ZA is slang for pizza, commonly used in casual American English. It's one of the most valuable 2-letter words in Scrabble, perfect for deploying the high-scoring Z tile.
Yes. ZA is in the Scrabble-style word list used by our tools and scores 11 points in Scrabble, 11 in Words With Friends and 11 in Wordfeud (base tile values, no board multipliers). Always check the dictionary your game uses (NWL, Collins or the WWF list) before playing.
| Letter | Z | A | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scrabble | 10 | 1 | 11 |
| Words With Friends | 10 | 1 | 11 |
| Wordfeud | 10 | 1 | 11 |
ZA is American slang for pizza, representing the casual shortening that's become widespread in informal speech. This abbreviation emerged from American English's tendency to truncate common words, particularly in college campuses and casual dining contexts where "Let's grab some za" became a popular phrase.
The term gained prominence in the 1980s and 1990s, particularly in college dormitories and casual social settings. While some consider it dated slang, it remains actively used in certain regions and demographics, especially among pizza enthusiasts and in casual dining establishments.
In word games, ZA has achieved legendary status. As one of only three two-letter words containing the Z tile (alongside ZO and ZE in some dictionaries), it's an essential tool for competitive players. The Z tile's 10-point value makes ZA a strategic goldmine, often determining the outcome of close games.
The word "za" is a classic example of American English clipping—the linguistic process of shortening longer words for convenience. Pizza becomes 'za through apheresis, where the beginning of the word is removed, leaving just the final syllable with a modified spelling.
Anagrams: no other word uses exactly the letters of ZA.
Hooks: no front hooks; back ZAG, ZAP, ZAS, ZAX.
Words inside ZA: 0 shorter words can be made from these letters. See all words from ZA.