During the middle of the 18th century, the domino game was a popular fad in France. French prisoners of war brought the game to England, and it began to spread across the world. Eventually, the game reached the United States, and it became a popular card game.

The game is played with a set of tiles, which are also called dominoes or stones. The tiles are arranged on a flat surface with identifying marks on one side. These markings show which pips are worth points.

The first player draws a number of tiles from the stock. Each player then takes turns adding dominoes to the platform. The goal is to create a tower that will be stable. A winning player is the one who has the least spots on the dominoes. This is usually done by awarding pips to the opposing player’s tiles. There are two types of dominoes, those that require matching, and those that do not. The simplest version is for two players, while the most complex involves four players.

Traditionally, European dominoes are made of dark hardwood such as ebony or ivory. They are often marked with a line and arrangement of pips, or they may be blank. Some large sets use Arabic numerals instead of pips. They are typically about twice the width of the playing surface.

A set of dominoes usually contains three, seven, nine, or eleven tiles. Each player draws seven or nine tiles from the set. These are used to make up the first and last hands of the game. The lead piece has the highest total pip count, while the pips on the second and third tiles are counted as 0 or 14. The third and fourth tiles produce open ends of 4 and 5.

A domino can be placed in any direction. Normally, it is laid in the same direction as the previous tile. If the previous tile is a double, the next tile must be placed perpendicular to the first. If the previous tile is a single, the first player plays it, and the next player must play the tile with the same number at both ends. Depending on the size of the set, it may be difficult to determine which pips belong to which domino. Some large domino sets allow the player to place the tile on all four sides. This can be done to create a special course or layout.

In some games, the pips on a domino are referred to as weight. When a domino has a multiple of five dots, it counts toward the total of the hand. Likewise, when a domino has a single digit in a single line, it is considered a double. For example, a domino with a four on the left and a six on the right is considered a double.

The most common domino variant involves drawing from a double-six set. This is similar to the spades card game. However, it is not played with the same suit distinctions as European dominoes.