5-letter words with I as the 1st letter and A as the 4th letter

Every match opens with I and places A in the fourth slot, giving the frame I _ _ A _. I and A are both 1-point tiles, so the average score sits at just 8.3, and IZZAT at 23 points stands alone at the top. Three matches are Wordle answers: IDEAL, ILIAC, and INLAY.

Cheap letters, low scores

• 20 tournament-dictionary words open with I and put A fourth.
• The average score is 8.3 because I and A are 1-point tiles.
• IZZAT is the outlier at 23 points; no other match beats 15.
• IDEAL, ILIAC, and INLAY are the three Wordle answers; all 20 are allowed guesses.
• Collins lists 19 matches, NWL2023 lists 15, and ENABLE lists 13.

IZZAT is the only big scorer

IZZAT scores 23 points, built from two Z tiles worth 10 each plus I, A, and T. The next best is IXNAY at 15, then IXIAS at 12, so most of the list stays in single digits or the low teens.

Play the Z words for points and the common words for clues. IDEAS and IDEAL are the two matches inside the 25,000 most frequent English words, and both score only 6 points. The scoring list and the usable guess list are therefore two different things.

5-letter words with I as the 1st letter and A as the 4th letter

For 5-letter words with I as the 1st letter and A as the 4th letter, the tightest cluster is IL-: ILIAD, ILIAC, ILIAL, ILEAC, and ILEAL share it. S and L each close four matches, while R closes three.

IDEAL, ILIAC, and INLAY are the Wordle answers, and all 20 matches are accepted guesses. Collins carries 19 matches, four more than NWL2023 at 15 and six more than ENABLE at 13, so a few entries never reach the North American list.