h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Betwixt was not invented for Scrabble - it is used by Milton and Shakespeare. Its root is in Middle English where it is spelt Bitwixt and in Old English it is betwix.

Amongst is from the old English too. Scrottle you were robbed! Your brother is a Scrabble cheat!

Hold on, if they are real words, then Scrottle's brother isn't a cheat - he's just ill-informed (or good at bluffing).

Hey, you could do a great rhyme with 'Scrottle' and 'Scrabble'.

Oh Kaeori you obviously are a warm hearted person who thinks the best of everyone!

Mind you I am comparing him to my brother who last week told my mum his best friend had been arrested in Morrocco with kilo of hard drugs in his trousers! Serial liar is not the word!

I mean it brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "big packet in his trousers!" !

i,d hate not to be english...no one knows what the hlls going on with the language..metaphorically it really is the dogs bolocks

i,d hate not to be english...no one knows what the hlls going on with the language..metaphorically it really is the dogs bolocks

Abi, is that your brother's way of teasing your Mum - or has he been keeping some seriously bad company?

The problem with Scrabble is when people start using 2-letter words you've never heard of (but you can be sure are in their dictionary), which always gets them lots of points, and leaves you nowhere to play on the board.

My brother cheats as well. What is it about boys that they just *have* to win...

It may be the technical term for it, but in my experience a more onomatopaeic (surely not?) version would be 'thnkthnkthnktshtssizt', but then again I may be the only person who switches the damn things off with a lump hammer.
But I doubt it.

Might this also explain why he can always complete the Grauniad crossword, too?

A great rhyme with scrottle and scrabble?
The only words that spring to mind are bottle and babble.
OK you win.

Perhaps I meant half-rhyme. I'm no poet, but I recall something in Educating Rita along these lines.

Oh yes, don't forget throttle. And rabble.

And dottle, glottal and dabble,

'What is it about boys that they just *have* to win...'

Testosterone.

What is it about who don't just *have* to win...

Vasectomy

Is 'Scrabble' a proper word? (Potential 50 point bonus if it is.)

Scrabble: - v. scrape at with hands, claws in disorderly manner -n. (S-) R word game.

From collins gem dictionary. Hope you have a fine Wednesday
Stay lucky...................:-p

I think that to scrabble means to claw at something in a frantic way, like the way a cats scrabbles at your leg when he is desparate for food.

There should be an element of hopelessness in the meaning. If you came across a loose scree whilst climbing, you would scrabble at the loose stones to try and get up, or if a building had collapsed you would scrabble at the rubble to try and reach survivors. I dont think it applies to cats and legs, but it surely applies to the game!

Ok, so I'm not going to get a Nobel Prize for stunning intelligence...

... but just what is the connection between scraping away at loose stones or rubble, and making words horizontally and vertically with letters on square tiles on a board marked with a grid?