scrabble
/ˈskɹæbəl/verb, noun
scrabble is spelled S-C-R-A-B-B-L-E: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,462nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, scrabble means “To scrape or scratch powerfully with hands or claws” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in scrabble?
| Letters | 8: S-C-R-A-B-B-L-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.1 times per million words; the 27,462nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is scrabble?
Scrabble appears 1.1 times per million words in written English, the 27,462nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce scrabble?
- /ˈskɹæbəl/
Scrabble has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-scrabble.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of scrabble
- scrabbles present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- scrabbling participle, present
- scrabbled participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does scrabble mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To scrape or scratch powerfully with hands or claws.
- 2
To gather hastily.
- 3
To move with difficulty by making rapid movements back and forth with the hands or paws.
She was on her hands and knees scrabbling in the mud, looking for her missing wedding ring.
- 4
To scribble.
- 5
To mark with irregular lines or letters; to scribble on.
to scrabble paper
noun
- 1
A scramble.
a scrabble for dear life
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does scrabble come from?
From Middle Dutch schrabbelen, frequentative of schrabben (“to scrape”), equivalent to scrab + -le. More at scrape.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).