Setup
All 52 cards are dealt, 13 each. Partners sit opposite. Cards rank A K Q J 10 … 2.
Bidding
Starting left of the dealer, each player either passes or bids a higher number of tricks, from 7 to 13, that their team will take. If everyone passes, the dealer must bid 7. The highest bidder names the trump suit (the tarneeb) and leads the first trick.
Playing a trick
Follow the suit led if you can. If you can't, play any card, including a trump. The highest trump wins the trick; if no trump is played, the highest card of the suit led wins.
Scoring
- Bid made: the bidding team scores every trick it took. Bid 8, take 9 → +9; the other team scores 0.
- Bid missed: the bidding team loses its bid (bid 8 → −8), and the defenders score the tricks they took.
Winning
The first team to reach 41 wins the match.
Variants
Besides Standard Tarneeb, the app offers Egyptian (Masrawy), where the bid also names the suit and can be doubled or redoubled, and Syrian 41, where trump comes from the last card dealt and each player bids and scores on their own.
Tips to win
- Count your partner in: a bid of 7 needs roughly 3–4 tricks from your own hand.
- Lead trumps early when you hold several; it stops opponents cutting your winners.
- When defending, every trick you take counts if the bidders fail, so keep fighting.
FAQ
What does tarneeb mean?
It is the Arabic word for the trump suit.
Is Tarneeb like Spades?
Both are partnership bidding games, but in Tarneeb the bid winner chooses trump and the team bids together.
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