What words are not allowed in Scrabble?
Any word in The Official Scrabble Players Dictionary is allowed. Proper nouns, foreign words, abbreviations, acronyms, prefixes or suffixes on their own, hyphenated words, words with apostrophes and offensive words aren't. You can use the same word as often as you like.
The rule:
In Scrabble, you can play any word in The Official Scrabble Players Dictionary, except proper nouns, foreign words, abbreviations, acronyms, standalone prefixes or suffixes, hyphenated words, words with apostrophes and offensive words.
Not allowed:
- Proper nouns and names (anything that starts with a capital letter)
- Foreign words
- Abbreviations and acronyms
- Prefixes or suffixes standing alone (you can add one to a word, but not play it by itself)
- Hyphenated words
- Words with an apostrophe
- Offensive words
Repeats are fine: a word can be played again and again in the same game.
The dictionary has the final say: the rules note that dictionaries add new words every year, some of them abbreviations or foreign words. If your agreed dictionary lists a word, it counts.
Using the dictionary: look words up only to settle a challenge, not to search for something to play.
Example:
Rita wants to play OSLO, but it's a proper noun, so it isn't allowed. She rearranges the same tiles into SOLO, which is fine.
Why players argue about it:
Groups argue over names, abbreviations and whether a word can be played twice. The rules give a clear list and point to one dictionary.