Two Letter Words — Complete Scrabble List
Two letter words are the foundation of high-level Scrabble play. They allow you to make parallel plays, hook onto existing words, and squeeze points out of tight board positions that would otherwise be impossible. Every serious Scrabble player memorizes the full list of valid 2-letter words. This page gives you the complete official list.
Why 2-Letter Words Are Essential in Scrabble
In competitive Scrabble, knowing your 2-letter words is considered the single most important memorization task for improving your game. Here is why:
1. Parallel plays — you can play a word parallel to an existing word on the board, creating multiple 2-letter words simultaneously and scoring points for all of them.
2. Hooks — adding a single letter to an existing word to make a new word. 2-letter words make this possible in almost every board position.
3. Tile dumps — when you have awkward letters, 2-letter words let you play off difficult tiles without needing a long word.
4. Premium square access — short words can reach triple letter or triple word squares that longer words cannot.
Full List of Valid 2-Letter Scrabble Words
The following words are valid in Scrabble US (OTCWL). Note that some words valid in Scrabble UK (SOWPODS) may not appear in the US list and vice versa.
Most Useful 2-Letter Words to Learn First
• QI — the only Q word that does not need a U, scores 11 points
• ZA — informal for pizza, scores 11 points
• XI — Greek letter, scores 9 points
• XU — Vietnamese currency, scores 9 points
• JO — sweetheart, scores 9 points
• AA — a type of rough lava, extremely useful
• AE — one (Scottish), valid in SOWPODS
• OE — a whirlwind off the Faeroe islands