ABAKA and ABACA

The more you read through the Official Scrabble Dictionary, the more you'll see that a vast percentage of words are given alternate spellings. Sometimes a LOT of alternate spellings.  (To be frank, misspelled words that the Powers that Be decided to include for God knows what reason.)

ABACA and ABAKA are relatively straightforward.

An ABACA is a tree, also called Manila hemp, grown in the Philippines, and ABAKA is another way to spell it.

It is a very important tree - provides fibers for clothing as well as preventing soil erosion.

D is for DAL

A DAL is an Indian dish of lentils and spices.

As with many words in the Scrabble Dictionary, it has alternate spellings.

DAHL and DHAL are also forms of DAL.

They are each pluralized with an S.

Do not confuse DAHL, DHAL or DAL with DHAK, which is an Asian drum.

C is for CAB

When you think of the word CAB, you think of taking a CAB - a TAXI.

However, CAB has been turned into a verb. So,

"We CABBED to the restaurant."

"We were CABBING through Central Park when we saw the meteorite."

"CABS are hard to find this time of night."

The driver of a CAB is called a CABBY or CABBIE.

If you pluralize CAB and then anagram it, you get SCAB.

"The cut SCABBED over."

"This wound is already SCABBING over."

To be covered with SCABS is to be SCABBY. "The wounds were SCABBILY covered."

Find the bingo: EENMHAT

There is one bingo in the following 7 letters:

E E N M H A T

Can you find it?

Time yourself, how long did it take?

B is for BAA

Sheep BLEAT, and the sound they make is often said to be a BAA.

The sheep BAAED. The sheep are BAAING. That sheep BAAS loudly.

A sheep that is two years old is called a TEG or TEGG.

Male TEGGS will TUP, or have sex with, a female sheep.

A sheep that is not castrated is a TUP. and when it has sex, that's called TUPPING.

A sheep that is castrated is called a WETHER.

Add an L to BAA and you get BAAL. BAAL was once the name of an Egyptian god, now it just means a false god that someone worships.

BAAL is pluralized BAALS or BAALIM.

The worship of a false god is called BAALISM.

BAAL was originally spelled with the Hebrew letter AYIN (or AIN), and so it would have a diacritical mark and so not technically be suitable for Scrabble, but Scrabble allows it because it ignores diacritical marks.


Anagram BAA to ABA.

An ABA is a garment worn by Arab men. The ABAYA is worn by women. (According to the official Scrabble dictionary).

According to an online dictionary, ABA and ABAYA are interchangeable.

If you pluralize ABA, you get ABAS.

And if you anagram ABAS, you get BABA, which is a rum cake. BABA is also spelled BABKA.

A is for AAL

"AAH,, isn't that a pretty AAL?

"AHA, I agree with you!"

An AAL is an East Indian shrub. It is pluralized AALS.

You can add two "I's" to the end of AAL for AALII(S), which is another East Indian tree.

It can be anagrammed ALA, which is Latin for part of a wing, and is used to describe things, other than bird wings, that resemble wings.  This word is pluralized ALAE.    (ALAS is a word meaning SORROW.)

For example, the two upper parts of the pelvic ILIUM, including the ILIAC crest, are called ALA(S).

2 letter words: AL, AM, AN, AR, AS, AT

AL

AL is an East Indian tree, not to be confused with the AAL or the AALII, which are also East Indian trees.

AL is pluralized ALS.

Anagrammed, LA is a musical note, and LAS is a plural of the musical note.


AM is the present tense singular of "to be.

AN is an indefinite article.

AR

AR is the phonetic spelling of the letter R.   It is pluralized ARS.

The anagram of ARS is RAS, which is the word PRINCE in Ethiopian.


AS is an adverb which means, "to the same degree."

AT is a preposition, and means, "in the position of"

2 letter words: AG and AH and AI

AG 

AG is short for agriculture.  It is pluralized AGS.   The plural form, AGS, is anagrammed GAS.

AH

AH is an exclamation, and another spelling of AAH.

It can be pluralized:   Several AHS came from the crowd. The crowd AHED. There was much AHING from the crowd.

AH is anagrammed HA, which is an exclamation also.

AHS can be anagrammed as HAS.

AI

An AI, or MANED sloth,  is a three-toed sloth, not to be confused with a two-toed sloth.

AI is pluralized with an S, AIS, and there are no anagrams.

2 letter words: AE

AE

In Scotland, "one" is spelled, and pronounced, AE.  It is not pluralized.  AE is the only form.

However, many letters go in front of AE:

GAE - to go somewhere. (anagrammed AGE)

HAE - to have

KAE - a bird  (anagrammed KEA)

MAE - more

NAE - no   (Anagrammed ANE, which also means 'one" in Scotland).

SAE - so

TAE -  to (Anagrammed ATE, EAT and TEA)

WAE - woe  (anagrammed AWE).

a KAE bird lives in Korea

Do not confuse the KAE(S) bird with the anagrammed KEA(S), which is a bird that looks like a parrot.

a KEA is a parrot in New Zealand

The KAE was jealous of the colorful plumage of the KEA.

2 letter words: AB and AD

AB(S) and BA(S)

AB is one of the abdominal muscles.  It is more often referred to as your ABS.

AB can be anagrammed as BA, which is one of the five components that make up the old Egyptian soul:

BA   and KA are the only two that are allowed in Scrabble however.

Amulet of the BA in the shape of a bird

BA is the personality, and KA is the "vital essence," what marks the difference between a living and dead person.

BA is pluralized BAS, and KAS is pluralized KAS.

Neither BAS nor KAS can be anagrammed.

AD(S)

An AD is an ADVERT or advertisement.

AD can be anagrammed to DA, which is the Welsh word for father.

ADS for DAS to take their kids to a park sometimes appear n newspapers.

ADS is anagrammed to DAS or SAD.

The DAS were SAD because their ADS for fishing tackle did not appear in the newspaper.

2 letter words: A is for AA

Top lava is AA, bottom lava is PAHOEHOE

AA is the Hawaiian name for a type of lava that is rough and full of CLINKERS.

It is the opposite of PAHOEHOE lava, which is smooth and ropy.

AA is pronounced  "ah ah" (in Hawaiian every vowel is pronounced). PAHOEHOE is pronounced "puh ho-ee-ho-ee."

The two lavas form depending on how much BASALT is in the MAGMA that flows from the earth, and how hot it is.

AA lava is pluralized AAS. (Only in Scrabble. Usually it is always just AA.) The same with PAHOEHOE(S).


In the video below, PAHOEHOE lava - smooth and ropy - is covering old CLINKERED AA.
As AA flows, the CLINKERS can be CLINKERING.
.

Welcome to the Cheyenne Scrabble Club

The Cheyenne Scrabble Club meets every Wednesday at the Laramie County Library in Cheyenne, Wyoming.

We meet from 6 pm to 8:45 pm.

Typically we meet in the Sage Room. If we are not there, ask at the info desk where the meeting is being held that week.

Contact Barbara at Nocturne_CVS@yahoo.com if you have any questions.

In addition to Scrabble we also play chess, Five Crowns, cribbage, Settlers of Catan, etc.

We welcome all skill levels.  We use dictionaries and Strategy sheets while we play. If you prefer to not use those tools, that's fine.

We have Scrabble clocks so you can play a timed game if you wish.