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

The fixed letters leave the second, third, and final positions open, but the endings are far from evenly spread. Twenty matches finish in S, while E, P, and Y each appear seven times. Just 15 of the words meet the common-word cutoff, so a familiar pattern still brings plenty of less familiar choices.

How many 5-letter words have S first and M fourth?

• There are 52 matches across Collins, NWL2023, and ENABLE; the dictionary totals overlap rather than add up.
• Collins includes 51 matches, compared with 40 in NWL2023 and 38 in ENABLE.
• SHAME, STAMP, SWAMP, and SLIME are recognizable examples; SIXMO, SWAMY, and STYMY lead the score list.
• Wordle's answer set contributes 12 matches, while all 52 words count as allowed guesses.
• Definitions are available for 44 entries, so some playable words may be unfamiliar or lack a definition here.

Endings cluster around S

Among words with S first and M fourth, a final S dominates: 20 entries end that way. E, P, and Y each close seven words; A and O each close four, while I and M are rare endings.

That skew suggests a practical solving move: if the last tile is unknown, test S before spending a guess on a rarer final I or M. SHAME and STAMP keep the fixed letters but offer different endings and middle-letter clues.

Changing only the fourth letter from M to E produces 219 five-letter words starting with S. That much larger group shows how sharply the M clue narrows the search.

Which entries score most in this pattern?

SIXMO tops the score list at 14 points; SWAMY and SKIMP follow at 13 each. SWAMP, SAMMY, SCHMO, and SPUMY score 12 apiece, making them stronger plays when the board offers premium squares.

For 5-letter words with S first and M fourth, the top score is not necessarily the easiest word to recognize. SIXMO and several other leaders are less familiar than SHAME or STAMP, so weigh the points against the risk that your game rejects the word.

The dictionary counts differ: Collins has 51 matches, NWL2023 has 40, and ENABLE has 38. Check your game's word list before banking on an unfamiliar entry; the shared pattern alone does not guarantee acceptance.