NIS is valid in Collins, not in North America — 3 points
It depends on the list you play by. NIS 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 3 points. Words with Friends does not accept it either.
Which word lists accept NIS?
| 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: 37 / 100
Our own measure of how useful NIS is to know. It scores 3 from 3 tiles, takes 4 hooks, and its letters make up 6.3% of the bag. How this number is calculated
Hooks for NIS
Checked against OSPD, TWL, CSW, WWF.
How NIS scores
Face value of the 3 tiles in NIS, before any board multiplier.
Tiles you need
| Letter | Needed | In the bag |
|---|---|---|
| n | 1 | 6 |
| i | 1 | 9 |
| s | 1 | 4 |
Drawing exactly these 3 tiles as an opening rack: 1 in 749.
What stands out about NIS
- The same 3 tiles also spell 2 other words, so the rack is worth re-reading before you play it.
Counted from the four word lists we hold, not taken from anywhere else. How we calculate things
What does NIS mean in Scrabble?
noun
literary
In Scandinavian folklore, a small household spirit or goblin, similar to a brownie, also spelled nisse.
The nis was believed to live in barns and farmhouses across Scandinavia, helping with chores at night if treated kindly with food, and turning mischievous if ignored or insulted. Nis is the older or shortened form of the more familiar nisse, the figure now linked with Scandinavian Christmas traditions.
How NIS is used
Found in folklore studies and stories about Scandinavian tradition.
- Farmers left a bowl of porridge out for the nis every winter.
- The old tale warns against angering the nis of the barn.
- Children were told the nis would tidy the stable while they slept.
- The museum display explained the nis and its place in local folklore.
- Grandmother still speaks of the nis as if it were real.
Written for this site: 1 meaning of NIS and 5 example sentences, not copied from a published dictionary.
Anagrams of NIS
The 3 tiles of NIS in a different order — 2 found.
Words starting with NIS
12 longer words begin with NIS.
Words ending in NIS
Showing 24 of 118 words that end in NIS. Useful as a back hook: play NIS onto a word already on the board.
Words with NIS inside
Showing 24 of 3093 words that contain NIS somewhere in the middle. Words that start with NIS are listed separately above, so nothing is repeated.
Shorter words from the letters in NIS
Common questions about NIS
- Is NIS valid in Words with Friends?
- No. Words with Friends keeps its own list, separate from the Scrabble dictionaries, and NIS is not in it.
- How many points is NIS worth?
- NIS is worth 3 points in Scrabble and 4 points in Words with Friends.
- What does NIS mean?
- In Scandinavian folklore, a small household spirit or goblin, similar to a brownie, also spelled nisse.
- What letters can be added to NIS?
- NIS takes 4 hooks: 2 in front and 2 at the end.
Every word you can build from the 3 letters of NIS:
Open NIS in the Word Finder