Alfred Butts, the inventor of Scrabble, originally called it Lexiko, then renamed it to Criss-Cross Words, and finally his business partner James Brunot came up with the name Scrabble. Do you think the game would have been as popular as Lexiko or Criss-Cross Words?
35th Ave sign at the birthplace of Scrabble in Jackson Heights, New York
Butts lived in Jackson Heights, New York, where a street sign is now in Scrabble-like letters. (Google Maps)
Scrabble Variants
BLABRECS is a game where you can play only words that don't exist, but sound like English words. In Clabbers, one has to play an anagram of words. There are dozens of other variations.
Scrabble since 1537?
The word scrabble is a part of the English language though it has nothing to do with the game. It means to scratch, scrape, scrawl, etc., and it has been a part of the language for some 500 years.
Hardscrabble
Then there's hardscrabble, not a tough version of Scrabble. Rather, it's a hardy version of the above word, scrabble.
You need chutzpah to win in Scrabble
Also some drugs.
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