Scrabble

Part of speech: verb, noun

Pronunciation: /ˈskɹæbəl/

Definitions

1. To engage in a frantic search or struggle while also participating in a word-building game where players create intersecting terms using letter pieces for scoring
2. To fervently dig or claw at an object while simultaneously playing a tabletop game in which players assemble words on a grid with letter tiles to earn points
3. To participate in a board game that involves forming words using letter tiles to score points ; to move the hands or feet quickly to scratch or seize something in a hurried way

Etymology: The game's name is a bit of a puzzle with a surprisingly ordinary ancestor. The verb "scrabble" comes from Middle Dutch "schrabbelen," a frequentative of "schrabben," meaning "to scrape." A frequentative is a form that expresses repeated or continued action, so the root idea is scraping again and again, which is what a hand does when it claws frantically at loose ground or gravel. English picked up the verb with that sense of rapid, scratching movement, and it later took on the wider meaning of groping or struggling to grab something, as in scrabbling for a foothold. The board game took its name from this action of frantic reaching, the way players hunt through their tiles for workable letters.

Synonyms: scramble, fumble, shuffle, mix, tangle