6-letter words with D as the 1st letter and E as the 4th letter

Every match follows D??E??: D leads, E sits in fourth position, and two letters remain open in between and at the end. The tournament-dictionary total is 88, with 85 in Collins, 75 in NWL2023, and 70 in ENABLE; those source counts overlap. Just 15 entries are classified as common, so recognizable choices are a small slice of the set.

At a glance: the D??E?? pattern

• The fixed pattern is D??E??, with the second, third, fifth, and sixth letters open.
• There are 88 tournament-dictionary matches, and 76 have a definition.
• The most frequent final letters are S, with 38 matches, and T, with 22.
• The average Scrabble score is 9.6 points; dozens reaches 16.

Which six-letter words fit D first and E fourth?

Direct, defeat, defend, decent, desert, delete, and detect are among the recognizable fits. Each keeps D in the opening slot and E in the fourth, while the other letters vary. Depend and digest also match, so a known word can narrow the pattern without forcing a single ending.

The ending gives a useful next filter: 38 matches finish in S, compared with 22 ending in T. Dozens, diners, and dozens-shaped high scorers are not the only options; defend ends in D, while decent ends in T. If your clue rules out S and T, the remaining endings are much less frequent.

Which matching words score well?

The highest base score is 16, shared by dozens, dozers, deject, dazers, and dizens. Dozens is the most familiar high scorer in that group; defect scores 12 and is another recognizable option. The 9.6-point average sits well below the top score, so those five words are outliers rather than typical picks.

Dictionary coverage is not identical: 85 matches appear in Collins, while 70 appear in ENABLE. A candidate accepted in one game may fail in another, especially among less familiar entries. Check your game's word list before committing; only 15 of these words are classified as common.