# 2-letter scrabble words **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [May 12, 2010, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229 "2010-05-12T21:58:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![slugbiker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@slugbiker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slugbiker)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2010, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/1 "2010-05-12T21:58:26Z")
Responding to the updated answer to “What are the permissible two-letter words in Scrabble?”, the official list continues to change. There WERE 96 official words until March 1, 2006, at which time 5 new words (FE KI OI QI ZA) were added, bringing the list up to 101. To make it even more confusing, this official list only applies to Tournament and Club play in North America. Most English-speaking Scrabble players in the rest of the world use an expanded list (called variously SOWPODS, Collins, Collins Scrabble Words), which have an additional 22 two-letter words: CH DA DI EA EE FY GI GU IO JA KY NY OB OO OU PO ST TE UG UR YU ZO. The next update to the North American word list is not anticipated until 2013 or thereafter. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2010, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/2 "2010-05-12T22:54:09Z")
> [@slugbiker](#): > > Responding to the updated answer to “What are the permissible two-letter words in Scrabble?”, the official list continues to change. There WERE 96 official words until March 1, 2006, at which time 5 new words (FE KI OI QI ZA) were added, bringing the list up to 101. > > To make it even more confusing, this official list only applies to Tournament and Club play in North America. Most English-speaking Scrabble players in the rest of the world use an expanded list (called variously SOWPODS, Collins, Collins Scrabble Words), which have an additional 22 two-letter words: > CH DA DI EA EE FY GI GU IO JA KY NY OB OO OU PO ST TE UG UR YU ZO. > > The next update to the North American word list is not anticipated until 2013 or thereafter. when will the NA 2 letter word list reach 676 words? ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2010, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/3 "2010-05-12T23:00:23Z")
Just out of curiosity, does the official Scrabble Dictionary give definitions for these ‘words’? Last time I checked, one of the requirements for ‘words’ in the English language was the presence of at least one vowel… I’d \*\*\*really \*\*\*like to know what ‘CH’ and ‘ST’ mean. And why stop at 101? Why not just add the other 575 two-letter combinations in, and be done with it? ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2010, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/4 "2010-05-12T23:08:23Z")
> [@ed malin](#): > > when will the NA 2 letter word list reach 676 words? Well, it seems the list changes every seven years, and there are five new words each time. So that’s (676-101)/5 \* 7 = 575/5 \* 7 = 115 \* 7 = 805 years. Add that to 2006, and you find that it would be in 2811. I don’t think you have to worry. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2010, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/5 "2010-05-12T23:14:30Z")
> [@Suburban\_Plankton](#): > > Just out of curiosity, does the official Scrabble Dictionary give definitions for these ‘words’? Last time I checked, one of the requirements for ‘words’ in the English language was the presence of at least one vowel… Sh, brr, nth, and pwn beg to differ. ---
**Author:** ![jasonh300](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/46a35a/32.png) [@jasonh300](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasonh300)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2010, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/6 "2010-05-12T23:21:47Z")
> [@ed malin](#): > > when will the NA 2 letter word list reach 676 words? I have a friend who tries to use that list, and almost always loses on the challenge with the Scrabble Dictionary we use. ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/7 "2010-05-13T00:56:59Z")
Of course it’s this Classic: [What are the permissible two-letter words in Scrabble? - The Straight Dope](http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/282/what-are-the-permissible-two-letter-words-in-scrabble) ---
**Author:** ![slugbiker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@slugbiker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slugbiker)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/8 "2010-05-13T03:43:35Z")
You can find definitions for the North American 2-letter words at: [http://www.hasbro.com/scrabble/en\_US/2LetterList.cfm](http://www.hasbro.com/scrabble/en_US/2LetterList.cfm) (FYI: Hasbro owns the rights to SCRABBLE in North America, Mattel owns Scrabble everywhere else). The SOWPODS/COLLINS/CSW words and definitions are available at: [http://www.absp.org.uk/words/2lw.html](http://www.absp.org.uk/words/2lw.html) (Association of British Scrabble Players) The best way to see what words are acceptable (AND definitions) is to download the free ZYZZYVA anagrams & study program, created by Michael Thelen, from: [http://www.zyzzyva.net/](http://www.zyzzyva.net/). Zyzzyva allows you to check words in the North American word list (OWL), as well as SOWPODS/Collins, and even French). Have fun! ---
**Author:** ![slugbiker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@slugbiker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slugbiker)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/9 "2010-05-13T03:44:41Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Sh, brr, nth, and pwn beg to differ. sh, brr, and nth are good (as are SHH BRR CWM), but pwn has yet to be added. Perhaps next time? ---
**Author:** ![slugbiker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@slugbiker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slugbiker)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/10 "2010-05-13T03:51:21Z")
> [@slugbiker](#): > > sh, brr, and nth are good (as are SHH BRR CWM), but pwn has yet to be added. Perhaps next time? that’s BRRR (GRRR is not yet good) ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/11 "2010-05-13T03:51:42Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Sh, brr, nth, and pwn beg to differ. ‘nth’ is almost a word, but not quite, since the ‘n’ here is a variable, not a letter ‘pwn’ is a misspelling of ‘own’ (besides, ‘w’ is a vowel here) 🙂 ‘sh’ and ‘brr’ are sounds, not words. By that token, ‘bleearglbrmpppppphl’ is a word too, because I can say it ---
**Author:** ![slugbiker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/977dab/32.png) [@slugbiker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slugbiker)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/12 "2010-05-13T04:36:09Z")
words are added to the official scrabble dictionary because they are in a number of source dictionaries. it’s up to the lexicographers of those source dictionaries to decide which words are words–so you need to argue with them. good luck! ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/13 "2010-05-13T10:53:51Z")
> [@slugbiker](#): > > words are added to the official scrabble dictionary because they are in a number of source dictionaries. it’s up to the lexicographers of those source dictionaries to decide which words are words–so you need to argue with them. good luck! But does it matter if the words are listed with descriptors like _Archaic, non-standard spelling or abbreviation_? It should, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/14 "2010-05-13T18:40:23Z")
Those lists include “ET” as the past tense of “to eat”. Yeah, I’m trusting those lists. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/15 "2010-05-13T18:53:21Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > But does it matter if the words are listed with descriptors like _Archaic, non-standard spelling or abbreviation_? > It should, IMO. The history of how words make it into the official Scrabble dictionary is convoluted and obtuse. At this point, words are official Scrabble words because they are official Scrabble words. It’s easier to add words than to remove them. AFAIK, abbreviations were never included. But the words are just game pieces for playing the game. Their definitions or use is somewhat irrelevant. A good non-technical book on the subject is “Word Freak” by Stephan Fatsis, he covers the confusion about the official words pretty well. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/16 "2010-05-13T19:04:29Z")
Wow, so when I suggested using “qi” or “ki” in a friendly game with relatives this past Christmas, I was actually justified? (several others present knew what they meant, but we couldn’t find either in any of the dictionaries available at hand, so we didn’t use it) ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/17 "2010-05-13T20:35:17Z")
Given that they use “FA” defined as a sound in the chromatic scale, “KI” and “QI” have every bit of the legitimacy. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2010, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/18 "2010-05-13T20:42:23Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Given that they use “FA” defined as a sound in the chromatic scale, “KI” and “QI” have every bit of the legitimacy. Nitpick - FA is in the major scale. DO RE MI FA SO LA TI DO are ‘words’ - the other notes aren’t. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/19 "2010-05-14T02:31:37Z")
Not so, both because there are chromatic syllables (though the set is incomplete) and because SO is wrong – it’s SOL. Taking the key of C as an example, ```auto DO C DI C♯ RA D♭ RE D RI D♯ ME E♭ MI E FA F FI F♯ SE G♭ SOL G SI G♯ LE A♭ LA A LI A♯ TE B♭ TI B ``` SI is also found as an older form of TI. There are also alternate systems that include the notes that are missing above, plus double flats and double sharps. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2010, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229/20 "2010-05-14T19:50:09Z")
**bup** said: > [@](#): > > Nitpick - FA is in the major scale. Whatever. > [@](#): > > DO RE MI FA SO LA TI DO are ‘words’ - the other notes aren’t. Still, it gets back to what is the definition of “word”. If you’re going to accept fa as a “word”, then there is no _logical_ ground to reject qi. Or ki. But hey, who said Scrabble had to be logical? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-letter-scrabble-words/539229.md?page=2)