--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The intriguing thing about playing…" description: "\"“The intriguing thing about playing Scrabble is that as soon as the board is set up in front of me, I don't know any words. Other than cat and bat and ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa6/julie-schumacher-24690_language_the-intriguing-thing-about-playing-scrab_2825631.jpg" --- # The intriguing thing about playing Scrabble is that as… ![“The intriguing thing about playing Scrabble is that as soon as the board is set up in front of me, I don't know any words. Other than cat and bat and rat, everything disappears from the language drawer in my brain. My mother, on the other hand, who normally speaks English like a regular person…” quote by Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa6/julie-schumacher-24690_language_the-intriguing-thing-about-playing-scrab_2825631.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa6/julie-schumacher-24690_language_the-intriguing-thing-about-playing-scrab_2825631.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa6/julie-schumacher-24690_language_the-intriguing-thing-about-playing-scrab_2825631.jpg) > ““The intriguing thing about playing Scrabble is that as soon as the board is set up in front of me, I don't know any words. Other than cat and bat and rat, everything disappears from the language drawer in my brain. My mother, on the other hand, who normally speaks English like a regular person, spells things like qiviut ("wool of the muskox") and hake.”” [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When faced with a language game, the mind can feel empty, yet others can recall obscure words effortlessly, highlighting varied vocabularies. **In simple terms:** Word games reveal gaps and strengths in personal vocabularies. Key Takeaway Embrace learning new words to expand mental lexicon. Themes language learning confidence creativity Mood curious inspired Type educational reflective When to use this quote - scrabble - studying - teaching - public speaking Key Concepts lexical retrieval cognitive flexibility Questions to Reflect On - How can you practice recalling uncommon words? - What strategies help you expand vocabulary? A Different Perspective Not everyone can easily access rare words without deliberate study. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Playing Scrabble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playing-scrabble-2057496/) [Scrabble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scrabble/) [Scrabble Soon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scrabble-soon-3621340/) [Spells Things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spells-things-3621341/) [Words Cat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words-cat-951443/) ## Related quotes > [ \[Calvin and Hobbes are playing Scrabble.\] Calvin: Ha! I've got a great word and it's on a "Double word score" box! Hobbes: "ZQFMGB" isn't… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-watterson/calvin-and-hobbes-are-playing-scrabble-calvin-ha-i-ve-got-a-great/) [Bill Watterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-watterson/) > [The other day I was playing Scrabble. I saw that I could close the space in D-E- -Y. I had an N and an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hempel/the-other-day-i-was-playing-scrabble-i-saw-that-i-could-close-the/) [Amy Hempel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hempel/) > [My ideal Friday night is spent playing scrabble in my local in Kentish Town with a goon called Lenny. After I've won a couple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-key/my-ideal-friday-night-is-spent-playing-scrabble-in-my-local-in/) [Tim Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-key/) > [My being a writer and playing Scrabble are connected. If I have a good writing day, I'll take a break and play online Scrabble.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-wolitzer/my-being-a-writer-and-playing-scrabble-are-connected-if-i-have-a-good/) [Meg Wolitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-wolitzer/) > [I'm kind of a dork. I don't have much game. I'm not particularly comfortable in bars or clubs. I much prefer being home playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wentworth-miller/i-m-kind-of-a-dork-i-don-t-have-much-game-i-m-not-particularly/) [Wentworth Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wentworth-miller/) > [Playing 'bop' is like playing Scrabble with all the vowels missing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duke-ellington/playing-bop-is-like-playing-scrabble-with-all-the-vowels-missing/) [Duke Ellington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duke-ellington/) > [We're playing Scrabble. It's a nightmare." "Scrabble?" He sounds surprised. "Scrabble's great." "Not when you're playing with a family of geniuses, it's not. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/we-re-playing-scrabble-it-s-a-nightmare-scrabble-he-sounds-surprised/) [Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/) > [I can never pass a cat in the street without greeting it and exchanging a few words, and the cat invariably replies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-moyes/i-can-never-pass-a-cat-in-the-street-without-greeting-it-and/) [Patricia Moyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-moyes/) > [Playing op is like playing Scrabble with all the vowels missing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duke-ellington/playing-op-is-like-playing-scrabble-with-all-the-vowels-missing/) [Duke Ellington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duke-ellington/) > [Palindrome as well. My sister's name is Hannah. Father liked word games. He was fourteen times World Scrabble Champion. When he died, we buried…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasper-fforde/palindrome-as-well-my-sister-s-name-is-hannah-father-liked-word-games/) [Jasper Fforde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasper-fforde/) > [“Everyone lives in two worlds,” Maggie said, speaking in an absentminded sort of way while she studied her letters. “There’s the real world, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-hill/everyone-lives-in-two-worlds-maggie-said-speaking-in-an-absentminded/) [Joe Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-hill/) > [“she thinks Scrabble is the answer to everything. She even has a Scrabble-based plan for lasting peace in the Middle East.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-warren/she-thinks-scrabble-is-the-answer-to-everything-she-even-has-a/) [Christine Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-warren/) > [This book's title, Rough Beauty , conveys Anderson's conviction that the hard scrabble lives of most of the residents of Vidor, Texas, are worthy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-wilkes-tucker/this-book-s-title-rough-beauty-conveys-anderson-s-conviction-that-the/) [Anne Wilkes Tucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-wilkes-tucker/) > [Jeff is the annoying kind of Scrabble player who plays a lot of obscure two-letter words that shouldn't count but for whatever reason are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bennett-madison/jeff-is-the-annoying-kind-of-scrabble-player-who-plays-a-lot-of/) [Bennett Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bennett-madison/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Julie Schumacher > [Believing in books is a lot like believing in God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/believing-in-books-is-a-lot-like-believing-in-god/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [“Are you going to redye it?" "No. My mother hates it, so I'm going to keep it," I said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/are-you-going-to-redye-it-no-my-mother-hates-it-so-i-m-going-to-keep/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [My mother says that some books are good no matter when you read them, and some are good at a particular moment; they come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/my-mother-says-that-some-books-are-good-no-matter-when-you-read-them/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [“To me, a recently read novel was like a miniature planet: only a few hours earlier I had been breathing its air and living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/to-me-a-recently-read-novel-was-like-a-miniature-planet-only-a-few/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [“A drowning person doesn't rescue herself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/a-drowning-person-doesn-t-rescue-herself/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [I had just wanted to be part of a story; I wanted to be a person who had a story to tell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/i-had-just-wanted-to-be-part-of-a-story-i-wanted-to-be-a-person-who/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [“Any person who is carrying a lot of sadness needs to be able to rest sometimes, and to put it down.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/any-person-who-is-carrying-a-lot-of-sadness-needs-to-be-able-to-rest/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [“I thought about the people I had met who were in pain but were pretending that everything was fine. And I thought, this is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/i-thought-about-the-people-i-had-met-who-were-in-pain-but-were/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [I love to sleep. My astrological sign is the sloth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/i-love-to-sleep-my-astrological-sign-is-the-sloth/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [“Boredom is why God invented books.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/boredom-is-why-god-invented-books/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [Opening a book in the middle of a chapter always made me feel like I was interrupting a group of strangers, wandering unannounced into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/opening-a-book-in-the-middle-of-a-chapter-always-made-me-feel-like-i/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [“There is something absent in me, I thought. Something incomplete. Even my mother couldn't describe me. There was something empty in me that in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/there-is-something-absent-in-me-i-thought-something-incomplete-even/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [“The poor misguided soul described me as generous, “a champion for the department and particularly its students”; he went on to say that my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/the-poor-misguided-soul-described-me-as-generous-a-champion-for-the/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [Talking to a therapist, I thought, was like taking your clothes off and then taking your skin off, and then having the other person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/talking-to-a-therapist-i-thought-was-like-taking-your-clothes-off-and/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) > [“October 16, 2009 Avengers Paintball, Inc. 1778 Industrial Blvd. Lakeville, MN 55044 Esteemed Avengers, This letter recommends Mr. Allen Trent for a position at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-schumacher/october-16-2009-avengers-paintball-inc-1778-industrial-blvd-lakeville/) [Julie Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) [Explore all 24 Julie Schumacher quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-schumacher/) ## More Language quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [Usually male directors have to use foul language to get the job done. 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Maybe it's his first time around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/a-man-walks-down-the-street-it-s-a-street-in-a-strange-world-maybe-it/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [“I only have two words to say More or Less”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timbur/i-only-have-two-words-to-say-more-or-less/) [TimBur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timbur/) > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [I am attracted to looking at the different things language can mean even in one sometimes quite ordinary utterance. Writing is partly about listening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-armantrout/i-am-attracted-to-looking-at-the-different-things-language-can-mean/) [Rae Armantrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-armantrout/) > [What is music? Music is language. A human being wants to express ideas in this language, but not ideas that can be translated into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-webern/what-is-music-music-is-language-a-human-being-wants-to-express-ideas/) [Anton Webern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-webern/) > [You're beautiful, cute, pretty, gorgeous, and fuck.. I ran out of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/you-re-beautiful-cute-pretty-gorgeous-and-fuck-i-ran-out-of-words/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [The world has a soul and whoever understands that soul can also understand the language of many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-world-has-a-soul-and-whoever-understands-that-soul-can-also/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“The words for what I want to say right now don't exist. Everything sounds…so cliché.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelly-crane/the-words-for-what-i-want-to-say-right-now-don-t-exist-everything/) [Shelly Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelly-crane/) > [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. 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