A letter bank is a relative of the
anagram
An anagram is a word or phrase formed by rearranging the letters of a different word or phrase, typically using all the original letters exactly once. For example, the word ''anagram'' itself can be rearranged into the phrase "nag a ram"; which ...
where all the letters of one word (the "bank") can be used as many times as desired (minimum of once each) to make a new word or phrase. For example, IMPS is a bank of MISSISSIPPI and SPROUT is a bank of
SUPPORT OUR TROOPS. As a convention, the bank should have no repeat letters within itself.
The term was coined by
Will Shortz
William F. Shortz (born August 26, 1952) is an American puzzle creator and editor who is the crossword editor for ''The New York Times''. He graduated from Indiana University with a degree in the invented field of enigmatology. After starting h ...
, whose first letter bank (BLUME -> BUMBLEBEE) appeared in his 1979 book, "Brain Games". In 1980, Shortz introduced letter banks to the
National Puzzlers' League The National Puzzlers' League (NPL) is a nonprofit organization focused on puzzling, primarily in the realm of word play and word games. Founded in 1883, it is the oldest puzzlers' organization in the world. It originally hosted semiannual conventi ...
(of which he is the historian), in the form of a contest puzzle. In 1981, the letter bank was announced an official puzzle type in the NPL’s magazine "The Enigma".
Letter banks are the basis for the word game ''
Alpha Blitz''.
Word puzzles
{{game-stub