Domino is a game of skill and luck, played by one or more players. The dominoes (also called bones, cards, men or pieces) are flat, square tiles with a line in the middle to divide them into two parts visually. Each part contains a number of dots (called pips) that are arranged in a specific pattern. A domino may have blank sides, which are not considered to have any value in the game, or the sides may be ascribed different values. Traditionally, dominoes are stacked side-by-side, but some people also create domino art, which can include straight lines, curved lines, grids that form pictures when they fall or even 3D structures like towers and pyramids.
The most common domino sets come with 28 double six dominoes, although larger sets are available for games requiring more dominoes or longer domino tracks. The rules of domino differ between the games, but most involve placing tiles to form lines that are a certain length and scoring points based on the pips on each end of a tile. Some players also choose to play with more than one opponent, and scoring is based on the combined value of the pips in both hands.
Many people use domino as a tool for teaching basic counting skills. Children can learn to identify different numbers by the color of their pips or by the shape of the dominoes themselves. As a result, some schools now offer the game as a part of their early education curriculum.
In business, domino can refer to a strategy that relies on the principle of adding up small changes to have an effect that is greater than the sum of the individual parts. A domino can also be used to describe a situation in which a person’s actions influence those of others. Leadership and management are often described as being similar to a domino, but they have different qualities. Leadership has more to do with stepping up and being visible, while management is more about putting processes in place.
The term domino is also used to refer to a set of principles that determine how a company’s employees behave and interact with one another. These principles are usually set forth in an employee handbook and include things such as respect for one another and a focus on results rather than personal gain.
The word domino derives from the Latin verb dominus, which means “lord.” In English, it was first used in the late 18th Century, though it had been used earlier to describe a black hood worn over a white surplice by priests. The name likely inspired the design of the domino pieces, which were once made with ebony blacks and ivory faces.