folding in mahjong; giving up on winning and discarding safe tiles
Mahjong term: a defensive strategy where a player abandons their own winning hand and only discards tiles that are unlikely to be claimed by opponents.
点棒が少ないときは、早めに降りる判断も必要だ。
When you have few points, it's sometimes necessary to decide to fold early.
彼は降りに徹して、一度も振り
He stuck to folding and never dealt into an opponent's hand.
go down; descend; come down · get off; alight; disembark · step down; resign; withdraw · be granted; be issued; be given · form; settle; fall · be passed; be expelled
getting on and off; boarding and alighting
top of stairs; end of moving walkway · exit door (bus, etc.); steps down (from vehicle)
alighting point; drop-off point; disembarkation area
step down; descend and stand · alight; get off
From the verb 降りる (おりる, 'to step down, to give up'), nominalized. In mahjong, it refers to 'stepping down' from the attempt to win a hand.