TENSE is a valid Scrabble word — 5 points
Yes. TENSE is accepted by every list we check: Collins, the North American lists and Words with Friends. It scores 5 points in Scrabble and 6 in Words with Friends.
Which word lists accept TENSE?
| Official Scrabble Players DictionaryUSA, Canada, Thailand | Valid |
|---|---|
| Official Tournament and Club Word ListUSA, Canada, Thailand | Valid |
| Collins Scrabble WordsEnglish in most countries | Valid |
| Words with FriendsZynga word list | Valid |
Word power: 38 / 100
Our own measure of how useful TENSE is to know. It scores 5 from 5 tiles, takes 3 hooks, and its letters make up 8.0% of the bag. How this number is calculated
Hooks for TENSE
Checked against OSPD, TWL, CSW, WWF. Takes an S, so it hooks onto plurals easily.
How TENSE scores
Face value of the 5 tiles in TENSE, before any board multiplier.
Tiles you need
| Letter | Needed | In the bag |
|---|---|---|
| t | 1 | 6 |
| e | 2 | 12 |
| n | 1 | 6 |
| s | 1 | 4 |
Drawing exactly these 5 tiles as an opening rack: 1 in 7,922.
What stands out about TENSE
- The same 5 tiles also spell 6 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 TENSE mean in Scrabble?
adjective
Stretched tight, or feeling and showing nervous strain.
A tense muscle is pulled tight rather than relaxed, and the same word describes a person or an atmosphere under strain even when nothing is physically stretched at all. A completely unrelated noun tense, naming the form a verb takes to show time, comes from a different Latin root meaning time rather than from the root meaning to stretch. The two words happen to look identical only because of how French shaped both borrowings on their way into English. Confusing them causes no real harm in speech, since context always makes clear which tense is meant.
How TENSE is used
Adjective describing physical or emotional strain; an unrelated noun tense names a verb form showing time.
- Her shoulders were tense after the long drive.
- The room went tense the moment his name was mentioned.
- He tensed his grip before the rope went taut.
- A tense silence followed the announcement.
- The negotiations stayed tense until the final hour.
Written for this site: 1 meaning of TENSE and 5 example sentences, not copied from a published dictionary.
Anagrams of TENSE
The 5 tiles of TENSE in a different order — 6 found.
Words starting with TENSE
8 longer words begin with TENSE.
Words ending in TENSE
9 words end in TENSE. Useful as a back hook: play TENSE onto a word already on the board.
Words with TENSE inside
11 words contain TENSE in the middle. Words that start with TENSE are listed separately above, so nothing is repeated.
Shorter words from the letters in TENSE
Common questions about TENSE
- Is TENSE valid in Words with Friends?
- Yes. Words with Friends accepts TENSE, where it scores 6 points. That game keeps its own list, separate from the Scrabble dictionaries.
- How many points is TENSE worth?
- TENSE is worth 5 points in Scrabble and 6 points in Words with Friends.
- What does TENSE mean?
- Stretched tight, or feeling and showing nervous strain.
- What letters can be added to TENSE?
- TENSE takes 3 hooks: 0 in front and 3 at the end.
Every word you can build from the 5 letters of TENSE:
Open TENSE in the Word Finder