Scrabble Bingo of the Day: WICKIUP

WICKIUP  68 points (18 points without the bingo)

Definition: an American Indian hut [n]

It's shaped like an igloo, but wickiups aren't made of snow and ice, there made of arched wooden poles and some sort of roofing material, such as grass, brush, reeds, or cloth—basically, whatever is around the area. Wickiups (or wikiups) are used to denote the kind of makeshift dwelling Native Americans would use the American Southwest and West, and is more of a generic term used by non-Native Americans for any type of temporary, seasonal domed structure built by American Indians. In the American Northeast, they're more commonly referred to as wigwams (which are actually more permanent structures) by Native Americans and non-Native Americans alike.

Inflections: WICKIUPS [pl.]

Also: WIKIUP [n]  WIKIUPS [pl.]

Also: WIGWAM [n]  WIGWAMS [pl.]

Similar Words: TIPI, TIPIS, TEPEE, TEPEES, TEEPEE, TEEPEES

Chiricahua wickiup.

Photo by Wikipedia

Ojibwe wigwam (right) with Dakota-style tipis (left).

Photo by Wikipedia

 A wickiup from around 1885.

Photo by Interstice

So, just what is a Scrabble Bingo?

A bingo is when a player empties his or her rack in one turn, placing all seven of their letters on the board to create a word that's at least seven letters long. The term "bingo" is used primarily in the U.S., but elsewhere it's simply known as a "bonus" because you get a bonus of 50 points added to your turn's score. "Scrabble Bingo of the Day" will focus on these high scoring plays, teaching you some interesting and possibly unusual seven-letter or longer words accepted in a game of Scrabble.

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