Traditionally, dominoes were made of ivory and bone. Some games also use other rigid materials, such as wood and plastic.

The most common type of domino has six pips. These pips are arranged on each side and mark the arrangement of spots. The total number of spots on either side determines the value of the tile. For example, a tile with five pips is considered to have more value than one with two pips.

When playing, each player draws six tiles. Each player must position their tile so that it touches at least one end of the chain. Then, the player must knock or flick the tile onto the table. This starts a chain reaction. If the first domino in the chain is knocked over, the next domino in the line will fall down. The dominoes are normally twice as long as they are wide.

Originally, each domino represented one of the 21 possible results of throwing two six-sided dice. The set was designed so that every face of each dice had a different domino.

The game started in France in the mid-18th century, where it became a fad. It spread to England by the late 1700s, and it was introduced to the United States in the 1860s. Most of the domino games now played are variations of card games. These include trick-taking and solitaire domino games.

There are several different types of domino sets, each with a unique character and rules. A traditional English pub method is to face down the tile in two rows of three. This is called the Concentration variant. During play, each player mentally notes the numbers that are available. If a player has the same number on both ends of the chain, he or she is said to have “stitched up” the ends.

Chinese dominoes are similar to European dominoes, except that there are no blank faces. In addition, a Chinese domino has a line across the middle, and a domino can be placed in any direction. In addition, the domino has a specific size. For example, a double-18 domino set has 190 tiles. In addition, the double-21 domino set has 253 tiles. This set is too big for most domino games.

In some traditional Chinese games, the dominoes are not thrown into the air or placed on the table. They are shuffled, placed on the table, and then players take turns to knock or flick the tiles onto the table. The winner is the partner with the fewest spots on the dominoes. There are some children who prefer to play dominoes as toys.

In the United States, dominoes were first played in Texas and Arkansas, where they are known as 42. In the mid-18th century, prisoners of war brought dominoes to England. After the 1860s, they appeared in American literature and began to spread throughout the world. In the 1860s, a version of the game, adapted for use by French peasants, spread to Europe. It was later spread to Austria and Germany.