7-by-many puzzles: possible mass change from common to rare

[Alan W]

Since the 7-by-many puzzles were introduced a few months ago, several forumites have noted that a lot of new questions have emerged regarding words classed as common.

In this post I present a list of words that probably should be switched to rare. Some arise from suggestions made by players, in the forum and by email. Others emerged from my own investigations of words that have been found by very few players.

Among these words are -

• Compound words that many players would expect to be hyphenated or separate words. For example antitank, applesauce
• Less common spellings. For example caviare, papaw
• Non-standard plurals. For example cochliae, corpora
• Technical terms. For example allele, bilabial
• Words with a regional character. For example cruller, cuppa

Many others are just simply too obscure - it seems to me. I've omitted from the list below any words that I have doubts about. They can be discussed separately at some stage. But of course others may see things differently, so I'm putting these words out here for people to comment on.

ALLELE
ALLELUIA
ALLUVIA
AMMETER
ANTITANK
APPLESAUCE
ARBORETA
ARROYO
AUREOLE
BAAING
BACILLI
BANKBOOK
BERIBERI
BILABIAL
BITTIER
BOCCE
BOLOGNA
BOLONEY
BONITO
BUBBA
CALCINE
CANEBRAKE
CARRYALL
CATCHALL
CAVIARE
CINNABAR
CIRRHOTIC
CLAYEY
CLOACA
CLOACAE
COCHLEAE
COLONELCY
CONDIGN
CORNROW
CORPORA
COTILLION
CRAWDAD
CRULLER
CUPPA
DEWCLAW
DINGDONG
DOODAD
DOODAH
DURUM
DWEEB
EGGNOG
ENPLANE
EUCHRED
EXPATIATE
FINNIEST
FOREFEET
FOREFOOT
FOREPART
FREEBEE
FREEDMEN
GALLERIA
GANGLIA
GANGLION
GASOHOL
HOMEROOM
HYAENA
IFFIER
INDITING
IODIDE
IRRUPT
LACUNAE
LANDAU
LOANWORD
LOGGIA
LOLLYGAG
MAHATMA
MAMBO
MARIACHI
MARMOREAL
MATZO
MIMETIC
MINICAB
MINICAM
MONOMER
MOROCCO
MORPHEME
NEMESES
NONAPPEARANCE
NONUNION
NONWHITE
NOONTIDE
OENOLOGY
ONCOGENE
OUBLIETTE
PALATAL
PANATELLA
PAPAW
PARTICIPIAL
PATELLAE
PEEWIT
PENNON
PHALLI
PIMIENTO
POMPON
PREMIXES
PREPPIE
PROPITIATION
PSHAW
RAILCARD
RECHERCHE
RECREANT
REFERENT
RIFFRAFF
RIPARIAN
ROLLOVER
ROOMETTE
ROOTLET
SASSAFRAS
SISSIFIES
SPEEDUP
TAGLIATELLE
TAILPIPE
TARTARIC
TATTOOER
TAXON
TELEPRINTER
TERCENTENARY
TERMINI
TERRARIA
TITMICE
TOLLBOOTH
TOMTIT
TRACHEAE
TRIREME
ULULATING
VEGGIEBURGER
VITIATION
VOCALIC
VOTARY
WAPITI
WELKIN
ZINNIA

[pat]

I would imagine that most players are well familiar with some of those words, have a passing acquaintance with some others, and have never heard of the remainder. Since commonality amongst all players would be impossible it seems a good idea to just make the whole lot rare. There's nothing more frustrating than being one short of a rosette only to find that the missing word is one you've never heard of.

[Jacki]

Actually I'm more frustrated when I have heard of that word! I like to learn and if I've never heard of the word I feel a bit better!

[mkenuk]

An interesting list of words.

i looked at them from a slightly different angle - 'If I were playing a Chi game and this word was classed as rare, would I be surprised and feel it should be common?'
I think there are only three on the list that fall into this category - ammeter which I remember from Physics lessons all those years ago, mambo -{why should it be classed differently to samba, salsa or rumba?) and tailpipe, familiar to anyone who owns, or has ever owned, a motor vehicle of any kind. Should it be hyphenated? Personally, I think not, but I'm often in disagreement with others  about words which should or should not be written with a hyphen.

However.  applesauce as one word??!! I'm still shaking my head in disbelief at that one

[TRex]

My tuppence, FWIW:

Of the 100 words — Alan, did you intend such a round number? — I think thirteen sufficiently common to any moderately-well-read person:
ALLELUIA
APPLESAUCE
BOLOGNA
EGGNOG
IFFIER
IODIDE
LOANWORD
PIMIENTO
PSHAW
ROLLOVER
SASSAFRAS
TOLLBOOTH
ZINNIA

There are twenty-six which seem to me to be borderline:
AMMETER
ARROYO
AUREOLE
BERIBERI
BILABIAL
CALCINE
COCHLEAE
CORPORA
COTILLION
CRULLER
DEWCLAW
DWEEB
ENPLANE
FOREFEET
FOREFOOT
GANGLION
HOMEROOM
LACUNAE
LOLLYGAG
MAMBO
NEMESES
PROPITIATION
ROOTLET
TAXON
TRIREME
WAPITI

i looked at them from a slightly different angle - 'If I were playing a Chi game and this word was classed as rare, would I be surprised and feel it should be common?'

For example, if nemesis were common and I found it, I would immediately think of nemeses.

[mkenuk]

...And there was I thinking that apple sauce was something that was eaten with roast pork to help break down the fat during digestion, but now I understand.
I've just looked it up.

Apparently applesauce, according to the COD, is 'North American, informal' meaning 'nonsense'.
A bit like poppycock or balderdash.

I'd never seen or heard of it before.

.

[TRex]

Apparently applesauce, according to the COD, is 'North American, informal' meaning 'nonsense'.

Nor have I. I think the overwhelming majority of North Americans hearing applesauce would think of a sauce made of cooked apples.

But I think of applesauce as a dessert.

[mkenuk]

But I think of applesauce as a dessert.

Written as one word?
Looks very strange.

[TRex]

Looking at the Ngram Viewer, it appears in the UK applesauce passed apple sauce in the late 1960s; in the USA and overall applesauce passed apple sauce in the early 1940s.

[mkenuk]

I've a feeling we are talking here about two different products.

'My' apple sauce (written as two words) is a condiment, served and eaten usually with roast pork, in much the same way that cranberry sauce or cranberry jelly is served with roast turkey.
'TRex's' applesauce (one word) seems to be something else - a plate of mushed apples, perhaps with spices added and eaten by itself as a dessert.

I had never heard of this before seeing the word in Alan's list.

[yelnats]

I think AGITPROP could be added to the list! Got by 31 out of 230 players.

[Dragonman]

Lollygag should be kept...its a great word

Applesauce should be for the (pork) chop   

[mkenuk]

Lollygag should be kept...its a great word

Q. Where does the Queen keep her lollipops?

A. In her licker cabinet.


Sorry, that's about the only lollygag I know

[TRex]

I've a feeling we are talking here about two different products.

'My' apple sauce (written as two words) is a condiment, served and eaten usually with roast pork, in much the same way that cranberry sauce or cranberry jelly is served with roast turkey.
'TRex's' applesauce (one word) seems to be something else - a plate of mushed apples, perhaps with spices added and eaten by itself as a dessert.

I had never heard of this before seeing the word in Alan's list.

(click on pic for Wikipedia article) — this, to me, is dessert (I don't eat dead flesh).

[Alan W]

I've now made rare most of the words discussed above. The full list can be found at https://chi.lexigame.com/news/suggestions.html.

I haven't changed any of the words that were thought by some players to warrant retaining their common status. These words remain for further consideration.