New words in Scrabble dictionary

SPRINGFIELD, Mass., June 26 (UPI) -- Merriam-Webster, a leading U.S. reference publisher, has good news for Scrabble players -- lots of new words using q, x and z.

Thousands of new words -- many high-scoring -- have been added to a fully revised new Fourth Edition of Merriam-Webster's "Official Scrabble Players Dictionary." The book is the official reference for recreational and school play, endorsed by the National Scrabble Association.

The newest words, estimated at more than 4,000, are part of the more than 100,000 two-to-eight letter words contained in the fully revised new edition.

Some of the new words are: qi -- the vital source that in Chinese thought is inherent in all things; za -- a pizza; brux -- to grind the teeth; yutz -- a stupid, foolish, or ineffectual person; and zine -- a magazine.

The list also includes: zouk -- dance music of the French West Indies; jazzbo -- a devotee of jazz; muskox -- a large bovid of artic regions; qabala -- cabala; and romaji -- a system of transliterating Japanese into the Latin alphabet.