Section 4: Gameplay
Turn Sequence
The player to the dealer’s left takes the first turn, and play continues clockwise. A normal turn has three stages:
- Draw the top card of the stock, or legally take the entire discard pile.
- Optionally lay down new melds or add cards to the partnership’s existing melds.
- Discard one card face up onto the discard pile, unless the player has gone out by melding every remaining card.
A player who draws a red three immediately displays it and draws another card. This continues until the player draws a card that is not a red three. If the last stock card is a red three, it is displayed but cannot be replaced.
Making Melds
A new meld consists of at least three cards of the same rank. It must have at least two natural cards and may use up to three wild cards. Examples of legal starting melds include three nines, or two kings with one deuce. A king with two wild cards is illegal because it has only one natural card.
Both partners own and may extend every meld their side has placed. Cards in melds remain face up and should be overlapped so everyone can see their ranks and wild cards. When a meld reaches seven cards, stack it neatly to show that it is a canasta. A natural card on top can mark a natural canasta; a wild card on top can mark a mixed canasta.
Taking an Unfrozen Discard Pile
A player takes the entire discard pile, not merely its top card. If the pile is not frozen against the player’s partnership, its top natural card may be taken in either of these ways:
- Combine the top discard with two matching natural cards from the player’s hand to make a new meld.
- Add the top discard immediately to an existing meld of that rank belonging to the player’s partnership.
The top discard must be used at once in the qualifying meld. After doing so, the player adds all remaining cards from the discard pile to their hand and may make further legal plays.
Taking a Frozen Discard Pile
A pile containing a wild card or red three is frozen against both partnerships. A pile can also be treated as frozen against a partnership until that side has made its opening meld. To take a frozen pile, the player must hold two natural cards matching the top discard and meld those two cards with that discard. An existing meld does not remove this requirement.
If the partnership has not yet opened, the new meld containing the top discard may contribute to the opening requirement. Other cards played from the hand on that turn may also contribute. Cards buried in the pile cannot be counted toward the opening requirement, even though they enter the player’s hand after the pickup.
Discard-Pile Restrictions
A wild card may be discarded, but it freezes the pile and should be placed sideways so its presence remains visible. A black three blocks only the next player from taking the pile. A red three is never deliberately discarded; it must be exposed and replaced when found.
A wild card or black three on top of the pile cannot be picked up. If the top card cannot legally be used, the player must draw from the stock instead.
Going Out
A player may go out only if their partnership has completed at least one canasta. The player ends the hand by melding every remaining card or by melding all but one card and discarding the last card. A player may complete the required canasta during the same turn in which they go out.
Before going out, a player may ask, “Partner, may I go out?” The partner must answer yes or no, and the answer is binding for that turn. Asking is optional. No other discussion of either hand is allowed.
Going out concealed means a player melds their entire original hand during one turn without having previously melded or added a card to the partnership’s melds. Taking the discard pile generally prevents a concealed out because the acquired cards become part of the hand before the player finishes the turn.
Exhausting the Stock
If the stock runs out, play may continue while players can legally take the discard pile. A player who can legally take an unfrozen pile by adding its top card to an existing meld must do so; a player who would need to use a pair from hand may decline. The hand ends when a player cannot draw from the empty stock and does not take the discard pile.