5-letter words with P as the 2nd letter and Y as the 5th letter

The pattern is _P__Y, with every match ending in Y. Collins lists all 18 words, while ENABLE and NWL2023 each include 13. Familiar choices such as APPLY, SPRAY, and SPICY sit alongside rarer entries, so the best fit depends on your game and which letters you have already ruled out.

5-letter words with P as the 2nd letter and Y as the 5th letter

• There are 18 tournament-dictionary matches for the _P__Y pattern.
• Nine begin with S, five with A, three with U, and one with E.
• Five entries count as common words; APPLY, SPRAY, and SPICY are recognizable examples.
• EPOXY scores 17 points in Scrabble, ahead of SPIKY at 14.
• Seven matches appear in the Wordle answer list and tournament dictionaries.

Which starting letters narrow the pattern?

S is the most productive first letter: nine matches start with S, including SPRAY, SPICY, SPIKY, SPINY, and SPLAY. A supplies five more, among them APPLY and aptly. U contributes three, while E appears only in EPOXY.

When the first letter is unknown, testing S checks half the candidate set at once. If S is absent, A is the next strongest branch; the U and E groups are smaller. That distribution makes the opening tile more informative than the final Y, which every answer already shares.

How should you use these words in Wordle or Scrabble?

For Wordle, the allowed-guess count covers all 18 words, but only seven are answer-list entries. The overlap makes this pattern relevant to answer hunting, though a matching word is not automatically the solution. Use revealed tiles to separate options such as APPLY, SPRAY, and SPINY rather than guessing from the ending alone.

For Scrabble, EPOXY is the standout at 17 points, and SPIKY scores 14. The average score is 11.5, but several entries are less familiar than the everyday examples; only five are classed as common, and Collins includes more matches than either ENABLE or NWL2023. Check your game's word list before playing an unfamiliar option.