5-letter words with M as the 1st letter and E as the 4th letter

The M??E? shape is the largest M pattern at five letters, and MONEY, MODEL, MAKES and MOVES all sit inside it. Twenty-seven matches count as common English. The endings then split between plurals and past tenses, with 44 matches closing on S and 31 on D.

M??E? in numbers

• One hundred twenty-five matches carry M first and E fourth.
• A vowel fills the second slot in 123 of them.
• Forty-four end in S and 31 in D.
• MAZEY leads all scorers at 19 points.
• Twelve matches are Wordle answers, from MAKER to MOWER.

Where the vowels and the endings land

Position two is almost always a vowel: O appears in 35 matches, A in 33, I in 23, E in 17 and U in 15. MONEY, MAKES, MILES and MOVES each show a different one, so a green letter in that slot cuts the field hard. Only MPRET and MZEES break the vowel run, which is why a fixed M-E frame feels so regular.

The final slot is just as narrow. S ends 44 matches and D ends 31, so three of every five words are either a plural or a past tense. MONEY, MODEL and MOTEL are among the few that close another way.

MAZEY and the twelve Wordle answers

MAZEY scores 19, with MAZED and MOZED next on 17, all three riding the Z. The X words MIXED and MAXED stop at 15. Twelve matches belong to the Wordle answer list, and they stay inside the familiar end of the pattern: MAKER, MATEY, MELEE, METER, MINER, MISER, MODEL, MODEM, MONEY, MOTEL, MOVER and MOWER.

Collins-only matches to steer around