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Glite Dictionary
🃏 A card game 🎲 A gambling game
fantan

fantan

9.9
A Chinese gambling game where players bet on the number left over when small objects are divided by four
  • noun
  • /fænˈtæn/
translation icon : fantan
  • The group spent all night playing fantan at the crowded gambling house.

Examples

  • Tourists watched locals gather around a table to place bets on fantan.

  • He learned to play fantan during his travels in Macau.

  • They played fantan all night long.

  • Have you ever tried fantan before?

  • The group spent all night playing fantan at the crowded gambling house.

  • Tourists watched locals gather around a table to place bets on fantan.

  • He learned to play fantan during his travels in Macau.

Synonyms

fan tan
vsfantan
1 9.9

A Chinese gambling game where players bet on how many counters remain under a bowl after grouping them by four

is the same game but written as a single unspaced word

Surface Forms

fantan singular
fantans plural

Etymology

Fantan comes from the Chinese name fan-tan, for a traditional gambling table game where people bet on the 'remainder' left after a pile of counters is divided by four. The idea of dividing counters and guessing the leftover number is exactly why fantan today means this kind of betting game.