Questions tagged [scrabble]

A classic word-game where players try to use their tiles to create long and exotic words to earn the most points.

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Was "ig" ever in the OSPD?

I used to play in Scrabble tournaments about 30 years ago, but I still kept up with developments in tournament Scrabble until about 10 years ago through friends who still competed who are no longer ...
Roger Kirk's user avatar
5 votes
3 answers
485 views

Woogles puzzle: Why is K9 WILL significantly better than 2M WOE?

I'm confused. I did the Woogles.io puzzle: I played 2M WOE which scores 34 points, but the answer is K9 WILL which scores 28 points. The Woogles.io analysis bot indeed prefers WILL, despite it ...
Rebecca J. Stones's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
154 views

What is the lowest score scrabble game possible if both players place valid words on each turn?

Probably the shortest game ended in a negative score when both players passed in consective turns and players could even worse deliberately but snarling the board so badlY that words can't be placed ...
user2617804's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
116 views

What is the position on compound words in German language Scrabble?

I have tried googling this and have found nothing. Maybe it's just that I don't speak German so can't google properly. So, I understand that in German arbitrary compound words can be created. It is ...
ThePopMachine's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
105 views

Is there a dictionary for Woogles.IO?

I've been getting into Scrabble recently, playing at Woogles.IO. Only I don't know what are or aren't counted as words there. I realize that, depending on playing mode, I can try placing words ...
Rebecca J. Stones's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
578 views

Adam Logan vs. Ben Schoenbrun (2023 Canadian Scrabble Classic): where can JUN be placed?

In this YouTube video, the commentators say in this position that if Adam Logan plays JUN then Ben Schoenbrun will play SIJO and win. However, I cannot find where JUN can be legally placed on this ...
Rebecca J. Stones's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
237 views

Have the two English Scrabble™ dictionaries ever gotten out of sync?

Currently, in North America, the definitive reference for which words are valid in tournament play is the NASPA Word List, which in 2019 replaced the Official Tournament and Club Word List. However, ...
Timothy Chow's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
118 views

Does Scrabble alllow inflection and agglutination in various languages?

In English, words are pretty much independent dictionary units, though we do have "socks" alongside "sock", "agglomerator" alongside "agglomerate", and the like,...
Joshua Fox's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
591 views

Why is the first word doubled in Scrabble?

How does the first-word-is-double-points rule affect the game of scrabble? From a game design point of view. I wonder if it gives an (additional?) advantage to the first player, or actually makes the ...
minseong's user avatar
  • 419
2 votes
1 answer
303 views

Scrabble question about adding prefix and suffix in single play

"Invest" is on the Scrabble board with spaces before and after. I have "d,e,e, and r" sitting in my tray. Is it legal to add "re" before and "ed" after in a ...
Douglas Kellar's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
332 views

Alternate spellings in Scrabble

A question about alternate spellings of accepted Scrabble words: For example, "aby" (to endure or abide) can also be spelled "abye." Supposing I place the tiles for "aby" ...
Douglas Kellar's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
76 views

What 2-letter words were added/removed in each eddition of the OSPD?

It's pretty easy to find a current 2-letter word list for Scrabble. Where can I find the changes that happened to the 2-letter word list in each version of the Official Scrabble Player's Dictionary? ...
Zags's user avatar
  • 18k
3 votes
1 answer
272 views

How many letters are needed for a bingo in 9 tile Scrabble?

When playing the 9 tile variant in scrabble do you need to play all nine tiles at once for a bingo or just 7 tiles as per the regular rules.
Kelly's user avatar
  • 31
28 votes
7 answers
10k views

Has it ever been an official rule that I have to demonstrate knowledge of what a word means in order to play it in Scrabble?

I was playing a game of Scrabble with a friend recently. We agreed on the dictionary to use for challenges and began. Partway through the game, I picked an uncommon word to play and my friend asked me ...
Robert Columbia's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
289 views

Is this a legal move in scrabble?

In a game of Scrabble, the original word on the board was “AMEND”: AMEND I added an ‘S’ to the end to spell the word “SPA” vertically. AMENDS P A I thought it was a legal move, but it was ...
Scrabbletimesthree's user avatar
22 votes
4 answers
10k views

Is this a legal play in Scrabble?

My friend played the 'A' and the 'X' tiles underneath the word REARMICE and I was confused as I didn't believe it was legal to play words alongside other words. He also stated that he received points ...
xemulas's user avatar
  • 237
0 votes
1 answer
801 views

Are double movement in Scrabble allowed?

I am trying to put the word "ring" in scrabble in one move together with the the word er in the opposite direction. My girlfriend says it is cheating, is it ? There is obviously a lot at ...
Chris's user avatar
  • 29
0 votes
0 answers
119 views

Double/triple space scoring [duplicate]

If you play a letter on a double or triple space and it makes 2 different words going in 2 directions, do you get double/triple points for BOTH words??
Virginia's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
5k views

In Scrabble, does a blank tile on the double/triple word square count?

If the blank tile is on a triple word tile while you are making a word, does it still count as a triple word?
Nicky's user avatar
  • 87
4 votes
0 answers
264 views

Smallest Scrabble board with all letters in play

Was just doing a mental exercise and thought I'd ask people with actual knowledge and expertise in the game's theory: What is the "smallest" legal Scrabble board on which all letters have ...
DKqwerty's user avatar
  • 103
30 votes
2 answers
5k views

Was it ever the case that Scrabble tiles had to be placed contiguously?

I learnt to play Scrabble with my grandma in the 80s, and for years she was the only person I played against (I didn't have a board). She played the rules she was taught when she first learnt the game ...
David Neill Johnston's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
4k views

Scoring first word with all 7 letters

What scoring conditions apply if all 7 letters are used for the first word in Scrabble? Does the player get double points for the word AND 50 points for using all their tiles?
KeBa's user avatar
  • 59
-4 votes
1 answer
190 views

Can I ignore parts of words to make valid words?

In scrabble can you form a word ignoring the last letter of a word on the board. Ex. REEK is on the board Then I add T, to form TREE, ignoring the K. It looks like this on the board: TREEK
mayanaise's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
1k views

Is this move permitted in Scrabble? [duplicate]

My wife and I had a heated discussion on whether the move below was permissible under the official Scrabble rules. In this case, I added the letters O, I to form OE and OI. She claims it was a double ...
Winston's user avatar
  • 21
4 votes
2 answers
623 views

In Scrabble, what happens if a player has to leave the game early?

Earlier today, a group of us were playing Scrabble. One of us had to leave early due to something external. What happens to that player's tiles?
user1207177's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
280 views

Which language of Scrabble scores the most points on average per game?

Some languages have more words than others, especially 2-3 letter words, which would probably allow for a higher average game score. For example, although the same language, English, the Collins 2019 ...
CreativiTimothy's user avatar
10 votes
1 answer
7k views

Scrabble - Parallel Words joined at one letter [duplicate]

Parallel words joined at a single letter forming a second word. I cannot seem to find a clear answer to this scrabble question. Say player one plays, "scrabble" as their first word. Is it ...
Tim's user avatar
  • 203
4 votes
2 answers
203 views

If you have 2 "s" in your rack, do you score statistically higher playing the extra "s" immediately or saving it?

Although it doesn't happen often, when I have 2 "s" in my rack, I'm not sure if I should try to use one immediately to score an additional 2-7 points, or save both s's for bingos/parallel ...
CreativiTimothy's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
589 views

What are the differences in strategy going first vs going second, vice versa, in Scrabble?

My initial thoughts: when going first, you have no choice but to open the board, but you get to choose how you want the board to be opened, most likely based on your rack and if you know your opponent'...
CreativiTimothy's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
277 views

When is it worth playing around "s" in Scrabble? I.e., trying not to spell words that "s" can be appended to for a parallel word

I often find myself in situations where I have to choose between a high scoring word where the opponent can stick s to score highly, or if I should pick a lower-scoring word that you can't add "s&...
CreativiTimothy's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
87 views

How much of an advantage does it give to draw all 2 blank tiles and/or 4 S tiles in Scrabble?

I'm playing against someone who I've had close games with, but now they're up 110 points in a game (they have 420, I have 310) where they drew all the S's and blank tiles. I wonder if this is a ...
CreativiTimothy's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
821 views

Does my Scrabble play have to be all adjacent tiles?

Do all tiles played in one move need to be adjacent to each other? Example - there is a Y on the board, can a player place the letter E on both sides to make the word EYE ?
Chris Hanks's user avatar
15 votes
4 answers
1k views

What are the odds in Scrabble of not being able to make a legal move on opening turn

I've been playing the game for 50 years and this happened to me recently: I had the following rack PBQZJDH And so I could not play a legal move. I've been trying to work out the odds of this (no ...
Jim McGuigan's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
274 views

How would it change the game play style if players can see each other's racks in Scrabble?

I've always been curious, and wanting to try this with a friend, but I don't know any real life friends that would play me. Also no apps that I know support it afaik, and you'd have to manually tell ...
CreativiTimothy's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
300 views

How many vowels and consonants should you keep at the end of the turn in Scrabble?

I'm no professional player at all, but it seems like a balanced rack could be keeping a certain number of vowels/consonants. Considering there are 100 letter tiles, 56 consonants and 42 vowels, with a ...
CreativiTimothy's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
203 views

If using an anagram solver is possible/permitted in Scrabble, what additional strategies should you use?

Often on online multiplayer apps of Scrabble and Words With Friends, you have unlimited time to make your move. As a result, most people use anagram solvers to "cheat". However, because this ...
CreativiTimothy's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
1k views

If I extend a word, do I get points for all the words, or just the straight line word?

I'm having an argument that will determine the winner Board looks like this: S AB DE N D If you add E to get: S AB DE EN D Do you get points for just SADE and EN, or do you get AB and DE as ...
Bamboo's user avatar
  • 131
2 votes
1 answer
943 views

first player had to pass- points for second player?

First player had to pass in opening the game due to drawing all consonants and had no options after searching helps on google. Would the next player get double points instead?
Stacie Spurgeon's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
87 views

consequence for illegal double word plays

When a player uses tiles that do not properly spell an acceptable word and their opponent successfully challenges, the offending player loses their turn. What is the consequence when a player makes ...
TRACY WARD's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
6k views

How to count a word covering both triple and double word cells? [duplicate]

In my game I managed to produce a word womanizers which covers both "double word" and "triple word" squares. Should I myltiply final count by 2, 3 or 6?
xuesheng's user avatar
  • 135
0 votes
1 answer
185 views

Scrabble game rules [duplicate]

While playing scrabble, the word mount was on the board, my opponent added ing, making the word mounting, then wanted to make a word off the g in the same turn, is that a legal play?
vondjsyahoocom's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
254 views

Scrabble premium word score question [duplicate]

In the following scenario, does a double word premium apply to both words made on the same turn? Player 1 plays the word "book". Player 2 plays the word "shot", placing the "s" on a double word score ...
user30891's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
341 views

Where can one find an up-to-date list of all accepted Scrabble words

I would like a list of all up to date Scrabble words. Where can I find one in list form please? I have tried Tile Fish and also Collins.
Jan Allen's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
226 views

Scrabble vs. Unspeakable Words

What are the differences between the letter distribution and the letter scoring on Scrabble and Unspeakable Words? Are there any other differences? Are these games similar in some ways? Next ...
Scratch---Cat's user avatar
13 votes
2 answers
9k views

Impossible Scrabble Words

Are there any words that are impossible on Scrabble even if the blank tiles are used? I mean that the words can't be played because there are not enough tiles to play it.
Scratch---Cat's user avatar
1 vote
3 answers
1k views

What does the Scrabble board look like in foreign languages?

What does the Scrabble board look like in foreign languages? I recently saw a 19x19 Scrabble board, which might be used in German, but I'm not sure.
Scratch---Cat's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
3k views

What is the highest game score theoretically possible in Scrabble using 1 player and the International Scrabble Dictionary?

This is one for simulation and some guesses on the strategy to used e.g. is it best to always get the bonus every turn or do the most combinations even if it doesn't use up all the letters every turn. ...
user2617804's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
24k views

Scoring when two triple word squares are covered in one play

The word QUAGMIRE is on the board vertically, with the Q on the top row, second column. The next player creates SQUEEZED horizontally, landing the S on the triple word square in the top row, first ...
Stephen Hoste's user avatar
-2 votes
1 answer
7k views

How do premium squares work across multiple turns and words in Scrabble? [closed]

The official Scrabble rules contain the following: Premium squares only count on the first turn they are used on. If a subsequent turn uses a letter that was previously placed on a premium square, ...
Haris's user avatar
  • 1
-2 votes
3 answers
2k views

Can I make a word going through another word?

For instance the word PLAY is on the board, and I put BOARD using the A from PLAY. Is that acceptable?
user26680's user avatar