Q Words Without U: All 23, and When to Play Them
Of the 2,473 words containing Q in our game dictionary, only 23 have no U. That means 99.1% of Q words need a U. The ones worth learning first are QI, QAT, QAID and QOPH, because they are short and easy to fit on a board.
Key facts
- 2,473 words contain Q; 2,442 of them contain QU.
- Only 23 Q words have no U at all.
- The shortest are QI (2 letters) and QAT and QIS (3 letters).
- QI is the most useful: 11 points with classic values, and it fits almost anywhere.
The complete list
| Length | Words |
|---|---|
| 2 | QI |
| 3 | QAT, QIS |
| 4 | QAID, QATS, QOPH |
| 5 | FAQIR, QAIDS, QANAT, QOPHS, TRANQ |
| 6 | FAQIRS, QANATS, QINDAR, QINTAR, QWERTY, SHEQEL, TRANQS |
| 7 | QINDARS, QINTARS, QWERTYS |
| 8 | QINDARKA, SHEQALIM |
What they mean
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| QI | the life force in Chinese philosophy (also CHI) |
| QAT | a shrub whose leaves are chewed as a stimulant (also KHAT) |
| QAID | a Muslim leader or chief (also CAID) |
| QOPH | a letter of the Hebrew alphabet (also KOPH) |
| FAQIR | a Muslim or Hindu ascetic (also FAKIR) |
| QANAT | an underground water channel |
| TRANQ | short for tranquilizer |
| QINDAR, QINTAR | a former Albanian coin |
| QWERTY | a standard keyboard layout |
| SHEQEL | the currency of Israel (plural SHEQALIM) |
Most of these are borrowings from Arabic, Hebrew, Chinese and Albanian, languages where the sound written as Q is not followed by a U. In English spelling, Q almost always comes with U, which is why the list is so short.
When to play them
- Holding Q without a U? Look for an open I first: QI scores 11 points and needs only one more tile.
- With an A and a T, play QAT. Add an S later to make QATS.
- Don’t hold the Q for too long hoping for a U. There are only a few U tiles, and a stuck Q costs points at the end of the game.
See them with points on our Q without U word list, or find every word with your letters in the word unscrambler.
Sources
- Our own count over the ENABLE word list, plus QI and QIS.
- Meanings: WordNet 3.1, Princeton University, and standard dictionaries.
