5-letter words with A as the 2nd letter and K as the 4th letter

The fixed pattern is _ A _ K _, leaving the first, third, and final positions open. Most matches finish in S or Y: 67 end in S, while 22 end in Y. That split makes the final tile a quick filter, but the group also includes familiar forms such as BANKS and PARKS alongside less familiar words.

At a glance: 5-letter words with A 2nd and K 4th

• The pattern has 111 tournament-dictionary matches across the listed word sets.
• Collins includes 105 matches; NWL2023 includes 73, and ENABLE includes 64.
• S is the leading final letter, appearing in 67 words; Y follows with 22.
• Only 20 matches fall within the top 25,000 English words by word frequency.
• JACKY is the top Scrabble scorer at 21 points, ahead of ZACKS at 20.

Which endings and starting letters appear most?

S and Y dominate the final position: 67 words end in S and 22 end in Y. The remaining endings are A, O, E, I, and U, with 11, 5, 3, 2, and 1 matches respectively. When your clue leaves the last tile open, test S and Y before the rarer vowels.

P leads the first-letter group with 12 matches, while B has 10. H, L, M, T, and W each start 9 words. Those counts make PARKS, BANKS, and TALKS good familiar anchors, but the 20 common entries are only a small slice of the full set.

How to use this A-and-K pattern

For a puzzle, lock A into position two and K into position four, then use your known letters to narrow the open slots. BANKS, MARKS, and TALKS show how an S ending can form a familiar plural; WACKY and TACKY show a different route with Y at the end.

For Scrabble, JACKY scores 21, ZACKS scores 20, and JANKY scores 19. JACKS reaches 18, while WACKY and PAWKY each score 17. The highest scorer is not necessarily the easiest word to play, so check your rack and board before choosing a high-value option.