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

Fixing M in slot two and R at the end leaves a compact group of five-letter candidates. AMBER, SMEAR, and AMOUR are familiar picks, but the set also contains obscure forms; E is the most common starting letter, while A and S share second place. Three matches are Wordle answers, and the rest of the pattern still gives you 13 allowed guesses.

Quick counts for the M_R pattern

• The pattern has 13 matches across the tournament dictionaries.
• E opens 4 entries; A and S each open 3.
• AMBER, EMBER, and UMBER score 9 Scrabble points apiece.
• SMEAR and AMOUR are 7-point plays.
• Three entries are Wordle answers; every match is an allowed guess.

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

Start with the everyday candidates: AMBER, SMEAR, AMOUR, EMBER, and UMBER. The remaining matches are AMEER, EMMER, EMBAR, SMIRR, SMOOR, EMEER, IMBAR, and OMBER. Only 2 matches fall within the top 25,000 English words by frequency, so expect several unfamiliar entries in a full word-game list.

The first letter narrows the group: E starts 4 words, A and S start 3 each, and I, O, and U start one apiece. E, A, and S therefore cover 10 of the 13 matches. Test those openings first when the starting tile is unknown.

Which matches score well or appear in dictionaries?

Collins accepts all 13 words, compared with 10 in ENABLE and 10 in NWL2023. Three entries therefore fall outside each of the latter dictionary sets. Check your game's word list before playing an unusual candidate such as IMBAR or SMOOR.

Seven words tie at 9 Scrabble points: AMBER, EMBER, UMBER, EMMER, EMBAR, OMBER, and IMBAR. SMEAR, AMOUR, and AMEER each score 7. The counterintuitive part is that several rare-looking spellings outscore the familiar SMEAR; a word's letter mix matters more than its everyday feel.

How to narrow the remaining letters