Tileside
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Lesson 1 of 15

The tiles and the board

The game is played with 100 letter tiles on a board of 15 by 15 squares. Each player keeps seven tiles on a rack, hidden from everyone else, and draws back up to seven after every turn.

T1
E1
A1
R1
S1
Q10
I1
A rack of seven tiles. The small number on each tile is what that letter scores.

Common letters are worth 1 point. Rarer ones are worth more: J and X are 8, and Q and Z are 10. There are also two blank tiles. A blank can be any letter you like, stays that letter for the rest of the game, and scores 0.

The middle of the board. The ★ in the center starts the game. 2L and 3L double or triple one letter, and 2W doubles a whole word. The 3W squares out near the edges triple a word.
Need a set?Our buying guide compares deluxe, classic, travel and big-tile sets.

Practice

How many tiles do you hold at the start of each turn?

Practice

Which of these tiles is worth the most?

Forgot what a word means? Table words

Looking for a rule? How to Play has them all

Free scoring guide for your next game

A one-page printable of tile points, bonus squares and how a turn scores. Download it right away. Then two short welcome emails (three scoring habits, then what Tileside Pro adds), and about once a month, a little more around the holidays: a word to know and a tip that scores.

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Word list: NASPA Word List 2023, used under license. NASPA Word List 2023 Edition © NASPA 2023. The copy included in this app is licensed for personal use. You may not use it for any commercial purposes.