boggle tips

So, I've gotten hooked on boggle online. Wanna play? Here's the link. I love words, and I love to spell, and so boggle is one of the few games I enjoy. My sister-in-law calls me nerdy, but I think she's just jealous. My mom and I are constantly competing for best scores, and my husband cheers me on (though I think somewhere in hiding he's rolling his eyes a little bit).

Some things I've learned: Some of the hardest combinations to deal with are s-u-w and a q with no good vowels nearby (it always comes with a u, but that doesn't always guarantee words can be made). And I swear these combos come up in almost every other puzzle. Like in Scrabble, using the J, the X and Z can often be extremely difficult. And oddly enough, so are the H and C. However, unlike Scrabble, should you happen to use one of these letters, you don't get extra points (which I think is unfair). (The full rules and instructions can be found on the website if you need them). By the way, Tex is not a recognized Boggle word. I know, because I try it every time it comes up, and I always end up losing a point.

Never forget to use the S to its full advantage. If you can spell net, you might be able to spell nets. Two points. Also, if you can spell net, you can spell ten. There's lots of words like that: one and eon, not and ton, pat and tap, pin and nip, nap and pan, saw and was ... You get the idea. And then if you can add an S to the end of these words, you're golden. And, don't forget consonant combinations like SN or ST or NT or FL or CR ... they could help you make longer words.

And never forget ... if the puzzle is simply full of bad combinations, don't bother! Just hit Submit Now or Start Over and get a different puzzle. No sense in wracking your brain for words with no vowels, or no consonants, for that matter.

Every word has to be at least 3 letters long. 3 and 4-letter words are worth one point, 5-letter words are worth 2 points, 6-letter words are worth 3 points, 7-letter words are worth 4 points, and should you manage words 8 letters or more, they're each worth 11 points. As of yet I have not found an 8-letter word. Though I'm always on the hunt.

Best score so far? 60. Which is awesome. What's more amazing is that I scored this high score on a boggle puzzle that had only TWO vowels in 16 letters. Are you impressed?

Some of my best words so far: squirt, cirque, hearse, haute, voodoo, vouched, toque, posse, tease, teaser, teasers, edict, staid.

Aren't you curiuos now to see how you'd fare? It sure stretches your knowledge of vocabulary, as well as your spelling prowess. Enjoy! And don't forget to fill me in on how you're doing (unless you're doing better than me of course).