c-u-r-s-e-d
CURSED means afflicted by supernatural misfortune, doomed to suffer, or to invoke evil upon someone.
9
Points in Scrabble
Base tile values • No multipliers applied
CURSED carries the weight of supernatural dread across cultures. As an adjective, it describes someone or something afflicted by a curse - a supernatural force bringing misfortune, suffering, or doom. Objects, places, or people can be cursed, marked by persistent bad luck or tragedy.
As the past tense of "curse," it means to have invoked evil or misfortune upon someone through words or ritual. From ancient tablets inscribed with curses to modern expressions like "cursed with bad luck," the word bridges supernatural belief and everyday language.
In internet culture, "cursed" has evolved to describe disturbing, unsettling, or bizarrely wrong images and content - "cursed images" that feel fundamentally incorrect. This modern usage captures the original sense of something touched by malevolent forces, translated to digital unease.
"Cursed" derives from Old English "cursian," meaning to wish evil upon. The ultimate origin is uncertain, but may connect to Old Norse "kors" (cross), suggesting Christian influence - invoking the cross against someone. Alternative theories link it to Latin "cursus" (course), implying altering someone's life path. By Middle English, "cursed" meant both the act of cursing and the state of being under a curse. The pronunciation split into "cursed" (one syllable) and "curs-ed" (two syllables) for poetic emphasis.
•6-letter words like CURSED are versatile for creating multiple crosswords
•Knowing uncommon but valid words gives you a significant advantage in word games
•CURSED can often be extended with prefixes or suffixes for even more points
•The Hope Diamond is famously "cursed," with a trail of tragedy following its owners through centuries
""I played CURSED on a triple word score and earned a huge number of points.""
""CURSED is one of those words that can really boost your score in word games.""
"The archaeologist hesitated before the cursed tomb, remembering the fate of previous expeditions."
"She cursed her luck when the train departed just as she reached the platform."
Total base points: 9 (Scrabble)
Vowels: 2 | Consonants: 4
From Egyptian tomb curses warning "Death shall come on swift wings" to Roman curse tablets thrown into wells, ancient civilizations weaponized words. These curses served as both spiritual protection and psychological deterrent.
Shakespeare's witches curse Macbeth, while fairy tales feature curses as plot devices - Sleeping Beauty's spindle, Beauty and the Beast's transformation. These stories explore how curses test character and require sacrifice to break.
Sports fans fear the "Curse of the Bambino" or "Madden Curse." These modern curses show how pattern-seeking minds create narratives around coincidence, giving random misfortune supernatural meaning.
"Cursed images" and "cursed comments" represent content so disturbing or wrong it feels supernatural. This evolution shows how ancient concepts of spiritual contamination translate to digital spaces.
Many cultures developed elaborate rituals to break curses: salt circles, burning sage, religious blessings. These practices reveal humanity's universal need to reclaim agency from perceived supernatural forces.
In stories, curses break through true love's kiss, selfless sacrifice, or genuine repentance. These patterns reflect beliefs about moral transformation overcoming spiritual affliction.
The "nocebo effect" shows belief in curses can cause real harm. Understanding curses as psychological phenomena helps explain their persistent power across rational societies.
Curses passed through bloodlines appear in Greek tragedy (House of Atreus) and modern horror. They explore how ancestral sins affect descendants, raising questions about inherited guilt and breaking cycles.
Cursed objects - from the Hope Diamond to fictional horcruxes - embody the idea that evil can inhabit physical things. These stories warn against greed and the dangers of coveting power.
Cursed locations from the Bermuda Triangle to haunted houses suggest some spaces are fundamentally tainted. These beliefs often arise from historical traumas imprinting on collective memory.
When belief in a curse causes behaviors that fulfill it, psychology and superstition merge. These "curses" reveal how expectation shapes reality, making the supernatural surprisingly rational.
CURSED offers solid value at 9 base points, with C (3) and D (2) providing scoring punch while common letters keep it playable. This balance makes it reliable for consistent scoring.
The -ED ending is extremely versatile for extending existing words on the board. You can often add CURSED perpendicular to another word to create multiple two-letter words.
Remember CURSE (8 points) is also valid if you can't place the full word. CURSED can't be extended further, but sets up defensive positions that are hard for opponents to build from.
Practice unscrambling letters to find more high-scoring words like CURSED