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Tile Synergies

Many times in the past I have been asked which letters I consider to be the most and least useful in Scrabble. My answer is normally “it depends” since Scrabble is a game of so much variety that each time you play will be unique. That being said, the Ss… Read More

(Im)proper nouns

A surprising number of common first names are valid words. If one of these is you, that’s at least one unusual word you are guaranteed to remember: BARRIE very good BARRY a blunder DANNY a hand… Read More

Downloadable Scrabble score sheet

As fans, we all know Scrabble is a fun and competitive word game where players earn points by forming words on a game board. Keeping track of scores and tiles used can make the game more enjoyable and fair. A Scrabble score sheet with tile tracking helps players monitor their… Read More

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

The letter V

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