LOX: Three Words, Three Stories
LOX, PHLOX, and BOLLOX — that's your complete set of words ending in LOX. Each one comes from a completely different world. LOX is the smoked salmon you'd find at a New York deli, borrowed from Yiddish laks (itself from German Lachs, meaning salmon). PHLOX is a genus of flowering plants, from Greek phlox meaning flame — named for the bright red color of the original species. And BOLLOX is an alternate spelling of a word meaning to bungle or mess up, from Old English. Three words, three etymologies, three centuries of borrowing.
In Scrabble, LOX scores 10 points and PHLOX scores 17 points — strong for their lengths. The X tile (8 points) does the heavy lifting. PHLOX in particular is a tournament player's word: it's short, high-scoring, and uses the PH combination that clears two common tiles from your rack. In crosswords, LOX appears regularly, usually clued as "bagel topping" or "smoked salmon." PHLOX shows up in garden-themed puzzles. BOLLOX is rarer but not unheard of. Since there are only three options, a LOX ending in a crossword grid practically solves itself — count the squares and you're done.
For more X-ending word groups, see words ending in OX (the parent category) and words ending in X for the complete picture. The X tile's high value also matters in words starting with EX.
FAQ
Is BOLLOX or BOLLOCKS the correct spelling?
Both exist. BOLLOX is the shorter variant accepted in some Scrabble dictionaries, while BOLLOCKS is the more common British English spelling. Always check which dictionary your game uses. For other spelling-variant words, see words ending in OX and words ending in X.
Why is PHLOX a good Scrabble word?
PHLOX scores 17 points from just 5 tiles (P=3, H=4, L=1, O=1, X=8), giving it one of the best points-per-tile ratios in the game. It also clears PH from your rack, which is a common pairing that blocks longer plays. For more efficient short words, explore words starting with EX and words ending in V.