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Awhile in Scrabble and Meaning

Lookup Word Points and Definitions

What does awhile mean? Is awhile a Scrabble word?

How many points in Scrabble is awhile worth? awhile how many points in Words With Friends? What does awhile mean? Get all these answers on this page.

Scrabble® and Words with Friends® points for awhile

See how to calculate how many points for awhile.

Is awhile a Scrabble word?

Yes. The word awhile is a Scrabble US word. The word awhile is worth 12 points in Scrabble:

A1W4H4I1L1E1

Is awhile a Scrabble UK word?

Yes. The word awhile is a Scrabble UK word and has 12 points:

A1W4H4I1L1E1

Is awhile a Words With Friends word?

Yes. The word awhile is a Words With Friends word. The word awhile is worth 12 points in Words With Friends (WWF):

A1W4H3I1L2E1

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Valid words made from Awhile

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Results

6-letter words (1 found)

AWHILE,

5-letter words (4 found)

WALIE,WHALE,WHEAL,WHILE,

4-letter words (17 found)

ALEW,ELHI,HAIL,HALE,HEAL,HEIL,HILA,ILEA,LWEI,WAIL,WALE,WALI,WEAL,WEIL,WHAE,WIEL,WILE,

3-letter words (18 found)

AHI,AIL,ALE,AWE,AWL,HAE,HAW,HEW,HIE,LAH,LAW,LEA,LEI,LEW,LIE,WAE,WAI,WHA,

2-letter words (15 found)

AE,AH,AI,AL,AW,EA,EH,EL,EW,HA,HE,HI,LA,LI,WE,

1-letter words (1 found)

E,

You can make 56 words from awhile according to the Scrabble US and Canada dictionary.

Definitions and meaning of awhile

awhile

Etymology

Old English ane (“(for) a”) hwile (“while”)

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /əˈwaɪl/, /əˈʍaɪl/
  • Rhymes: -aɪl

Adverb

awhile (not comparable)

  1. For some time; for a short time.
  2. (US, Pennsylvania Dutch English) In the meantime; during an implicit ongoing process.

Usage notes

Awhile to mean “for a while” is often considered incorrect to use with a preceding preposition, since one is already supposed: instead of “for awhile”, one should prefer either “for a while” or simply “awhile”. However, “awhile” as object for a preposition is used by renowned writers, is allowed by Merriam-Webster, and is consistent with how other adverbs of time and place are employed.

In Pennsylvania Dutch English, awhile is typically always used to convey such sense; the word is separated as “a while” for the first sense, whether preceded by a preposition or not. Compare “You may sit awhile” (inviting a person to sit while they are waiting) and “You may sit a while” (inviting them to sit for a length of time).

Synonyms

  • (for some time): for a minute, momentarily; see also Thesaurus:temporarily
  • (in the meantime): for the moment, meanwhile, meanwhilst, the while

Related terms

  • while

Translations

References

  • “'Awhile' vs. 'A While'”, in Merriam-Webster‎[2], archived from the original on 2023-10-17: “Generally, the two-word form "a while" should be used when following a preposition ("I will read for a while"), or with the words ago or back ("a while ago/back").”

Source: wiktionary.org