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From: dsr@uvacs.UUCP (Dana S. Richards)
Newsgroups: net.puzzle
Subject: Re: Re: Re: Long words
Message-ID: <2502@uvacs.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 18-Nov-85 19:55:00 EST
Article-I.D.: uvacs.2502
Posted: Mon Nov 18 19:55:00 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 21-Nov-85 07:09:26 EST
References: <286@mhuxh.UUCP> <246@wudma.UUCP> <2052@uvacs.UUCP> <316@mmm.UUCP>
Organization: U.Va. CS dept.  Charlottesville, VA
Lines: 38

> In article <2052@uvacs.UUCP> dsr@uvacs.UUCP (Dana S. Richards) writes:
> >Shortest word list with letters in order-
> >	Do not recall the best known answer but is in Word Ways recently.
> 
> What do you mean, "shortest word list"?
> 
> The shortest word with letters in order is "a".
> 
By "letters" I naturally meant all  26.
I have been unable to find the shortest, in terms of words, in Word Ways as
advertised but have found there a discussion of such lists with few
total letters.  The problem originated in the defunct Games and Puzzles.
Early solutions:
ABC, defy, ghi, jak, limn, op, queriest, uva, waxy, zo
absconder, fig, hijack, limn, opaque, rust, unviewed, ox, oyez
Later solutions:
ABC, defyghe, bij, sklim, nop, qris, tu, vow, XYZ
 ...                           queriest, uvrow, XYZ
ABC, def, ghi, jak, limn, op, qris, tu, vow, XYZ
Jeff Grant:
ABC, defog, hij, klam, nop, queriest, uvrow, XYZ
 ....                       qrs, tu, vow, XYZ
 ....       hijack, limnophil, queriest, uvrow, XYZ
Dimitri Borgmann:
a, bic, defog, hijack, limn, opaquer, stu, vow, oxy, oz
[oz, pyx, wave, ut, sir, quip, on, milk, jib, hug, fed, cob, a]

The last example(s) is composed of "easily-recognized" words;
the other examples require a variety of dictionaries.
I do not know of a claim of optimality wrt a set dictionaries.
I will leave to you to count the letters and words in each example.

As I recall someone posted a 3 (long) word example. What was it?
I would guess that 3 words is minimum.

What is the availability of dictionaries in computer format?
All we have is the spelling dictionary; I know that Web2, 7th Collegiate,
and the OSPD are being used somewhere.