1. Prefixes and Suffixes – You get 35 points for a 7 point word play but don’t look at your letters that way. Find easy prefixes and suffixes and then build words around them. For instance, consider these prefixes re, de, mis, dis. For suffixes consider er, ier, est, iest, ed etc. When you see the prefixes and suffixes the 5 and 4 letter words you need to creat becomes so much easier. Just be careful, people start to think you’re cheating when you start creating more and more 7 letter words because it becomes that much easier.
2. Multiple Words – Don’t think in terms of creating one word. Get to know all the two and three letter words in the dictionary. There aren’t that many. You can play two to three tiles with low value for many points if played properly.
3. Double and Triple Letters Next to Vowels – Look for tiles next to vowels with Double or Triple Letter or Word Scores. It’s the perfect opportunity to play a high point value consonant for two words and double the value.
4. Adding prefixes and suffixes – Many opponents create words without prefixes and suffixes. Consider adding them if it will extend to a favorable tile such as a Double or Triple world score. ED and ER are typically two of the most obvious to add for big points.
5. S is your friend – This might be the most valuable letter in the game. Always remember there are 5 S’s and 2 wildcards in the game because when you get to the end and it’s close this might be the difference. Plus, S’s are the best opportunity to add a letter to an end of a word and create a whole other new word for maximum points. Save these letters and only use if you’re getting 20 to 30 points on a play. Don’t ever use an S to add to an end of word without creating another word without very good reason.
6. Count and know how many letters are left in the game – When you get to the end of close game where the result is in doubt your best friend is knowing what is still out there. Knowing this helps you determine what is a safe play and what is not. You can make plays safely knowing that an opponent will not capitalize on it based on the fact they don’t have the letters to do so.