JAMBO is valid in Collins, not in North America — 16 points
It depends on the list you play by. JAMBO is in Collins, used in the UK and most of the world, but it is not in the North American lists — so in a US or Canadian game an opponent can challenge it off the board. Worth 16 points. Words with Friends does not accept it either.
Which word lists accept JAMBO?
| Official Scrabble Players DictionaryUSA, Canada, Thailand | Not listed |
|---|---|
| Official Tournament and Club Word ListUSA, Canada, Thailand | Not listed |
| Collins Scrabble WordsEnglish in most countries | Valid |
| Words with FriendsZynga word list | Not listed |
Word power: 42 / 100
Our own measure of how useful JAMBO is to know. It scores 16 from 5 tiles, takes 1 hook, and its letters make up 4.4% of the bag. How this number is calculated
Hooks for JAMBO
Front hooks — 0
None.
Back hooks — 1
jambokChecked against OSPD, TWL, CSW, WWF.
How JAMBO scores
Face value of the 5 tiles in JAMBO, before any board multiplier.
Tiles you need
| Letter | Needed | In the bag |
|---|---|---|
| j | 1 | 1 |
| a | 1 | 9 |
| m | 1 | 2 |
| b | 1 | 2 |
| o | 1 | 8 |
Drawing exactly these 5 tiles as an opening rack: 1 in 261,415.
What does JAMBO mean in Scrabble?
interjection
regional
A Swahili greeting meaning hello, also used in English in East African contexts.
Jambo is the everyday Swahili word for hello, widely known outside East Africa through tourism to Kenya and Tanzania. English speakers visiting or writing about the region often borrow the greeting directly rather than translating it. It functions purely as a friendly opening word rather than a full sentence.
How JAMBO is used
Encountered mainly in East African English and in writing about travel to Kenya and Tanzania.
- The guide greeted every busload of tourists with a cheerful jambo.
- Jambo, she called out as the group stepped off the boat.
- Shopkeepers along the coast greet customers with a friendly jambo.
- He learned to answer jambo before he knew any other Swahili word.
- The children shouted jambo at the passing safari vehicles.
Written for this site: 1 meaning of JAMBO and 5 example sentences, not copied from a published dictionary.
Words starting with JAMBO
14 longer words begin with JAMBO.
Words with JAMBO inside
6 words contain JAMBO in the middle. Words that start with JAMBO are listed separately above, so nothing is repeated.
Shorter words from the letters in JAMBO
Common questions about JAMBO
- Is JAMBO valid in Words with Friends?
- No. Words with Friends keeps its own list, separate from the Scrabble dictionaries, and JAMBO is not in it.
- How many points is JAMBO worth?
- JAMBO is worth 16 points in Scrabble and 20 points in Words with Friends.
- What does JAMBO mean?
- A Swahili greeting meaning hello, also used in English in East African contexts.
- What letters can be added to JAMBO?
- JAMBO takes 1 hook: 0 in front and 1 at the end.
Every word you can build from the 5 letters of JAMBO:
Open JAMBO in the Word Finder