There are 6434 words with 9 or fewer letters that end in ING. How many of these words take an S? Answer: 897. In other words, if you see an ING word on the board, and you add an S to it, you’ll have a valid play 13.94% of the time. Here’s the list:
Here’s an interesting list (all words with 9 or fewer letters that, like AUNTIE/AUNTY, end in either IE or Y – there are 204):
This post is the first of a series of posts for THREES Left (926). Actually, even though I’ve already addressed the THREES JQXZ (89) list, I’m going to pretend I haven’t and just start over with the entire list of 1015 three-letter words. I’m not going to approach things alphabetically – instead, at least initially, I’m going to approach this list by category (using categories that I’ve made up). Here’s a link to a complete list of three-letter words arranged alphabetically: THREES ALL (1015) Alpha.
First, a bit few bits of trivia about the THREES. 778 of the 1015 words on this list can be formed by adding a letter to a two-letter word. Specifically, 528 words can be formed by adding a letter to the left (or front), and 539 words can be formed by adding a letter to the right (or back; eliminating duplicates yields 778 unique words, given that some three-letter words can be formed either way, e.g. HOS can be formed by either adding an H to OS, or adding an S to HO). 786 of the three-letter words take an S to form an acceptable four-letter word. The first time I looked at this list, I highlighted all the three-letter words that I either didn’t know or wouldn’t have felt confident enough about to play in a competitive Scrabble setting – when I finished, I had highlighted 511 of the 1015 words on the list. read more…
This is the 2nd of seven planned posts on the FIVES JQXZ (697) list. The first post is here: http://oldtownscrabble.com/06/04/fives-jqxz-1-of-7/. I covered words starting with A, B and C in the first post – I’m starting with the D words here.
There are some “DE” words here that are fairly easy to remember: DESEX, DETOX, DEWAX. DEOXY also belongs in this list. The word DEX (a sulfate) has a few derivatives: DEXES, DEXIE, DEXIES. DIAZO is a tough word to remember – somehow rhyming it with GINZO or GONZO helps. Here’s a list of words to remember:
–DIT a dot in Morse code [n –S]
–DITS– DIT, a dot in Morse code [n]
DITZ– a ditsy person [n –ES]
DITSY– silly, eccentric [adj –SIER, –SIEST]
DITZY– ditsy (silly, eccentric) [adj –ZIER, –ZIEST]
DITSIER DITSY, silly, eccentric [adj]
DITSIEST DITSY, silly, eccentric [adj]
DITZIER DITZY, ditsy (silly, eccentric) [adj]
DITZIEST DITZY, ditsy (silly, eccentric) [adj] read more…
This list–FIVES JQXZ (697)–is tough. It’s long, and it’s tough. There is some good news, though – as words get longer, there are fewer and fewer hooks, so practically any hook is a “surprise” hook. Take a look at the TWOS – there are a total of 1068 hooks from the 101 words on the list (778 unique three-letter words). That’s more than 10 hooks per two-letter word, on average. With this list, if you ignore the standard S plural, most words don’t have any hooks.
Where to start? Well, the letter A can be added to words, like BUZZ to make ABUZZ (and that’s the first word on the list) – ADOZE, AFFIX, AGAZE all follow the same pattern. And there are quite a few “MIX” words:
MIX– to put together into one mass [v MIXED or MIXT, MIXING, MIXES] : MIXABLE, MIXIBLE [adj], MIXEDLY [adv]
ADMIX to mix (to put together into one mass) [v –MIXED or –MIXT, –MIXING, –MIXES]
BEMIX to mix thoroughly [v –MIXED or –MIXT, –MIXING, –MIXES]
COMMIX to mix together [v –MIXED or –MIXT, –MIXING, –MIXES]
IMMIX to mix in [v –ED, –ING, –ES]
–PREMIX to mix before use [v –MIXED or –MIXT, –MIXING, –MIXES]
REMIX MIX, to put together into one mass [v –MIXED or –MIXT, –MIXING, –MIXES]
UNMIX to separate from a mixture [v –MIXED or –MIXT, –MIXING, –MIXES] read more…
TOURNAMENT RULES
The North American SCRABBLE Players Association (NASPA) is the official organization for competitive clubs and tournaments. It was formed in response to Habro’s decision in 2009 to end funding for these activities. As of July 1, 2009, a NASPA membership is required to participate in sanctioned tournaments ($30 for a regular membership). The NSA now focuses on promoting casual play, although it still funds and supports the National School Scrabble Program. Both the Rules Committee and the Dictionary Committee were transfered to NASPA.
Here is a link to the “rules” page on the NASAP website: http://www.scrabbleplayers.org/w/Official_Tournament_Rules.
Here are PDFs (the same PDFs that can be downloaded from the NASPA site) of the Official Tournament Rules and Rule Changes (as of Feb 2, 2010).
OTHER LINKS:
1-Page Rule Summary, compiled by Rebecca Slivka, www.seattlescrabble.org
THE SCRABBLE COMMUNITY
NSA: The National Scrabble Association (NSA), founded in 1978, is a collaboration between Hasbro and Scrabble enthusiasts. The NSA is responsible for the National School SCRABBLE Program, SCRABBLE Media Relations, and publishes the SCRABBLE News. The NSA also maintains a list of casual Scrabble clubs on its website (http://www2.scrabble-assoc.com/CasualClubs.asp) and operates an online store of Scrabble merchandise (www.wordgear.com). Membership costs $20 ($25 outside the U.S. and Canada) and gets you a subscription to the SCRABBLE News. If you are a member, you can log into the site and access back copies of the SCRABBLE News and some other useful PDF documents (a glossary of common terms, a short history of Scrabble, a tip sheet, etc.). Until July 1, 2009, the sale of publications like the OLW2 at www.wordgear.com were restricted to NSA members. read more…
THE OFFICIAL SCRABBLE LEXICON
[Note: Books cited below are linked to Amazon.com.]
Unlike other games that rely on a fairly simple set of rules that both define and encompass the game – like a ship in a bottle – Scrabble opens itself up, in a drunken gesture, to all the chaos and unruliness of language itself. Scrabble, in this way, is the opposite of chess. In chess, all possible moves, together with all strategic possibilities, are neatly bounded by a fairly simple set of rules. Part of the attraction of chess, I believe, is the sense of wonderment a player encounters and continuously relives as he or she explores the almost infinite creative space generated and sustained by a set of rules simple enough they can be learned in half an hour. It’s like discovering a football stadium inside a Happy Meal box. read more…
Scrabble Bloggers Wanted
In addition to comments on any/all content, we need posters to:
- Post study notes for the word lists on the Word Study page. We need commentary, tips, mneumonics, and anything else that will help readers familiarize themselves with the words on these lists. The best of these posts will be grouped together and posted as links from the permanent Word Study. These posts will also be categorized (so that can be pulled up by category using the Category Search tool). read more…
This post references Q No QU (22). This list includes all acceptable Scrabble words that contain a Q, but no a QU combination. For example, the word QIVIUT is included on the list because it includes a Q, and although it also includes a U, the U does immediately follow the Q. The same is true for SUQ, UMIAQ, BUQSHA.
Although the addition of the word QI in the OSPD4 made playing the Q easier (and getting stuck with the Q in you rack at the end of the game less likely), knowing these unusual Q words is still valuable. read more…
Here is a link to the THREES JQXZ list: THREES JQXZ (89).
There are 89 words on the list. The first surprise hook is ADZ, which takes an E (ADZE). The first interesting word cluster is related to the word AXE (and its L hook):
AXAL axial (pertaining to or forming an axis) [adj]
AXEL a jump in figure skating [n –S]
AXIAL pertaining to or forming an axis [adj] : AXIALLY [adv]
AXIL the angle between the upper side of a leaf and its supporting stem [n –S]
AXILE axial (pertaining to or forming an axis) [adj]
AXLE a shaft upon which a wheel revolves [n –S] : AXLED [adj]
Basically, every spelling of AXLE you might think of is an acceptable Scrabble play. read more…
I used a different approach (a visualization exercise) in another post as an aid to learning these same words (TWOS ALL (101) Cat). This time around I’m going to focus on hooks.
Download this table: TWOS Hook Grid FILLED. In this table, the alphabet runs vertically down the middle of the page and the 101 two-letter Scrabble words are represented as extensions or hooks to the left and/or right of each letter of the alphabet. For example, twelve of the 101 two-letter words can be formed by adding different letters to the left of the letter A – AA, BA, FA, HA, KA, LA, MA, NA, PA, TA, YA, ZA. read more…
This post references the TWOS ALL (101) Cat file (see the Word Study page, Beginner 1.2).
Two-letter words are as critical as a good short game in golf. It doesn’t matter if you can drive the ball 300+ yards, if you can’t putt, you won’t be competitive. It’s the same with Scrabble – you may be good as spotting bingos in your rack, but if you don’t know your two-letter words, you’re not going to get very far.
You need to know, without thinking about it or second-guessing yourself, which two-letter words are acceptable, which two-letter combinations are not (so you can challenge), which two-letter words take an S (important when you’re looking for a hook for a longer word), and which two-letter openings you need to be careful about opening up for your opponent (important for defensive play). read more…
Note: The comments are about the TWOS JQXZ file (Beginner, 1.1).
The 8 words on this list will yield more benefit per word that any other list you’ll learn.
The first word is AX. Here are the hooks:
AXE to ax (to work on with an ax (a type of cutting tool)) [v AXED, AXING, AXES]
FAX to transmit and reproduce by electronic means [v –ED, –ING, –ES]
LAX not strict or stringent [adj LAXER, LAXEST]; a vowel articulated with relatively relaxed muscles [n –ES]
MAX to reach the upper limit [v –ED, –ING, –ES]
PAX a ceremonial embrace given to signify Christian love and unity [n –ES]
RAX to stretch out [v –ED, –ING, –ES]
SAX a saxophone [n –ES]
TAX to place a tax (a charge imposed by authority for public purposes) on [v –ED, –ING, –ES]
WAX to coat with wax (a natural, heat-sensitive substance) [v –ED, –ING, –ES] : WAXABLE [adj]
ZAX a tool for cutting roof slates [n –ES] read more…
In competitive Scrabble, both players keep score. Although some players are comfortable with a blank sheet of paper, most players prefer a preprinted form that, in addition to helping them keep score, also makes it easier for them to track tiles, record their own racks, and record the position of plays to facilitate later game analysis. Numerous different score sheets can be downloaded from the following club’s websites (other sheets can easily be located on other club websites):
Ottawa Scrabble Club, http://www.ottawascrabbleclub.com/scoresheets.html
Forest Lake Scrabble, http://flscrabble.tripod.com/id22.html
Los Angeles Scrabble Club, http://www.thescrabbleclub.com/scoresheets.html
Calgary Scrabble Group, http://www.calgary374.org/ScoreSheetsPage.php
Seattle Scrabble Club, http://www.seattlescrabble.org/links.php read more…
Club Sites
Products
Scrabble Community
Study Tools
There are 178,691 words in the OWL2-LWL. If you eliminate words with 9 or more letters, the count is reduced to 112,817 (a number that is only slightly less intimidating). If you assume that derivatives (plurals, ed-ing-s, ier-iest, etc.) expand the lexicon by a factor of 3 and that an average individual may know (and be able to confidently play 1/3) of these words, that still leaves approximately 27,000 words to learn.
Three pieces of advice:
1) Be smart about it. Some words are more valuable than others, so learn the high-payoff words first, then work your way to down to less valuable vocabularly. See the Word Study page for a suggested study program and word lists. read more…
NOTE: This post relates to the “VOWEL DUMPS Short” (Beg. 1.5) word list or note sheet (see the Word List page).
This is my fourth post on the VOWEL DUMPS Short word list. I’m starting with word #69 (the first five-letter word on the list) and finishing the list out (down to word #89).
The first word is AALII. A good association here is AAL (remember, though, AAL is the shrub, add two Is and you get the tree). Everyone knows ADIEU, but did you know the plural is either ADIEUS or ADIEUX? AECIUM follows the UM-to-A pattern (most of the more well-known UM words both take an S to form the plural and follow the UM-to-A pattern, but not all UM words – AECIUM, for example, does NOT take an S (AECIUMS is NOT a word), unlike AQUARIUM that goes to either AQUARIUMS or AQUARIA in the plural. read more…
NOTE: This post relates to the “VOWEL DUMPS Short” (Beg. 1.5) word list or note sheet (see the Word List page).
This is my 3rd post on the VOWEL DUMPS Short list. I’m starting with IDEA (Word #38) – we’ll see how far I get…
ILEUM and ILIUM are the singular forms of ILEA and ILIA (note the UM changes to an A to form the plurals). These two words have a nice cluster of hook words:
PILEA PILEUM, the top of a bird’s head [n]
ILEAC pertaining to the ileum [adj]
ILEAL ileac (pertaining to the ileum) [adj]
CILIA CILIUM, a short, hairlike projection [n]
MILIA MILIUM, a small, whitish lump in the skin [n]
ILIAC pertaining to the ilium [adj]
ILIAD a long poem [n –S]
ILIAL iliac (pertaining to the ilium) [adj] read more…
NOTE: This post relates to the “VOWEL DUMPS Short” (Beg. 1.5) word list or note sheet (see the Word List page).
I’m going to start with word 18 and move down the list through word 37 (AMIA through EURO).
The first two words (AMIA and AMIE) are both hooks from AMI:
AMI a friend [n –S]
This matches up well with AMIE (a female friend), so think of adding an A and and E to AMI as a way to get a fish and female companionship. Also interesting here are the four front hooks for these two words:
LAMIA a female demon (an evil spirit) [n –MIAS or –MIAE]
ZAMIA a tropical plant [n –S]
MAMIE mamey (a tropical tree) [n –S]
RAMIE an Asian shrub [n –S]
Almost hate to acknowledge it, but LAMIA can easily be remember by associating it with LABIUM/LABIA, ZAMIA is a great Z word (for stretching from a DL to a DW, etc.). MAMIE and RAMIE just have to get filed in the interesting “plant” hook category. read more…
NOTE: This post relates to the “VOWEL DUMPS Short” (Beg. 1.5) word list or note sheet (see the Word List page).
The word lists I’ve posted are include inner and outer hooks, definitions and a column for notes (I refer to these lists as Note Sheets). These sheets are designed to facilitiate familiarization. Keep in mind that the real test of whether or not a word has been learned is whether or not you can pick it out of a rack of letters (i.e. can you anagram it?). More on that later.
Right now the task at hand to become “familiar” with the 89 “short” vowel dumps on the VOWEL DUMP Short list, so here goes. read more…
I’ve put up a couple pages:
Lexicon: If you’re curious about what words can be played in competitive Scrabble (and what all the abbreviations mean, like OWL2, OSPD4, etc.), read this page.
Community: If you want to know about associations, clubs, books to read, where to buy custom Scrabble boards, etc., then take a look at this page.
I’m in the process of putting together a couple more pages (a word list page and a page to blog about learning word lists).
Brent
I’ve set up this site with a few objectives in mind (objectives that can, I think, be met by a blog):
- To give the Nacogdoches Scrabble Club (in the process of being formed) a home,
- To have a place to post word lists and other information,
- To find a group of people that are studying the same words lists I am (maybe together we can make the process a little easier and/or a little more entertaining), and
- To find and hang out with (virtually, anyway) other people that enjoy the game of Scrabble enough to want to play it competitively.
Brent