Lexicant
Encyclopedia
Lexicant is a paper and pencil
word game
for two players. A letter is written on a sheet of paper, and each player takes turns adding a letter either to the beginning or the end of this ever-growing word stem
. Any word-stem you create must form part of a valid English word, without actually being a word itself. The first player to create a word
(with at least three or four letters) loses.
Lexicant is popular because of its inherent simplicity
. It requires no preparation and nothing more than paper and pencil. It can even be played orally.
reserve words would include "AMICABLE" and "AMICABILITY". However, a player can opt to bluff
on their turn - that is, they can add a letter to the word-stem without actually having a reserve word in mind. Bluffing is almost always done as a last resort, though some players may use bluffs strategically to force their opponents into untenable positions. If a player feels their opponent has played a bluff and has no reserve word in mind, they may lodge a challenge at any time before the next turn is played. The recipient of the challenge must then provide a valid reserve word which contains the word-stem in play. If they are able to do so, the challenged player wins the game. If they can not provide a reserve word, the challenger wins the game.
, but that alone is not generally enough to truly master the game. Familiarity with commonly-used suffixes, prefixes, and Pluralization is a must, as these can be used to extend word-stems into larger and larger formations before a word must finally be created. But simply extending the length of a word won't guarantee a win. A player must also employ simple strategies to ensure that the final word contains the proper number of letters required for them to win: an even
number if they made the first move, or an odd
number if they played the second move.
In Example 1, it can be noted that the phrase "AT" does not end the game; this is because words only become valid once they are at least three letters long.
Paper and pencil game
Paper-and-pencil games are games that can be played solely with paper and pencil .In some board games, including some abstract strategy games like Gomoku, a piece once played will not be moved on the board or removed from the board...
word game
Word game
Word games and puzzles are spoken or board games often designed to test ability with language or to explore its properties.Word games are generally engaged as a source of entertainment, but have been found to serve an educational purpose as well...
for two players. A letter is written on a sheet of paper, and each player takes turns adding a letter either to the beginning or the end of this ever-growing word stem
Word stem
In linguistics, a stem is a part of a word. The term is used with slightly different meanings.In one usage, a stem is a form to which affixes can be attached. Thus, in this usage, the English word friendships contains the stem friend, to which the derivational suffix -ship is attached to form a new...
. Any word-stem you create must form part of a valid English word, without actually being a word itself. The first player to create a word
Word
In language, a word is the smallest free form that may be uttered in isolation with semantic or pragmatic content . This contrasts with a morpheme, which is the smallest unit of meaning but will not necessarily stand on its own...
(with at least three or four letters) loses.
Lexicant is popular because of its inherent simplicity
Simplicity
Simplicity is the state or quality of being simple. It usually relates to the burden which a thing puts on someone trying to explain or understand it. Something which is easy to understand or explain is simple, in contrast to something complicated...
. It requires no preparation and nothing more than paper and pencil. It can even be played orally.
Bluffing and challenging
At any turn a player is expected to have one or more "reserve words" in mind which could be formed from the exact word-stem in play. If the letters in play were "MICAB", for example, validValid
Valid is a Brazilian engraving company headquartered in Rio de Janeiro that provides security printing services to financial institutions, telecommunication companies, state governments, and public agencies in Brazil, Argentina, and Spain....
reserve words would include "AMICABLE" and "AMICABILITY". However, a player can opt to bluff
Deception
Deception, beguilement, deceit, bluff, mystification, bad faith, and subterfuge are acts to propagate beliefs that are not true, or not the whole truth . Deception can involve dissimulation, propaganda, and sleight of hand. It can employ distraction, camouflage or concealment...
on their turn - that is, they can add a letter to the word-stem without actually having a reserve word in mind. Bluffing is almost always done as a last resort, though some players may use bluffs strategically to force their opponents into untenable positions. If a player feels their opponent has played a bluff and has no reserve word in mind, they may lodge a challenge at any time before the next turn is played. The recipient of the challenge must then provide a valid reserve word which contains the word-stem in play. If they are able to do so, the challenged player wins the game. If they can not provide a reserve word, the challenger wins the game.
Strategy
Lexicant requires a strong vocabularyVocabulary
A person's vocabulary is the set of words within a language that are familiar to that person. A vocabulary usually develops with age, and serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge...
, but that alone is not generally enough to truly master the game. Familiarity with commonly-used suffixes, prefixes, and Pluralization is a must, as these can be used to extend word-stems into larger and larger formations before a word must finally be created. But simply extending the length of a word won't guarantee a win. A player must also employ simple strategies to ensure that the final word contains the proper number of letters required for them to win: an even
Even and odd numbers
In mathematics, the parity of an object states whether it is even or odd.This concept begins with integers. An even number is an integer that is "evenly divisible" by 2, i.e., divisible by 2 without remainder; an odd number is an integer that is not evenly divisible by 2...
number if they made the first move, or an odd
Even and odd numbers
In mathematics, the parity of an object states whether it is even or odd.This concept begins with integers. An even number is an integer that is "evenly divisible" by 2, i.e., divisible by 2 without remainder; an odd number is an integer that is not evenly divisible by 2...
number if they played the second move.
Example games
Two example games could be played as follows:| Example 1 | Example 2 |
|---|---|
| A AT ATI PATI IPATI IPATIO CIPATIO ICIPATIO TICIPATIO NTICIPATIO NTICIPATION ANTICIPATION |
V IV TIV ITIV SITIV NSITIV NSITIVI NSITIVIT ENSITIVIT ENSITIVITI ENSITIVITIE SENSITIVITIE OSENSITIVITIE OSENSITIVITIES POSENSITIVITIES YPOSENSITIVITIES HYPOSENSITIVITIES |
In Example 1, it can be noted that the phrase "AT" does not end the game; this is because words only become valid once they are at least three letters long.