National Scrabble Day has cast a spell on us.
April 13 is the day Scrabble inventor Alfred Mosher Butts was born. He gave the world an iconic board game now played all over the world. Today, more than seven decades later, we live for “Triple Word Scores”! Not to mention, the strategic use of those mysterious blank tiles.
Now then, time to lift the lid on that game box, pick out your first seven letters, and begin! Don’t forget the Scrabble Dictionary. We don’t want any squabbles — which, by the way, happens to be a valuable Scrabble word (21 points)! It’s time to C-E-L-E-B-R-A-T-E one of the world’s most iconic board games.
National Scrabble Day timeline
Inventor Alfred Mosher Butts created Scrabble as a variation on an earlier word game and called it Lexico.
James Brunot bought the rights to the game and called it "Scrabble," which means "to scratch frantically."
Jack Straus, president of Macy's, placed a large order for this game after playing it on vacation.
"Scrabble" aired as a daytime game show on NBC.
National Scrabble Day Activities
Spend some Scrabble family time
Don't forget the Scrabble Junior game for kids. Rest easy — it has pictures!
Host a Scrabble tournament
Scrabble tournaments can get intense but they are also great fun — so invite some friends!
Play Scrabble online
It's one thing to play with a human, quite another to play with a computer. Are you ready for the challenge?
No Need To Spell Check These 5 Scrabble Facts
Keeping up with the times
The Official Scrabble Dictionary now includes words like “hashtag,” “selfie,” “vlog,” “mojito,” “chillax,” and “beatbox.”
They were originally handmade
For about two decades co-inventor James Brunot, along with another friend, made all the games he sold by hand in his garage!
Braille version
It's fully accessible for the blind and visually impaired. The playing board also has tactile dots and dashes on the premium word squares.
No language barrier
Scrabble's sold in 121 countries and played in 29 different languages!
We love those letters
Every hour, about 30,000 games of Scrabble are started all over the world!
Why We Love National Scrabble Day
Family fun
You can spend quality time playing this game and it improves your spelling abilities, communication skills, and confidence.
A "smart" choice
You learn words to get better at the game! Soon you'll know words like "za," short for "pizza," and "xi," which is the 14th letter of the Greek alphabet.
Scrabble championships are fun to watch
The pros are impressive! Watch as they effortlessly throw down words like "quixotic." A cool 76 points — including the 50-point bonus for using all seven tiles.
National Scrabble Day dates
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | April 13 | Sunday |
| 2026 | April 13 | Monday |
| 2027 | April 13 | Tuesday |
| 2028 | April 13 | Thursday |
| 2029 | April 13 | Friday |
