How to Play Scrabble Slam

Last Updated: October 21, 2021

Scrabble Slam! is a 2009 card game from Hasbro that comes in two editions: a basic 55-card edition for 2 to 4 players and a deluxe 84-card edition for 2 to 6 players. The object of the fast-paced game is to be the first player to get rid of your cards by playing them on the word in play to make new words. Scrabble Slam! teaches vocabulary and word-recognition skills and it is a fun game for the whole family as well.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Setting Up the Game

1
Decide how many players there will be. The 55-card edition is designed for up to 4 players and the 84-card edition is designed for up to 6 players. Keep in mind that because the deck will be divided among all the players after the starting word is made, more players means fewer cards in each person's hand.^{[1]
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2
Choose the starting word. The starting word must have four letters and should be a word that can be made into another 4-letter word by changing one of its letters.^{[2]
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- Good starting words include "GAME," which can be turned into "FAME," "LAME," "GATE," or "GAZE," and "WARE," which can be changed into "WERE," "WARM," "WARN," or "WART."
- Bad starting words include "ECHO" and "EXAM," which cannot readily be turned well-known 4-letter words.
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3
Draw and place the four cards you need to make the starting word. Place these cards on your table or playing surface where everyone can see them and reach them. Make sure that they are forming the starting word you have chosen. Leave a bit of space between the cards so that the cards you put on top of these cards will not overlap.^{[3]
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4
Deal the remaining cards among all of the players. You may want to shuffle the cards first to make sure that everyone gets a good mixture of letters. Make sure that everyone has the same number of cards when you are done dealing the cards. Remember, all of the cards should be dealt to players; there should be no cards left in the deck.^{[4]
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5
Make sure everyone understands how the cards work. Remind your fellow players that the cards are two-sided. They are printed with a letter on each side, or with a letter on one side and a blank space on the other. Either side of the card may be played to make a legal word, with the blank serving as a "wild letter" as in the Scrabble board game.^{[5]
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- Get into the habit of looking at the upper left edge of your cards, rather than flipping them back and forth. At the upper left edge you can see the two letters that the card represents.

Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Playing Scrabble Slam!

1
Begin playing the game. The official call to begin play is "Ready, set, slam"; however, you can call "Go," "Start," or something similar, if you wish. Just make it clear to your fellow players that the game is starting. Scrabble Slam! is a fast-paced game, so everyone needs to be ready to play when it is time to start.^{[6]
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2
Place a letter on the word to make a new word as soon as you recognize you have a play. Scrabble Slam! is a speed game; players do not take turns placing new letters on the word. If you are playing with young children, then you may want to consider making teams to give them more chances to play.^{[7]
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- Words in Scrabble Slam! are restricted the same as in the Scrabble crossword game: you can't use slang, acronyms, proper names for people or places, hyphenated words, or words with apostrophes.
- You cannot play the same letter if it will make the same word. For example, if the current word is "BALE," you cannot play another "B" immediately on top of the "B" in the word. You can, however, play a "G" to change the word to "GALE" and then play a "B" to change the word back to "BALE" if you can do so before another player changes the word to something else.
3
Call "Time out!" to challenge a word. If you don’t think that something one of your fellow players has played is a real word, then you can call for a time out. Then, stop playing to discuss the word's legitimacy and consult a dictionary if necessary. If the word is not a legal Scrabble Slam! word, the player making the word must take back the letter card used to make it.^{[8]
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4
Continue playing until someone wins the game. The game is over when one player has no more cards or no more legal plays can be made. At this point, you can declare a winner. If someone gets rid of all of his or her cards first, that player is the winner. If all of the players still have cards and no one can make a play, then whoever has the fewest cards left is the winner.^{[9]
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Community Q&A

Question

What do I do if I deal and there's not an even amount of cards?

Community Answer

After the first 4 card word, there will be 51 cards left. The numbers only work out even with 3 players. With 2 or 4 players, just deal until the last even count can be dealt. Put the remaining cards on the side. They will not be used this game.
Question

Can I add an S to the end of the word, or does it have to remain a 4-letter word throughout the game?

Community Answer

No, it has to remain a 4-letter word. You may start the game with a 3-letter word or a 5-letter word, but these are harder. You may also add an 'S' on top of the fourth letter card to form a plural word maybe, for example if you have the word 'Hate' on the table, you could add an 'S' on top of the 'E' card, thus the word will be 'Hats'.
Question

How do we determine who starts the game?

Community Answer

There are several ways to decide this. You can play rock, paper, scissors, or go from youngest to oldest, or start with the person to the right of the dealer, etc. It's up to you.