Hearts

Hearts, game of cards, with several variations, usually played by three or four people, in which players attempt to lose as many tricks as possible in order to avoid having cards in the heart suit. The game is played with a standard 52-card deck; if necessary, cards of low value are discarded to give each player an equal number of cards. The cards are then dealt in succession, one at a time, to the players. The first player to the left of the dealer plays any card, and the rest of the players follow suit. The highest card of the lead suit wins the trick (ace is high), and the winner leads the next trick. If players cannot follow suit, they may play any card and thus have an opportunity to get rid of hearts. When all the tricks have been played, each player counts the number of hearts taken in and, in the usual method of scoring, receives 1 point for each heart; after several hands, the person with the fewest points wins.

In the popular variations Black Lady and Omnibus hearts, players begin each hand by passing three cards to another player, usually the player on the right. The queen of spades counts for 13 points, and if a player can successfully take all 13 hearts and the queen of spades, known as “shooting the moon,” then the player can subtract 26 points from his or her score.