Letters game - Revision history

Mclarenguy22: /* Mass nouns */

2023-05-09T22:49:27Z

‎Mass nouns

The Doctor: de-orphaning

2023-01-05T05:16:39Z

de-orphaning

Mclarenguy22: /* Mass nouns */

2021-02-12T01:11:31Z

‎Mass nouns

Mclarenguy22 at 15:13, 7 September 2020

2020-09-07T15:13:37Z

Mclarenguy22 at 15:13, 7 September 2020

2020-09-07T15:13:23Z

Mclarenguy22 at 15:07, 7 September 2020

2020-09-07T15:07:55Z

Mclarenguy22: /* Mass nouns */

2020-06-24T09:23:35Z

‎Mass nouns

Mclarenguy22: The point on dictionaries should have been updated years ago!

2020-06-23T22:15:37Z

The point on dictionaries should have been updated years ago!

The Doctor: moved Letters round to Letters game over redirect: Vandalism

2020-05-21T08:48:12Z

moved Letters round to Letters game over redirect: Vandalism

MartinS: moved Letters game to Letters round over redirect: They seem to be known as Letters rounds not games a game consists of 15 rounds

2020-01-26T10:11:47Z

moved Letters game to Letters round over redirect: They seem to be known as Letters rounds not games a game consists of 15 rounds

@@ Line 16: / Line 16: @@
 [[Image:DCeDL.jpg|thumb|right|Example of a letters game on [[Des chiffres et des lettres]].]]
 [[Countdown]] does not allow all nouns to have a plural form. In particular, a mass noun is a noun that that does not logically have a plural, like {{word|GUNFIRE}} or {{word|HEALTH}} -- in standard English they would rarely be used in the plural. This system has been the cause of some controversy and confusion. Since the start of [[Series 49]], the rules have been refined on the basis that some categories of mass nouns can become count nouns: for example, {{word|CONGEES}} was allowed in [[Series 58]] because it was argued that one could ask for "two congees". Again this rule has been enforced with some inconsistency, and words like {{word|OPALINES}} and {{word|CARMINES}} have been allowed on some occasions and not others. Of course some nouns like {{word|FLOUR}} are mass nouns but can also be verbs, so that an {{word|S}} can be added to form the third person singular of the present tense, e.g. ''he flours the table''.
 ==Controversies==

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 After the [[contestant]]s have offered their solution, [[Dictionary Corner]] offer a few more words which either equal or beat whatever the contestants have offered. Dictionary Corner is usually made up of [[Susie Dent]] and a celebrity guest, helped by [[Damian Eadie]] who communicates the answers to Susie via an earpiece.
-Based on the pool of letters used in [[Series 66]] (typical of most recent series), and disregarding the ordering of the letters, there are a total of 9,719,199 different possible letters games. Among all possible nine-letter words that can be formed from this pool, {{word|WAKIZASHI}} is the least likely to be available.
+Based on the pool of letters used in [[Series 66]] (typical of most recent series), and disregarding the ordering of the letters, there are a total of 9,719,199 different possible letters games. Among all possible nine-letter words that can be formed from this pool, {{word|WAKIZASHI}} is the least likely to be available. Letters can often be more useful than at first glance, with many [[unusual beginnings and endings]].
 ==Mass nouns==

@@ Line 17: / Line 17: @@
 [[Countdown]] does not allow all nouns to have a plural form. In particular, a mass noun is a noun that that does not logically have a plural, like {{word|GUNFIRE}} or {{word|HEALTH}} -- in standard English they would rarely be used in the plural. This system has been the cause of some controversy and confusion. Since the start of [[Series 49]], the rules have been refined on the basis that some categories of mass nouns can become count nouns: for example, {{word|CONGEES}} was allowed in [[Series 58]] because it was argued that one could ask for "two congees". Again this rule has been enforced with some inconsistency, and words like {{word|OPALINES}} and {{word|CARMINES}} have been allowed on some occasions and not others. Of course some nouns like {{word|FLOUR}} are mass nouns but can also be verbs, so that an {{word|S}} can be added to form the third person singular of the present tense, e.g. ''he flours the table''.
-If a plural form of a declared mass noun does not fall under any of these categories, the lexicographer checks the example sentences in ODO. If the plural is listed in any one of them, then it is accepted.
+If a plural form of a declared mass noun does not fall under any of these categories, the lexicographer checks the example sentences in ODO. If the plural is listed in multiple example sentences, then it is accepted.
 ==Controversies==

@@ Line 5: / Line 5: @@
 When the show was first broadcast, and for a number of years, contestants could choose as many vowels and consonants as they liked, which often led to poor selections where only four- and five-letter words were available. Since [[Series 30]], at least three vowels and at least four consonants must be chosen; if a contestant exceeds either maximum, their selection is overruled.
-In the original [[9 round game|9-round format]], there were six letters games; the "original" [[15 round format]] used from 2001 to 2013 featured eleven letters games, with the contestant in the champion's chair receiving one extra pick. Since 25 March 2013, the "new" 15-round format consists of ten letters rounds.
+In the original [[9 round game|9-round format]], there were six letters games; the "original" [[15 round format]] used from 2001 to 2013 featured eleven letters games, with the contestant in the champion's chair receiving one extra pick. Since 25 March 2013, the "new" 15-round format consists of ten letters games.
 A player scores points on a letters game by writing down a valid word within the 30 seconds. This word must not be a proper noun nor an abbreviation, and must be listed in bold in either the Premium version of Oxford Dictionaries Online or the free version, Lexico (although sensible plurals or inflections are also allowed even if unspecified). Players can use each letter only as many times as it appears in the selection. For example, from the selection {{word|EEEECDLST}}, a player could offer {{word|SELECTED}}, using three of the four available E's. Words score 1 point per letter, except for nine-letter words which are worth 18.

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 A '''letters round''' is one of the ten rounds during a [[15 round format (new)|15 round game]] in which the contestant chooses 9 letters by selecting either a vowel or a consonant until there is a total of 9 letters. The player can choose the letters in any order, but the selection must include at least 4 consonants and 3 vowels, hence there are only three valid choices in modern Countdown: 3 vowels, 6 consonants; 4 vowels, 5 consonants; and 5 vowels, 4 consonants.
-When the show was first broadcast, and for a number of years, contestants could choose as many vowels and consonants as they liked, which often led to poor selections where only 4's and 5's were available. Since then the rules have been changed. In the original [[9 round game|9-round format]], there were six letters games; the "original" [[15 round format]] used from 2001 to 2013 featured eleven letters games, with the contestant in the champion's chair receiving one extra pick.
+When the show was first broadcast, and for a number of years, contestants could choose as many vowels and consonants as they liked, which often led to poor selections where only four- and five-letter words were available. Since [[Series 30]], at least three vowels and at least four consonants must be chosen; if a contestant exceeds either maximum, their selection is overruled.
 A player scores points on a letters game by writing down a valid word within the 30 seconds. This word must not be a proper noun nor an abbreviation, and must be listed in bold in either the Premium version of Oxford Dictionaries Online or the free version, Lexico (although sensible plurals or inflections are also allowed even if unspecified). Players can use each letter only as many times as it appears in the selection. For example, from the selection {{word|EEEECDLST}}, a player could offer {{word|SELECTED}}, using three of the four available E's. Words score 1 point per letter, except for nine-letter words which are worth 18.

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