The Q and Z are worth 10 points each in Scrabble, and the J and X are worth 8. There is only one of each in the bag, and together they make up close to a fifth of all the points on the tiles. They are also the tiles most likely to get stuck on your rack, because so few common words use them. A handful of short words gets you out of most of these spots.
Start with eight two letter words
Of the 107 two letter words in this site's word list, eight use one of these four tiles. Learn these first:
- jo 9
- qi 11
- xi 9
- xu 9
- za 11
- ax 9
- ex 9
- ox 9
Two letter words let you play a heavy tile next to a word that is already on the board, forming a short word in each direction. That is often the only way to fit a J or Q onto a crowded board.
Score the X twice
The X has more two letter words than any other heavy tile: AX, EX, OX, XI and XU. That makes it easy to place the X where it forms a word in both directions, so it scores in both.
On a premium square, this adds up fast. Say there is an A on the board with an open triple letter square to its right and an I just below that square. Placing the X there forms AX across and XI down. The X is worth 24 points on the triple letter square, and it counts in both words:
- AX: 1 + 24 = 25 points
- XI: 24 + 1 = 25 points
That is 50 points for a single tile. Before you play the X anywhere else, check whether any premium letter square is next to an A, E, I, O or U.
Words with a Q and no U
There are only four U tiles in a standard set, plus two blanks, so you will often draw the Q with no U. These short words do not need one:
- qat 12
- qis 12
- cinq 15
- qadi 14
- qaid 14
- qats 13
- qoph 18
- faqir 17
- niqab 16
- qanat 14
- qibla 16
- tranq 14
QI is by far the most important. QAT and QAID come next, since both use common letters. To see every option, search for words that contain Q and exclude U: four letters or five letters.
When to give up the Q
If you have the Q, no U, and nowhere to play QI, consider exchanging it. Exchanging costs you the turn, and you can only do it while at least seven tiles remain in the bag, but it is often worth it. At the end of the game, the tiles left on your rack are subtracted from your score, and if your opponent goes out first, they add them to theirs. A Q stuck on your rack when your opponent goes out is a 20 point swing.
The J: play it, don't hold it
JO is the only two letter word with a J, so the J usually needs a three letter word or longer. Most of these are everyday words: JAB, JAG, JAM, JAR, JAW, JAY, JET, JIB, JIG, JOB, JOG, JOT, JOY, JUG and JUT. Less familiar ones include HAJ, RAJ, TAJ, JEU and AJI.
The best spot for the J is a double or triple letter square where the rest of the word also reaches a double word square. If there is no such spot, it is usually better to play the J for an average score now than to hold it for several turns waiting for a great one.
The Z: short words with a big payoff
ZA is the Z's only two letter word, but the three letter list is long. Common ones are ZAG, ZAP, ZED, ZEN, ZIG, ZIP, ZIT and ZOO, and ADZ, BIZ, COZ, FEZ and WIZ put the Z at the end. ZAX uses both the Z and the X and scores 19 points before any bonus squares.
A Z on a triple letter square is worth 30 points by itself, so a three letter word that puts it there is often worth more than a longer word somewhere else.
Use the finder to place a heavy tile
Say you draw this rack:
On the 3 letter word finder, enter all seven tiles. When you enter more letters than the word length, the finder returns every word you can make from some of them, sorted by score, so the Z words come first: REZ, TIZ, ZEN, ZIN and ZIT.
Then narrow it to fit the board. If the premium square you want is where the third letter of the word would go, put the Z in the third box under Letters By Position, and only REZ and TIZ remain.
Quick reference
- Two letter words: JO, QI, XI, XU, ZA, AX, EX, OX.
- Q without U: QI, QAT, QAID, QADI, QOPH, CINQ, FAQIR, QANAT, TRANQ.
- X: look for a premium letter square where the X forms a word in both directions.
- Q with no options: exchange it while seven or more tiles are left.
Tournament players in North America and elsewhere use different official dictionaries, and casual games often use whatever the box or app comes with. All the words above are in this site's list, but check your game's list if a word is challenged.