Standard Lemma guide

fan-tan

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A Chinese gambling game in which coins or other small objects are placed upon a table, usually under a cup, and the players bet as to what remainder will be left when the sum of the counters is divided by four.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A card game in which the cards are played in sequences upon the table, and the winner is the first player to have no cards left.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Borrowed from Cantonese 番攤 /番摊 (faan1 taan1, literally “repeated divisions”).

Across languages

Translations

9 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Chinese Cantonese: 番攤 /番摊 (faan1 taan1) — a specific gambling game where objects are counted in sets of four
  • Chinese: 攤 /摊 (zh-min-nan) — a specific gambling game where objects are counted in sets of four
  • Khmer: ធួ (thuə) — a specific gambling game where objects are counted in sets of four
  • Khmer: ថួ (thuə) — a specific gambling game where objects are counted in sets of four
  • Lao: ຖົ່ວ (thūa) — a specific gambling game where objects are counted in sets of four
  • Tagalog: capona — a specific gambling game where objects are counted in sets of four
  • Thai: เล่นถั่ว (len thua) — a specific gambling game where objects are counted in sets of four
  • Thai: กําถั่ว (kam thua) — a specific gambling game where objects are counted in sets of four
  • Thai: ถั่ว (thua) — a specific gambling game where objects are counted in sets of four