5-letter words with M as the 2nd letter and R as the 4th letter

The fixed pattern is _M_R_: M occupies position two, R position four, and the remaining slots stay open. The 22 matches are sparse beside nearby patterns: E in position two yields 98 matches, while L gives 32. Familiar options such as SMART and SMIRK sit beside less common entries, so scan the recognisable words first when solving.

5-letter words with M as the 2nd letter and R as the 4th letter

• Exactly 22 tournament-dictionary words fit the _M_R_ pattern.
• Only 2 matches count as common by the top-25,000 English-word frequency measure.
• S starts 9 matches, more than any other first letter; E follows with 4.
• S closes 5 words and E closes 4, making them the most frequent endings.

Which first letters and endings narrow the pattern?

Nine of the 22 matches start with S, including SMART, SMIRK, SMARM, and SMORE. E contributes 4, A contributes 3, and I, O, and U contribute 2 apiece. If your first tile is S, search that cluster before testing less frequent openings.

At the other end, S closes 5 words and E closes 4. G, K, T, and Y each close 2, while A and I close one each. A remembered final letter can narrow the search even though M and R already fix the middle positions.

The neighboring pattern with E in position two has 98 matches, more than four times this set. Changing just that one letter opens a much larger search; changing M to L gives 32 matches instead.

Which matches score best in Scrabble?

AMBRY scores 12 points, ahead of SMIRK and SMERK at 11; EMERY scores 10. The average is 8.3, so AMBRY is an outlier rather than a typical play. Board premiums change the total, and a high score alone does not confirm a word is accepted in your game.

Dictionary coverage for this pattern varies: ENABLE includes 12 matches, NWL2023 includes 15, and Collins includes 19. The combined count is not a promise that all 22 work in every app. Check your game's word list once before committing to a rarer entry such as AMBRY or EMERG.

A practical clue-solving order is to test SMART and SMIRK when the first letter is S, then use the ending counts to check your final tile. The two common matches are only a small slice of the 22, so less familiar options stand out less often in everyday play.