New York, NY, November 8...Offensive and ethnic epithets are no longer in The Official Scrabble Players Dictionary, according to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL). Last year, the League raised concerns about the offensive words with Hasbro, Scrabble's parent company, and was assured the language would be removed in the next edition. After reviewing the newly-released Third Edition of the dictionary, ADL said the terms had, in fact, been eliminated.

"In its previous dictionary, Hasbro was literally playing games with hate," said ADL National Director Abraham H. Foxman, "by supplying legitimacy to demeaning and hurtful stereotypes. Families play Scrabble together, and there should be no room on the board for prejudice."

In its letter to Catherine C. Meredith, Vice President, Licensing/Public Relations of Hasbro Games Group, ADL commended the company, saying, "Hasbro has addressed the concerns we raised regarding usage of anti-Semitic and racially derogatory terms in previous editions. This latest edition does not include such terms, and we thank you for your attention to the matter."

The offensive terms removed included "nigger," "spic," "dago," and Jew used as a verb for "to bargain with."

The Anti-Defamation League, founded in 1913, is the world's leading organization fighting anti-Semitism through programs and services that counteract hatred, prejudice and bigotry.