Scrabble has added almost 2,000 new words to its dictionary – including modern slang such as ‘sitch’ and ‘noobie’.
Officials have upgraded the popular board game to be more in-keeping with the current language used today.
In its first major update in four years, the Scrabble dictionary will now allow words such as ‘Nibling’ which refers to the child of your sister or brother and ‘doncha’, a shortened term for ‘don’t you’.
The word ‘yeet’ also now counts, which can either be used as a verb meaning to throw something forcefully or as an interjection to express excitement or enthusiasm.
Scrabble players will now also be able to score points with ‘sitch’, which is short for situation and ‘noobie’, or newbie, meaning a newcomer.
Officials have upgraded the popular board game to be more in-keeping with the current language used today
Now words such as ‘Imma’, meaning I’m going to, tomoz, meaning tomorrow, and coulda, referring to could have, are now included.
But it’s not just shortened words that have made the cut on the latest edition of Official Scrabble Words, published by Collins.
Foods such as bancham, small dishes of Korean food, and birria, referring to a Mexican beef stew, are now able to gain players points.
Terms made popular by social media, such as ‘grammable’ something worthy of being shared on Instagram, have also made the cut.
‘Floof,’ a very furry animal is also one of the adjectives to be added to the existing 279,073 words.
The latest edition of the dictionary, which has been endorsed by makers Mattel and WESPA (World English-Language Scrabble Players Association), will be used in tournament and club play from January 1, 2025.
Collins Dictionaries managing editor Mary O’Neill told the Sun: ‘From three-letter gems like “ack “and int to high-scorers like “qameez” and “zonke”y, both tournament and casual players can now add many new words to their arsenal of potential game winners.’
Scrabble has been around for around 91 years and more than 150 million sets have been bought and sold in 29 languages across the world.
Scrabble is played by members of the Royal Family such as King Charles and Queen Camilla , former US President Barack Obama , Jennifer Aniston and Oprah
American architect Alfred Mosher Butts came up with the idea for the game in 1933 as the country dealt with the Great Depression and mass job loss.
Now, the game is played by members of the Royal Family such as King Charles and Queen Camilla, former US President Barack Obama, Jennifer Aniston and Oprah.
This comes as the much-loved board game changed for the first time in its 75-year history as part of a new ‘inclusivity’ drive to deter those who find the word game too ‘intimidating’ from abandoning it.
Scrabble will now be printed with a simpler version on the back of the original board for those whose knowledge of dictionaries and thesauruses is limited.
The new game from its owners Mattel is called Scrabble Together and will feature a second side ‘to make gameplay more accessible for anyone who finds word games intimidating’.
The decision to unveil a new twist came after research by Scrabble found that 75 per cent of those aged between 25 and 34 had to look up if certain words were real while playing the game.
Scrabble has been around for around 91 years and more than 150 million sets have been bought and sold in 29 languages across the world
Almost half of Scrabble players have also tried to make up words, a poll of 2,000 adults also found.
In a world increasingly becoming more digital, the research showed the importance of switching off, with more than half claiming board games help them unwind.
The new game has been designed for those aged eight and over as it is set to be a family-friendly game that can be shorter than the original head scratcher.
Said to be designed with ‘inclusivity and collaboration in mind’, Scrabble Together will allow players to work as a team to complete ‘goal cards’. Different levels of difficulty are included as options and a simpler scoring system will be used.
It means participants will not be competing to get the highest score by placing their tiles in strategically placed positions.
Instead, the winner can be the first to complete 20 ‘goal’ challenges such as ‘play a three-letter word’ or ‘play a word that touches the edge of the board’.
They can also use ‘helper cards’ with suggestions, though a player does lose if using up all their helper cards without managing to achieve a goal.