noun
nine gates; nine lanterns
A special winning hand in mahjong consisting of 1-1-1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-9-9 of one suit plus any one extra tile of the same suit. It is a highly valued yakuman hand.
from Chinese jiǔliánbǎodēng
九蓮宝燈は、麻雀で最も難しい役満の一つだ。
The nine gates is one of the most difficult yakuman hands in mahjong.
彼は九蓮宝燈をテンパイしたが、あがれなかった。
He was tenpai for nine gates but couldn't win.
Variant spelling using 灯 instead of 燈.
From Chinese 九蓮宝燈 (jiǔliánbǎodēng), literally 'nine lotus lanterns'. The term is used in mahjong to describe a hand resembling a row of nine lanterns.