When can you call a discard in mahjong?

Last updated November 12, 2026

You can call the most recent discard until the next player racks the tile they drew, discards or starts a joker swap, and only to finish a pung, kong or quint that you then expose, or to win. You cannot call a discard for a pair or a single unless it completes your mah jongg.

How do you call a discard?

Say "call" before the next player racks a tile, take the discard, expose the finished group, then discard. Calling replaces your draw from the wall.

1. Say "call," or the tile's name, as soon as you want it.
2. Take the tile.
3. Lay the finished group face up on top of your rack with the matching tiles.
4. Discard. Play continues to your right, skipping anyone between the discarder and you.

What can you call a discard for?

Two things only: an exposure or mah jongg.

• An exposure. A pung (3), kong (4), quint (5) or larger group of identical tiles. Jokers can fill the rest.
• Mah jongg. Any tile that finishes your hand, including the last tile of a pair, a single, or a concealed hand.

You cannot call a discard:

• for a pair, a single, a set of mixed winds or a year, unless it wins the hand
• for a concealed (C) hand, unless it wins the hand
• to swap for a joker in someone's exposure
• when it is a joker, since a discarded joker is dead
• when it is an older discard, since only the latest one is live

Who gets it when two players call?

A call for mah jongg beats any call for an exposure. Between two callers with the same purpose, the tile goes to whoever is next in turn after the discarder, unless the other caller has already exposed tiles for it. Speaking first does not win it.

Where tables play it differently

• How late. League rules keep the call open until the next player racks the drawn tile, discards or swaps a joker. Some casual tables close it the moment the next player touches the wall.
• Waiting. Some tables let a player say "wait" for a moment to decide. Others treat any pause as a pass.
• Naming tiles. Most tables require the discarder to name each tile out loud, which is what gives everyone a fair chance to call.

A worked example

Play moves East, South, West, North. East discards a 4 Dot and says "four dot." You are West, and you hold:

Before South racks a tile, you call. You take the 4 Dot, lay out a kong of three 4 Dots and a joker, and discard. North plays next; South's turn is skipped.

If South had called it for a pung at the same moment, South would get it, since South is next after East. If North had called it for mah jongg, North would win it over both of you.