Every Q word that needs no U
The Q tile is worth ten points and usually a headache. These words turn it into a weapon, no U required.
The short list worth memorising (9 words, five letters or fewer)
- qat12
- qaid14
- qats13
- qoph18
- faqir17
- qaids15
- qanat14
- qophs19
- tranq14
The two that matter most
Qi (the life force in Chinese philosophy) is the single most important word on this page: two letters, playable in tight spots, and it turns a dead Q into 11 points on a plain square. Qat (a chewable shrub, also spelled khat) is the three-letter backup. If you remember nothing else, remember these two.
Longer options (12 more)
Where these words come from
Most Q-without-U words are borrowings: qi and qigong from Chinese, qat and qanat from Arabic, qoph and sheqel from Hebrew, qiviut (musk-ox wool) from Inuktitut. English itself almost never forms them, which is exactly why they feel unguessable until you have seen the list once.
Stuck with a Q and random letters? The unscrambler will tell you in a keystroke whether a Q play exists at all.