Blog

The letter W

The W comes up in four two-letter words, WE, WO, AW and OW. It’s not at all a bad letter for using in short words with J, X and Z: JAW JOW to ring a bell WAX WEX… Read More

Once you get to the stage of knowing all the two-letter words, you will develop a strong dislike for the V, as it is the only letter that does not ﬁgure in any of them. But as long as the rest of your rack isn’t all Is, Us and Ws,… Read More

The letter U

In the days before newer editions of the dictionary brought us all those U-less Q words, the U was prized as the only way you could get rid of the Q. Now that that no longer applies, it is not a particularly highly valued tile, being the least useful of… Read More

How many can play?

Scrabble, the instructions tell us, is a game for two to four players. You may well play in threes and fours at home. But step into a Scrabble club and you will ﬁnd that all games are between two players. It’s impossible to plan ahead when there are more than… Read More

Edge the Endgame

At the very end of the game, give some careful thought not just to what you want to do but also to what your opponent might do. It’s useful if you have been tile-tracking – crossing every letter off a prepared list as it is played so that you know… Read More

Play to the Board

Some players start every turn by looking at their rack, working out a word on it they would like to play, then looking for somewhere to play it. You do certainly need to look at your rack, but at the same time, look at the board. See what letters are… Read More

The letter T

The T is in that select club with N and R of being one of the best consonants for making bonus words. Not quite in the class of the S but probably the next best. The T is more versatile than the N or R, not so dependent on an… Read More

The letter S

With the exception of the blank, the S is the best letter in the set. The E is really good too, but with twelve Es in the bag you should normally get a reasonably reliable supply. The S is a different matter; there are just four of them, so treat… Read More

Words Can Begin and End with Anything

Don’t forget to examine all possibilities when looking for words, especially those seven- and eight-letter words that get you the ﬁfty-point bonus. We don’t tend to think of words so easily if they begin with a vowel, or if they end with a vowel other than E. If I ask… Read More