Domino is a popular game played with a set of small rectangular blocks, each bearing an arrangement of dots or spots resembling those on dice. These identifying marks are on one side only, while the other side is blank or identically patterned. The identifying side is often called the face of domino. The words set, down, and lead are all used as nouns to refer to the first domino in a series; likewise, when the game begins, it is said to be “on the downbeat.”
Many games of domino require a specific sequence of tiles. To begin the game, a set of 28 tiles is shuffled and placed on the table in front of each player. The resulting layout is called the stock or boneyard, from which players draw their hands according to the rules of the particular game being played. The opening hand may be chosen by the winner of a previous game, or, in some games, the highest double is used to open play.
The basic rules that pertain to more than one player are listed here under Line of Play, but some of the games shown here are also available for solo play. Note that these instructions are for a game with standard double-six dominoes; other sets contain different number of tiles, and the basic rules listed here would not apply to those variations.
Some of the games listed here include a scoring method in which all losers’ tiles are counted and added to the winner’s score. Usually, this is done by counting all of the pips on a losing tile (or two adjacent ends of a double), except that the smallest of the four corners of a double is disregarded for scoring purposes.
The word domino is sometimes used as a metaphor for something that is unstoppable once it starts rolling: “An accident like this is just the beginning; it will have a domino effect on the economy.”
A domino rally is an event in which a person or organization steps on a political, economic, or social issue and causes that issue to spiral out of control. A famous example of this was when President Nixon imposed sanctions on South Vietnam in an attempt to stop the spread of communism. This move, however, had a disastrous domino effect on the Vietnamese economy, which soon collapsed and led to the fall of the Ho Chi Minh government.
In a business setting, a domino effect can be a positive or negative outcome. On the positive side, it can mean that a product or service is suddenly popular and profitable after a period of low or no popularity and profitability. The negative side, however, can result in a sudden loss of market share or customer loyalty and a decline in revenue and profit. This can also occur in an organizational context, where a change in leadership has a domino effect on the entire company. For example, if the CEO of Domino’s Pizza is replaced with someone who has a less effective management style, it can have a domino effect on sales and reputation for that company.