42 Terminology

Simple definitions of the terms used in the game of 42, along with some links to helpful references. A growing reference.

bid: a number between 30-42 representative of the points required to win the hand, can also be marks (multiples of 42)

ace: another name for one

big-end: a slang way of calling trump where the high end of the first domino being played is the trump suit

bone: another name for domino

contract: the winning bid, what the bid-winning team members must achieve to win the hand

duece: another name for two

follow-me: see no-trump

follow suit: requirement where a player, if possible, must play a domino from their hand that matches the suit lead (but not one that matches trump)

game: a series of hands played until one team reaches a minimum of 7 marks

hammer: the player who bids last in a given hand (aka the dealer) has “the hammer”

hand: a series of 7 tricks played to decide which team is awarded one (or more) marks

indicating: playing a domino to provide information on what is in your hand [Austin 42 on indicating]

laydown: a winning hand that no longer needs to be played because it will win no matter what; in the interest of expediency a player will show their hand and demonstrate the order of play (as necessary), best done when in the lead so no questions are asked.

lead: playing the first domino in a trick

little-end: a slang way of calling trump where the smaller end of the first domino being played is the trump suit

mark: a scoring tick mark for winning a hand; each hand won is worth at least one mark, or for the number of (multiple) marks bid

no-trump: aka follow me; a trump declaration where tricks are won solely based on highest in suit lead

off: a domino played out of suit, often played to indicate, void a suit, or just discard one not considered useful in the hand

pattern: a common series of dominoes played in order

pip: one of the dots on a domino

renege: an error in play (such as playing out of turn, not following lead, etc.) that results in loss of hand

set (setting): the act of preventing the bid-winning team from making their contract (bid) and thus losing the hand

shake: to shuffle the dominoes

shaker: the person who shuffles the dominoes

stacking: method of collecting tricks, typically during hands that bid marks, where success tricks are played (stacked) on top of the previous trick; stacking can be single or double (alternating adjacent stacks)

suit: a collection of all dominoes that have the number X on it (where X is blanks, ones, twos, threes, fours, fives, or sixes); there are 7 suits and 7 dominoes in each suit

trey: another name for three

trick: a series of four dominoes, one played by each player, awarded to the team with the highest domino played

void: the practice of getting rid of dominoes in a suit to allow playing of a trump, points, or offs.