A standard die has six faces, twelve edges, eight corners, and 21 dots in total. The dots are pips. Opposite faces always add up to seven, so 1 sits across from 6, 2 from 5, and 3 from 4. One die, two dice: die is the singular, and it’s older than most people assume.
The parts of a die
Faces are the flat surfaces you read. Edges are where two faces meet, corners where three do. A cube has six, twelve, and eight of those in that order.
The dots are called pips. Same word used for the spots on dominoes and the suit symbols on playing cards. Count all of them on a d6 and you get 21, because the faces run 1 through 6 and those add to 21. Polyhedral dice mostly use printed numerals instead, though pipped d6s outnumber every other die on earth by a wide margin.
Sharp corners versus rounded ones matter more than they look. Casino dice keep their corners sharp so the shape can be checked by eye and by tool. Game-shop dice get tumbled smooth so they roll easily on a kitchen table.
Opposite faces add to seven
Pick up any Western d6 and check. The pattern is old and near-universal, and it means the 1, 2, and 3 faces all meet at a single corner.
Which leads to something most people never notice. Look at that shared corner with 1, 2, and 3 around it. If those numbers run counterclockwise the die is right-handed. If they run clockwise it’s left-handed. Western dice are almost always right-handed. Chinese, Japanese, and Korean dice are usually left-handed, and they often have a large red 1 and a red 4, with pips packed closer to the center of each face.
Two dice from the same factory should match handedness. A mismatched pair in a casino would get pulled immediately.
Die or dice
Die is singular, dice is plural. “Roll a die” is correct and “roll a dice” is not, strictly speaking, though the second is common enough in speech that fighting it is a losing battle. Dice as a singular has been drifting into everyday use for a long time.
The plural is what people actually say, which is why searching for one of anything usually turns up the plural form instead.
What they’re made of
Most modern dice are acrylic or plastic, injection-molded and then polished. Handmade sets use resin, often with inclusions like flakes or flowers set inside.
Casino dice are a different product. They’re machined from solid blocks of transparent cellulose acetate, cut to 19mm on a side, with the pip holes drilled to identical depth and filled flush with paint of the same density as the body. Transparent so tampering shows. Same density so drilling 21 holes doesn’t quietly bias the die.
Loaded dice are the opposite of that work: weighted, off-center, or filled to favor certain faces. There are cruder versions too, with shaved edges or repeated numbers.
Each of these topics has a page of its own below, going deeper on pips and their name, the die versus dice argument, the layout of the faces, and how to spot a rigged die. If you’d rather skip the physical object entirely, the roller here does the same job with no bag to lose.
FAQ
What are the dots on dice called?
Pips. The word covers spots on dominoes and the suit marks on playing cards too. A standard six-sided die carries 21 pips across its six faces, arranged so that each face is readable at a glance without counting carefully.
Why do opposite sides of a die add up to 7?
It’s a long-standing convention that keeps the numbers spread evenly across the cube. With 1 opposite 6, 2 opposite 5, and 3 opposite 4, any pair of opposite faces sums to seven, which makes an incorrect die easy to spot.
Is it die or dice?
Die is the singular, dice is the plural. One die, two dice. Everyday speech often uses “dice” for a single one, and dictionaries now record that usage, but written rules and game text stick with die.
What is a right-handed die?
Look at the corner where 1, 2, and 3 meet. If those faces read counterclockwise, the die is right-handed, which is standard in the West. Clockwise makes it left-handed, the usual arrangement in China, Japan, and Korea.
What are casino dice made of?
Cellulose acetate, machined from transparent blocks to 19mm per side. The pips are drilled and filled with paint matching the material’s density, so removing that much material doesn’t shift the balance. The transparency lets inspectors see weights or air pockets inside.