Stock image From ‘nibling’ to ‘zonkey’, trendy wordsmiths are being encouraged to explore the swathe of new words that Scrabble has added as part of a new edition of Collins’ Official Scrabble Words. The updated words will be used in official Scrabble tournaments from January 1, 2025. This is the first major update since 2010.
Alongside the unorthodox and modern slang, the boardgame have announced the addition of new words such as ‘sitch’ for situation,’ noobie’ for a person new to a job, game etc and even ‘yeet’ a slang term popularised on the internet meaning to throw. The company have announced several updated words to encompass a range of interests and hobbies for both new and current players. For foodies the new words include ‘banchan’ (small dishes of Korean food), ‘birria’ (Mexican beef stew) and ‘cachumber’ (Indian side salad).
Social media users have, courtesy of Scrabble, been provided with yet more shortened expressions including ‘coulda’ (could have) and ‘grammable’ (worthy of sharing online). Those who enjoy playing video games or gamers are provided with a range of choices such as ‘esport’ (video game played competitively in front of spectators) or creating an ‘avi’ (avatar). Even animal lovers are being encouraged to utilise new words with options including ‘floof’ (flurry animal), ‘hoglet’ (young hedgehog) and ‘uwu’ (expression or admiration for something considered cute).
The company compiled the updated words using a language database known as the the Collins Corpus which includes words from several different countries including Australia, Canada, South Africa, the UK and America compiled into a singular list. Managing Director of Collins Dictionaries Mary O’Neill said the updated words will benefit both experienced and part-time players; “Collins is delighted to publish this latest edition of Official Scrabble Words. From three-letter gems like ack and int to high-scorers like qameez and zonkey, both tournament and casual players can now add many new words to their arsenal of potential game winners.
” Chairperson of World English-Language Scrabble Players (WESPA) Chris Lipe said well over 1,000 new words will open up “brand new possibilities” for Scrabble enthusiasts which will provide “new challenges and opportunities.” Join the Irish Independent WhatsApp channel Stay up to date with all the latest news.
