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42 (Texas 42): A domino game for four people (partnered pairs), women and men, similar to the card game Bridge (but less complicated), with bidding and trumps; played by young and old for fun and/or competition.
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Ace: A domino with a single pip (dot) on one end, e.g.,  is the six-ace.
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Basic 42: Plain ("pure," "straight," or "bare bones") 42 with traditional rules and no game variations (subject to individual and regional interpretation). Formal competition rules vary, but they normally specify exclusions.
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Bid: The declaration of the number of points (tricks plus count) that a player thinks he and his partner can win in a hand. Bids vary from 30 to 41, one mark (42), to multiple marks.
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Blank: A domino with no pips on one end (or both ends), e.g.,  is the blank-five.
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Bones: Domino tiles.
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Boss trumps: Three or more trumps, including the double, which usually allow a player in the lead to pull out the other trumps, e.g.,    , or    , or     , etc. (New term learned from TexasTinCup)
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Buried: A domino in your hand with both ends protected from being pulled, e.g., the is "buried" if you also have another 4 and another 6 in your hand. (New term learned from TexasTinCup)
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Call in: Lead a suit, especially trumps, to bring a particular domino out into play that could later jeopardize making your bid or your ability to set the opponents.
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Come: When you're in the lead, and you need your partner to take the lead so you can unload your "off" domino(s), you "come" to your partner, i.e., lead a domino that you think he can take and win the trick.
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Count: Count are the five dominos with face values divisible by 5: , , , , and  . Each count domino is worth its face value in points.
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Cow: The name some players call the . (See also Q/A 91.)
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Deuce: A domino with a two pips on one end, e.g.,  is the double deuce.
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Dime: A 10-count domino, e.g., the six-four.
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Dominos (dominoes): The rectangular tiles ("bones") used to play 42. A set of double-six dominos has 28 tiles.
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Double: A double has the same number of pips on each end. There are seven doubles in a set of double-six dominos: , , ,  , ,  , and  . The double is the highest rank in its suit.
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Draw: After the dominos are shuffled to begin a new hand, each player picks (draws) seven dominos before beginning play. (The shuffler draws last.)
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Drop: In the bidding process, when the last bidder (the shuffler) has to take the bid because the other three players passed, he has the bid "dropped" on him. When this happens, he has the option of going low.
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False indicator: When your partner indicated he had a helping hand, and he can't follow the suit led, and he plays a domino that doesn't indicate he's holding the high domino in the suit he plays, his domino is a "false indicator."
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Follow me: When a player gets the bid and doesn't want to call a trump suit (no trumps), he can say "follow me." This means the highest domino played takes each trick. (In one popular online game, "follow-me os-hi" means doubles are a suit of their own.)
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Forced bid: When the players agree beforehand, the shuffler (last bidder) has to take the bid for at least 30 if the other players passed. See also "Low" (going low).
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Hand: (1) A hand is the seven tricks played following each shuffle in a game; also, (2) the seven dominos held by a player.
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Helping hand: A helping hand has doubles and/or count-dominos that can help a partner make his bid (sometimes indicated by a 30-bid when the other partner hasn't bid yet).
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House rules: These are the established playing rules defined by the hosting individual(s) or game director. Acceptable variations, if any, and penalties for indiscretions are spelled out.
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Indicate: When a player cannot follow suit, he plays a domino whose high end indicates he has the high domino in that suit. His partner can then "come" to him in that suit (helpful in making a bid).
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Lay down: This is a hand that can't be set. The high bidder says he has a "lay down" hand and reveals his dominos to show that he would take all the tricks if play continued. (More Info)
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Lead: The first domino played in a trick. It establishes the suit to be followed, be it trump or otherwise.
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Low (Nel-O): A game variaton (called nello or nillo in some parts of Texas). When the bid is dropped on the shuffler, he has the option of going "low." If he goes "low," his partner doesn't play, and he must take no tricks to make his bid.
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Mark: The scorepad annotation when a bid is made (or set). Each hand won or lost is a mark unless multiple marks were bid. Seven marks by either team wins a game. Scoring by points is optional. (More Info)
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Naked: A domino in your hand is naked if it's not covered on both ends to protect it from being pulled, e.g., the is naked on one or both ends if you don't also have another 4 and another 6 in your hand. (Contributed by TexasTinCup)
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Nel-O: Same as going low (above).
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Nickel: A 5-count domino, e.g., the four-ace.
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Offs: Dominos in your hand that have little or no value in helping you or your partner make your bid. An off domino, especially count, can jeopardize making your bid since it is vulnerable to capture.
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Opening: The first lead in the first trick of a hand. The high bidder always leads the first domino and calls trumps or other method of play at this time.
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Overtrump: When you are unable to follow the suit led, you opt to trump in, and a subsequent player (who also can't follow suit) plays a higher trump than yours.
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Partner: The person sitting opposite you at the playing table (your biggest asset in helping make your bid unless you have some mighty good standalone dominos).
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Pass: You pass if you're not going to bid on your hand. Some players might "knock" on the table to indicate they pass.
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Pip: Pips are the dots on the faces of dominos that define their value ranking and suit.
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Play out: Finish the hand, e.g., play the remaining dominos in a hand even if one of the players says he has a lay down hand.
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Points: There are 42 possible points in a hand: seven tricks (each trick is a point) plus the five count dominos (35 points). Each hand is scored as a mark unless multiple marks were bid. (See also score.)
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Pump-bid: A possibly unachievable bid intended to make an opposition partner bid higher to get the bid, e.g., bidding 31 after a 30-bid to make a subsequent 32-bid by the 30-bidder's partner easier to set. (Contributed by Beerdaddy42)
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Punt: Lead an off domino in hopes your partner can take the trick and the lead. (New term learned from TexasTinCup)
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Renege: When able, but you don't follow suit when a domino is led, e.g., a six is led, you have a six, but you play something else. Reneging is a no-no.
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Rules: Acceptable play agreed on before the game begins. House rules define acceptable play. In the absence of rules, "basic 42" is the norm (subject to interpretation).
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Score: The team who scores seven marks first wins the game. Marks are annotated on paper by spelling "ALL" (each letter segment is a mark). Scoring by points is optional. (More Info)
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Set: When the high bid player team does not make their bid, they are set, and the opposing team gets the mark or marks, depending on what was bid.
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Shake: Shuffle. "Shake them bones" means "shuffle the dominos."
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Show bidding: Show bidding is the practice of using one's bid to indicate specific dominos in or characteristics of the bidder's hand. The practice reportedly requires a private meeting and understanding between partners. Not all players approve of this practice. (New term learned from Texastincup)
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Shuffle: Randomizing all 28 dominos face-down by mixing them around on the playing surface prior to each player drawing seven dominos.
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Skunk: A team is skunked when they lose a game 7-0 (win none of the hands). (Contributed by TexasTinCup)
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Stack: When the high bid is one or more marks, the dominos won in each trick are stacked face-up so only the last two tricks are shown.
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Straight off: A straight off is an off domino whose pips on either end match none of the other suits in your hand, e.g., the trey-duece domino is the only trey and the only duece in your hand. (See also Offs.)
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Style: The manner in which one plays the game, e.g., some players incorporate the indicating style into their game, i.e., indicate their doubles when they can't follow the suit led.
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Suit: A suit is the seven dominos with the same number of pips on one end, e.g., the sixes suit is , , ,  ,  , ,  ; treys is ,  ,  ,  , ,  ,  , etc.
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Take the trick (or lead): When you "take" a trick, you win the trick by having the highest domino played. You also "take" the lead and lead the next domino when you win a trick (implies a change in lead).
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Talk across the table: Talking about the dominos in play is a no-no. Chitchat is fine, but hints and comments about your hand (or your partner's) are not permitted in a "serious" game of 42.
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Throw off: Get rid of (unload) an unwanted domino when you can't follow suit in a trick.
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Tiles: Dominos.
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Trey: A domino with three pips on one end, e.g., is the trey-deuce.
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Trick: A round of play (the domino led and the three subsequent dominos played). There are seven tricks in a hand. Each trick taken is worth one point (plus any count-dominos contained therein).
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Trump: The designated domino suit that outranks the other suits. If treys are trump, then all seven treys are trumps, regardless of their other ends. (The other end only determines the rank of the domino in the trump suit. The double is highest.)
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Trump set: Sometimes the trumps you call are too unevenly distributed. When an opposition player has more trumps than you, and you need to take all the tricks to make your bid, you are trump set.
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Two-trumping: Bidding with only two trumps, e.g.,  or  , etc. Most of the time all the trumps will be pulled on the first two leads or your partner could have the remaining trump(s). (Contributed by TexasTinCup)
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Unload: Same as "throw off" (above).
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Variations: Optional rules agreed on before beginning a game, e.g., Plunge, Sevens, Splash, etc. (Some say "indicating" and the Nel-O option in a forced bid are variations to basic 42.)
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Walker: A "walker" is the highest domino in it's suit currently still in play. For example, if you lead the deuce-blank, and all the other deuces have already been played, then the deuce-blank is a walker and will take the trick (unless trumped).
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