How to Connect Words in Scrabble

Establish the first word on the board. By using only the seven starting tiles drawn from the tile bag, the player who goes first places a word on the board, with one tile per square. One of the tiles in the first word must be placed in the center square.

Connect the second word. The player who goes second may use some or all of her seven starting tiles, but she must connect to at least one tile from the word already on the board. For example, if the first word played was "stars," the second player may use the "s" to form the word "science," connecting at a right angle to either the first or second "s" in the word "stars."

Add letter tiles to a word that already exists on the board. This is another way to connect words in Scrabble. For example, if a word on the board is "bag," another player may add the tiles for "pipe" to the end to form the word "bagpipe." Similarly, many words can be made plural. Adding an "s" onto an existing word is another way to make a new word.

Connect two already-existing words on the board with a third word. For example, if the board has the words "books" and door" running parallel to each other, with the "b" in "books" and the "d" in "door" lining up, the word "border" may be played in between them.

Avoid placing any tiles diagonally. Words may be formed vertically or horizontally. Once a word has been played, the tiles for that word may not be moved.