Winning on Hard Letters: J, Z, X and Q

Every Name City Animal player knows the moment: a letter is drawn and it's "Q". You can feel everyone freeze at once. But here's the secret: hard letters are often where you score the most, because most players leave blanks — a single valid word puts you ahead.

Why Hard Letters Are Opportunities

On easy letters everyone finds the same obvious words and points get split. On hard letters competition drops, so your chance of grabbing unique points is much higher. Treat tough letters as a chance to jump up the leaderboard, not a threat.

Ideas for Z

• City: "Zurich", "Zagreb", "Zaragoza".
• Name: "Zoe", "Zack".
• Animal: "Zebra".
• Plant: "Zinnia".

Ideas for Q and X

• Q City: "Quito", "Qatar".
• X City: "Xiamen".
• X often appears mid-word, so focus on categories that allow it.

General Tactic

When you see a hard letter, don't panic trying to fill everything. Focus on one or two of your strongest categories and write a unique word there. One unique answer can take you to the top in a round full of blanks.

For more tips, check our How to Play guide and start a room to practice those hard letters.