Yes. SYPH is a valid word.
SYPH is valid in the North American word list used for the Scrabble board game and other crossword tile games.
SYPH is in the NASPA Word List 2023 (NWL2023), the North American list that Tileside uses for challenges and the one used in club and tournament play.
About SYPH
SYPH is a slang short form of syphilis, the disease; its plural is SYPHS. It has no A, E, I, O or U, and its S, Y, P and H are worth 12 points together. It is not a word most people say aloud, but on the board it is a strong play for a rack of consonants with a Y and an H. It is one of the few four-letter words with both a Y and an H and no other vowel. Its pair of 4-point tiles makes it a better score than its four letters suggest.
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SYPH scores 12 points
Before any bonus squares: S 1 + Y 4 + P 3 + H 4 = 12. On a double-word square that's 24, on a triple-word 36, and every letter bonus under one of these tiles is applied first.
Example: SYPH as the first play
Later in the game, put the Y on a 3L square and SYPH is worth 20 before any word bonus.
Hooks: one tile makes a new word
After SYPH (1):
- SYPHSform of SYPH: a common venereal disease caused by the treponema pallidum spirochete
Place that one tile so it also forms a word in the other direction and both words score.
Longer words from SYPH
Other forms of SYPH (1):
- SYPHSform of SYPH: a common venereal disease caused by the treponema pallidum spirochete
Words that start with SYPH:
- SYPHER
- SYPHONa tube running from the liquid in a vessel to a lower level outside the vessel so that gravity forces the liquid through the tube
- SYPHERS
- SYPHONSform of SYPHON: a tube running from the liquid in a vessel to a lower level outside the vessel so that gravity forces the liquid through the tube
- SYPHERED
- SYPHILISa common venereal disease caused by the treponema pallidum spirochete
- SYPHONAL
- SYPHONEDform of SYPHON: a tube running from the liquid in a vessel to a lower level outside the vessel so that gravity forces the liquid through the tube
Change one tile
Swap any one letter of SYPH and these are still words:
- SOPHa second-year undergraduate
Same letters, other words
These use exactly the letters of SYPH:
- HYPSform of HYP: same as HYPOCHONDRIA
Add one tile: words from these letters plus one more
SYPH + C
SYPH + E
- HYPESform of HYPE: blatant or sensational promotion
SYPH + L
- SYLPHa slender graceful young woman
SYPH + S
- SYPHSform of SYPH: a common venereal disease caused by the treponema pallidum spirochete
SYPH + U
- PUSHYmarked by aggressive ambition and energy and initiative
Memory tip
SYPH is slang for syphilis, the disease. It has no A, E, I, O or U.
On these lists
Check words at the table, free
Tileside keeps score, checks words like this one during a challenge, tracks the tiles left in the bag and times turns. It runs in your phone's browser with no account and works offline.
Tileside checks words against the North American list, the NASPA Word List 2023. Your group's chosen dictionary always wins.
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.
Works with the Scrabble board game, played at the table. Tileside is an independent product, not affiliated with or endorsed by the makers of Scrabble.