Late to this thread so everything I would have said, has been. No dictionaries except for challenges. Or institute a “shot clock” if they must be used.
Just my two cents worth and I will count my change.
If 3/4 of the people playing the game are doing the same thing, I don’t think you can reasonably call that “cheating.” Still, as house rules go, this sounds like a really dumb one. I’d try to argue them out of doing it, but if they don’t want to give up their dictionaries, you’re going to have to either follow suite, or accept that you’ll be playing at a serious disadvantage.
Great advice from all of you! Thank you, I’ll implement timed turns, no dictionaries unless challenged and therefore save myself a prison term if they all went missing at once. I now understand the attraction of the Boards … You dudes are great!