Writers should have a command of their native language. As wordsmiths, they should rock at word games. As a writer, I should rock. And yet…
I’ve been playing WordTwist on my phone, and let me just say…I suck. SSSSSSSuuuuuuck. With a capital S.
In a recent game, I had the following board:
E U A V
W A Y G
H Y E O
O T W H
Here are the words I found: ahoy, aye, get, hay, hew, hoe, hog, hot, hoy, tea, thaw, toy, way, wet, yaw, yew
I found 16 out of 56 words.
Now, granted, I can’t possibly find 56 words in the 2 minute time period provided, and some of the “words” are iffy (wha, vau, tho, tew, hayey – they don’t even exist in MS Word, damn it!). But still, I couldn’t come up with more than 16? What about ago, or age, or hey, or why?
I mentioned my vocabulary inadequacies to the Beau, which I think prompted him to invite me to a game of Words with Friends. The first game he whooped my butt 387-209. Yes, I suck that badly. I’ve done better since, and it’s been a fun way to kill time at work.
Then this weekend we played Quiddler – it’s like Scrabble, but with cards. One round, I came up with the words “the” and “is.” He looks at me and says, “I would have gone with “thesis.”
Duh. (The score count would have been the same, but I would have gotten 10 extra points for having the longest word.)
Anyway, I’m enjoying the mental calisthenics these word games are giving me. I hope it helps me extend my every day vocabulary, because obviously, I need it.
(What words can you find in the WordTwist board above?)
Embrace Life. Be Inspired. 