Domino is a game played with a set of rectangular blocks. The purpose of the game is to move the pieces as close to a specified number as possible. It can be played by either two or four players. A player can lay the dominoes in a line or in a row. However, to win, the player must make sure that the two matched ends are adjacent.

Dominoes can be used to play a variety of games, including trick-taking and solitaire. Most of these games are adaptations of card games. There are also several more traditional games, such as Pai Gow and Tien Gow.

Originally, each domino represented one of 21 results of throwing two six-sided dice. As the game developed, however, the pips began to change. Eventually, each piece had six or more pips. Some larger sets also used Arabic numerals instead of pips.

While the origins of dominoes are unclear, they were first recorded in France in the mid-18th century. French prisoners of war brought the game to England, and in the 1860s, it appeared in American literature. In a typical game, five or three tiles are drawn. Depending on the rules of the game, the player may have to chip out a certain amount of the tiles before the other players can start.

When the first domino in the line is tipped, a chain reaction starts. This causes other dominoes to fall. If there are enough tiles in the chain to cover a number, the player who tipped the first domino will be rewarded with the corresponding number. If there aren’t enough tiles, the player must choose a sleeping domino.

Typically, a double-nine or double-twelve set of dominoes has nine or twelve tiles. These sets can be too large for most games. Therefore, a set of 253 or 190 tiles would be a better choice. Another option is to purchase a double-nine or double-18 set, which has fifty-five or sixty-three tiles.

Traditionally, European-style dominoes were made of ivory, bone, or dark hardwood. However, a number of modern sets use other materials, such as ebony and opal.

The game was popular in Europe during the 17th and 18th centuries, and it is still played today. Western dominoes are most commonly used for positional games. Players can place the dominoes in a row, a line, or in other shapes. They are usually about twice as long as they are wide.

The most common form of dominoes is a set with six or more pips. Other common forms have no pips.

Chinese dominoes are longer than typical European ones. To form the doubles, players must place the tile perpendicular to the double’s touching point at the center. Similarly, to play a double, players must place a second tile perpendicular to the first.

Although they are sometimes known as cards, the domino actually originated from a woodcut on paper, popular among French peasants. The game has since spread worldwide. Initially, the game was a fad in France, and in the late 1700s, it was introduced in England and Austria.