Why the game dictionaries disagree
There is no single "Scrabble dictionary". North American players use the NASPA Word List (often still called TWL), while the rest of the English-speaking world plays with Collins Scrabble Words, which is about half as large again because it includes British, Australian, South African and archaic words. Words With Friends began with ENABLE, a free list put together for word games, and has been edited by its publisher since then.
The differences show up most in short words, which matter most in play. ZO, JA and OU are valid in Collins but not in the US list. QI and ZA are valid in both Scrabble lists but missing from the original ENABLE list. Type them into the checker to see the pattern for yourself, and keep the two-letter word list handy.
What makes a word playable
- Inflections count. Plurals, verb forms and comparatives (quizzes, quizzed, quizzing) are separate valid entries.
- Proper nouns don't. Names of people, places and brands are not allowed unless they also have an ordinary meaning (china, bob).
- No abbreviations, hyphens or apostrophes. Words like don't or e-mail can't be played as written.
- Unusual isn't the same as invalid. Word lists are full of rare words like qaid and qoph, which are both handy Q-without-U words.
Settling an argument fairly
Before the game starts, agree which list you are playing with. Most disputes come from one player thinking in US words and the other in UK words. When a word is challenged, type it here, set the verdict to your agreed dictionary, and let the badge decide. The definition is shown too, so you can see what the word means as well as whether it is listed. For finding words rather than checking them, use the Scrabble word finder or the word unscrambler.