m-o-l-e-c-u-l-e
MOLECULE The smallest unit of a chemical compound; two or more atoms bonded together retaining the compound's properties. Scores 12 base points in word games.
12
Points in Scrabble
Base tile values • No multipliers applied
Molecules are nature's architects, constructing everything from water's simple H₂O to DNA's billion-atom spirals. These atomic assemblies represent the frontier where physics becomes chemistry—where individual atoms lose their identity to create entirely new substances with emergent properties. A single water molecule behaves nothing like hydrogen or oxygen gases, demonstrating how molecular bonds create the magic of transformation that makes life possible.
The molecular world operates by rules both elegant and bizarre. Covalent bonds share electrons between atoms; ionic bonds transfer them completely; hydrogen bonds create water's unusual properties; van der Waals forces hold geckos to walls. Molecular shapes determine function: proteins fold into precise configurations, lock-and-key enzyme specificity enables metabolism, and DNA's double helix stores genetic information. Small changes—a single atom's position—can transform medicine into poison, as with thalidomide's tragic mirror-image forms.
Modern molecular science enables miracles. Pharmaceutical chemists design molecules to precisely target disease pathways. Materials scientists create polymers with programmable properties. Nanotechnology manipulates individual molecules to build molecular machines—the 2016 Nobel Prize recognized molecular motors 1000 times smaller than a human hair. From photosynthesis converting light to sugar to CRISPR editing genetic molecules, understanding molecular behavior unlocks nature's deepest secrets.
In Scrabble strategy, MOLECULE exemplifies scientific vocabulary's value. This 8-letter word offers bingo potential worth 60+ points with bonuses. The common letters ensure reasonable drawing odds, while familiarity reduces challenge risk. MOLECULE builds from MOL, CUE, or MOLE already played, and connects with related terms like MOLECULAR, ATOM, or CHEMICAL. Competitive players study scientific terminology systematically, recognizing that chemistry provides hundreds of valid, high-scoring options.
MOLECULE derives from Modern Latin "molecula," diminutive of Latin "moles" (mass), literally meaning "small mass." French scientist Pierre Gassendi coined the term in 1620 to describe the smallest particles that retained a substance's properties. The word gained scientific precision through Avogadro's hypothesis (1811) distinguishing molecules from atoms. Before standardization, scientists used various terms: "compound atoms," "integral molecules," and "physical atoms." The modern definition crystallized in the 1860s as chemistry matured, establishing molecules as distinct entities composed of bonded atoms.
•A single molecule of DNA in your cells stretches 2 meters long when unraveled
•The largest stable molecule has 200 million atoms—a single polyethylene plastic chain
•Caffeine molecules fit perfectly into adenosine receptors, blocking tiredness signals to your brain
"The most beautiful molecule might be benzene—its perfect hexagonal symmetry revolutionized chemistry."
"Every breath contains molecules exhaled by every person who ever lived—we share air across millennia."
Other 8-letter scientific words with strong scoring potential:
Total base points: 12 (Scrabble)
Vowels: 4 (O, E, U, E) | Consonants: 4 (M, L, C, L)
Practice unscrambling letters to find more high-scoring words like MOLECULE