Every word-game tool depends on one quiet decision: which word list are we checking against? The three major lists — ENABLE, TWL, and SOWPODS (now Collins Scrabble Words) — overlap on ~99% of what you'd play. The 1% matters more than you'd think, and the legal status matters more than both.
ENABLE — free and public
ENABLE is a 172,820-word list compiled from public-domain dictionaries specifically to create a legally free Scrabble-compatible word source. It's the backbone of every free online word-game tool, including ours. If you see a word-game site with no paywall, it's almost certainly using ENABLE.
- Legal status — public domain.
- Size — 172,820 words.
- Coverage — ~99% overlap with TWL, ~60% of SOWPODS.
- Best for — casual play, word puzzles, educational apps, anything free.
TWL — the North American tournament list
TWL — the Tournament Word List — is the official Scrabble dictionary for North American competitive play. Published by the National Scrabble Association (now NASPA) and licensed from Hasbro, it's the list used in US, Canadian, and Thai tournaments.
- Legal status — proprietary, licensed from Hasbro.
- Size — ~195,000 words (TWL 3rd edition).
- Excludes — most British-only words and variants.
- Best for — North American tournament Scrabble and casual games with friends who object to British spellings.
SOWPODS — the global tournament list
SOWPODS — named as a half-anagram of the original TWL and OSPD — is the international tournament word list, now officially branded as Collins Scrabble Words. It's used in UK, Australian, South African, and essentially every non-North-American Scrabble tournament, plus the World Scrabble Championship.
- Legal status — proprietary, licensed by Collins.
- Size — ~279,000 words (Collins Scrabble Words 2019).
- Includes — British variants, archaic words, many plurals and inflections missing from TWL.
- Best for — international play, Words With Friends (uses a SOWPODS-derived list), and players who want every legal move available.
173k ENABLE words, wildcards, definitions. Free forever — this is the 99% case.
The overlap (and the gap)
ENABLE and TWL are ~99% the same — you could play hundreds of Scrabble games without noticing a difference. The gap is mostly edge-case derivations and rare words tournament players memorize for strategic value.
SOWPODS vs TWL is a wider gap, and it's mostly British vs American English: "aerogramme" vs "aerogram", "innit" as a legal word, archaic spellings, and a mountain of additional valid plurals and inflections. Casual players rarely notice. Tournament players memorize the list they play in.
Why we use ENABLE
Two reasons, both practical:
- Legal. TWL and SOWPODS both require licensing agreements ("thousands per year" range for commercial use). ENABLE is public domain — we can ship it without paying Hasbro or Collins.
- Coverage. At ~99% of TWL, ENABLE handles virtually every word casual players actually use. You don't need the 200 obscure words the tournament lists have to play a fun game of Scrabble.
We don't claim to use TWL or SOWPODS. If you're training for tournament play and need the exact tournament list, you should use an officially-licensed tool — not a free one.
Which one should you care about?
For casual word games, puzzles, crosswords, and "what can I make with these letters" problems — ENABLE is plenty. The gap to TWL is rare edge cases; the gap to SOWPODS is mostly British spellings you don't play with anyway.
If you're prepping for a tournament or playing against a known TWL/SOWPODS opponent, use a licensed tool with the exact list you'll be playing. If you're playing Words With Friends (SOWPODS-derived), the in-app dictionary is authoritative. If you're just playing, we've got you covered.
Same wordlist, exact-length matches. Great for crossword helpers and puzzle books.