiles
Numbered suits only	Suits, winds, or dragons
Suits cannot mix	Rank and suit must match exactly
Ordinary claim limited by seat	Claim commonly available from any opponent
Sequence-oriented hand information	Triplet-oriented hand information

Neither structure has a universal score. A chow-heavy hand can be valuable in one pattern and worth little in another; a pung can supply honor value or triplet patterns but reduce shape flexibility.

American Mah Jongg does not use ordinary chows

American card lines often print consecutive numbers, but those digits do not automatically form a callable sequence. A pattern such as 1-2-3 may represent separate singles, pairs, or identical groups according to spacing, repetition, and color.

You cannot call a discard merely to expose an ordinary 3-number run. Calls must complete an eligible card grouping, and jokers apply only to eligible identical groups of 3 or more. Use the American card guide instead of Chinese chow procedure.

Common mistakes

• Mixing Dots, Bamboos, and Characters in one run.
• Treating 8-9-1 as a wraparound sequence.
• Arranging winds or dragons by a remembered order and calling them a chow.
• Claiming a sequence discard from an ineligible seat.
• Forgetting to discard after the call.
• Assuming an exposed chow always scores.
• Calling consecutive American card numbers as if they were a Chinese meld.

References

• WRC Rules 2025 define sequences, chii calls, priority, and open-hand status in the current riichi code.
• The Mahjong Competition Rules define chow structure and the MCR claim procedure.