1.
mahjong tile; tile
A playing piece used in mahjong. A standard set contains 136 tiles divided into suits (萬子, 筒子, 索子) and honor tiles (字牌). Also written as 牌 in other tile-based games.
In mahjong terminology, 牌 appears in many compounds: 手牌 (tiles in one's hand), 字牌/つーぱい (honor tiles), 萬子/筒子/索子 (the three number suits). Key verbs used with tiles: 牌を切る (to discard), 牌を引く (to draw), 牌を鳴く (to call a discarded tile). Mahjong is extremely popular in Japan both as a social game and as a subject of manga and anime.