Possible New SCRABBLE Words?

QI and ZA.

QIn pl. -S the vital force that in Chinese thought is inherent in all things

ZAn pl. -S a pizza

For over a decade, these words have been used in SCRABBLE play, but not in the US or Canada.  It wasn't until their addition in the Official SCRABBLE Players Dictionary, Fourth Edition (OSPD4) in 2005 that they revolutionized offensive play across the world.

But QI and ZA weren't the only words added to the OSPD4; there were more than 4,000 additions compared to the OSPD3 from 1996.  Internet terms such as BLOGGING, EMAILS, WEBCAMS, and WEBPAGES finally made it, along with these NEWBIES:

APPLETn pl. -S a computer program for a simple task

BATGIRLn pl. -S a girl who minds baseball equipment [no... not the superhero]

BLOGn pl. -S a website containing a personal journal

BURKAn pl. -S a long loose outer garment worn by some Muslim women

CHIANTIn pl. -S a dry red wine [wine of choice of Hannibal "The Cannibal" Lecter]

COKELIKEadj resembling coke (a carbon fuel) [no... not the "carbon"ated soda]

EARBUDn pl. -S a small earphone

EBOOKn pl. -S a device for reading books in electronic format

EMAILv-ED, -ING, -S to send a message to by computer

GELCAPn pl. -S a tablet coated with gelatin

KLICKn pl. -S a kilometer [the US military had been using this for decades]

NEWBIEn pl. -S a newcomer

PERVn pl. -S one who has been perverted

QADIn pl. -S a cadi (Muslim judge)

VIDn pl. -S a video

WEBCAMn pl. -S a camera used for transmitting live images over the World Wide Web

WEBPAGEn pl. -S a single document on the World Wide Web

ZINEn pl. -S a magazine

ZIPLOCKadj having a groove and ridge that form a tight seal when joined

ZZZinterj — used to suggest the sound of snoring

*See the complete list (which includes omitted words) by the National SCRABBLE Association.

With our ever changing contemporary culture and further technical advancements, one day there will be a need for a new SCRABBLE Dictionary—the Fifth Edition—the OSPD5.

Merriam-Webster, who publishes the SCRABBLE Dictionary, is always on the lookout for new words in our culture.  Words are constantly tracked by citation editors from all dictionaries, and once the word is cited enough, it becomes eligible for consideration in SCRABBLE.  See Merriam-Webster's FAQ on word determination.

Also good to know—when there is a common foreign word that has no literal English translation, that foreign word becomes good; think TACO and the possible upcoming SUDOKU.

Sometimes words actually make it into the SCRABBLE Dictionary, then are removed in a later publication, and then favored again for consideration into a newer version.  STETSON is a good example, because it's used more commonly as a generic term.  It was added, then removed due to a trademark claim by the Stetson hat company.  Although STETSON hasn't made it back into the OSPD yet, it has been admitted into the OWL2, so it's sure to be in the upcoming OSPD5.

John D. Williams Jr, Executive Director of the NSA, acknowledges that all of this can be obscure to most people, "but if you love words and language, it's pretty wild stuff."

But when this new SCRABBLE Dictionary comes out (whenever that may be), which words will make their first appearance?

There are two lists here.  The first list are words that have been rumored to make it into the next edition, and the second list are words I would like to see added.  My "WISHLIST" is pretty small right now, but when I think of them, I'll add them.  What words are you looking forward to?  And what words would you like to see?

PS: I will continually update these lists, when necessary.

RUMORED NEW SCRABBLE WORDS

BLINGn/pl flashy expensive jewelry

DOCUSOAPn pl. -S a television documentary with soap opera elements

DUMPSTERn pl. -S a large trash receptacle [amazing this one isn't already in the dictionary]

EMMYn pl. EMMYS nickname for image orthicon (a camera tube used in television)

FRISBEEn pl. -S a plastic disk for tossing between players

GOOGLEvGOOGLED, GOOGLING, GOOGLES to search the World Wide Web

HIMBOn pl. -BOS or -BOES an attractive but unintelligent man

JELLOn pl. JELLOS a fruity gelatin dessert

KLEENEXn pl. -ES a paper cleansing tissue

PODCASTn pl. -S a downloadable digital audio program on the Internet

PREGGARSadj preggers (pregnant)

REGIFTv -ED, -ING, -S give to someone else

REGIFTERn pl. -S one who regifts

SUDOKUn pl. -S a Japanese numerical logic puzzle

TASEvTASED, TASING, TASES to shoot with a taser

TASERn pl. -S a gun that fires electrical darts

UNIBROWn pl. -S a single eyebrow formed from two UNIBROWEDadj

VASELINEn pl. -S petroleum jelly

VELCROn pl. -ROS or -ROES a fabric fastener

VELCROv -ED, -ING, -ROS or -ROES to velcro together

VLOGn pl. VLOGS a blog that contains video

WEBISODEn pl. -S a short television show on the Internet

WISHLIST OF NEW SCRABBLE WORDS

ACAIn pl. -S a purple berrylike fruit from a tall palm tree

CINEPLEXn pl. -ES a portmanteau word for cinema and multiplex

GOJIn pl. -S a wolfberry (small tart Asian berry)

KWYJIBOn pl. -S a big, dumb, balding North American ape, with no chin (from The Simpsons)

OLLIEvOLLIED, OLLIEING, OLLIES to perform a skateboarding jump trick

REPOSTv-ED, -ING, -S to display, announce, or send something again [I do this often]

RINGTONEn pl. -S an alert on a cell phone triggered by an incoming call

SLOWCOREn/pl subgenre of rock music, usually with minimalist arrangements (ex. Low)

SPYWAREn/pl malicious software from the Internet

TEXTvTEXTED, TEXTING, TEXTS to send a message via a mobile phone

VOGn pl. VOGS volcanic smog

WISHLISTn pl. -S a list of desired items

Sources: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, John D. Williams Jr (SCRABBLE News #232)

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