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6-letter words with O as the 1st letter and L as the 6th letter

Fourteen six-letter words start O and end L, including ORDEAL and OXTAIL; OXYMEL is the highest scorer at 18.

14 wordsTop pick ORDEALHighest score OXYMEL 18

1 of 14 are everyday words (7%). Mostly rare words: great for Scrabble, tough for daily puzzles.

With O in 1st place, S is the most common 6th letter (149 words). The bar under each letter shows the size of its list.

  • Length
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10
  • 11
  • 12
  • 13
  • 14
  • 15

Best words to play first 14 · most-used first

  • ORDEAL7
  • OXTAIL13
  • OGIVAL10
  • OXYMEL18
  • OSTEAL6
  • OBITAL8
  • OMASAL8
  • ONFALL9
  • OOIDAL7
  • OORIAL6
  • ORCHEL11
  • ORCHIL11
  • OSTIAL6
  • OXGALL14
All valid words 14

A to Z. Includes rare and Collins-only words. Linked tiles open the word's meaning, score and rhymes.

  • OBITAL8
  • OGIVAL10
  • OMASAL8
  • ONFALL9
  • OOIDAL7
  • OORIAL6
  • ORCHEL11
  • ORCHIL11
  • ORDEAL7
  • OSTEAL6
  • OSTIAL6
  • OXGALL14
  • OXTAIL13
  • OXYMEL18
Letters by positionIn 57% of these words the 5th letter is A.
2nd letter
  1. R21%
  2. X21%
  3. S14%
3rd letter
  1. I21%
  2. T21%
  3. C14%
4th letter
  1. A21%
  2. H14%
  3. E14%
5th letter
  1. A57%
  2. I14%
  3. L14%

Highest-scoring words

Scrabble and Words With Friends points, before board bonuses
WordScrabbleWords With FriendsDictionaries
OXYMEL1819Collins only
OXGALL1417NWL only
OXTAIL1314All three
ORCHIL1112All three
ORCHEL1112Collins only
OGIVAL1013All three
ONFALL912Collins only
OBITAL810Collins only
OMASAL810Collins only
ORDEAL78All three
OOIDAL78Collins only
OSTEAL67All three

Only 14 six-letter words open with O and close with L, and just one of them is common. ORDEAL and OXTAIL are the everyday anchors, while OGIVAL and OSTEAL are far less immediate. The 9.6 average hides a wide spread: OXYMEL reaches 18 and ORDEAL manages 7.

The O-to-L pattern at a glance

  • 14 words start with O and finish with L.
  • Only one entry is common by frequency, and nine have definitions.
  • OXYMEL scores 18 and OXGALL earns 14.
  • Collins accepts 13 of the 14, NWL2023 accepts 6, and ENABLE accepts 5.
  • Four middle letters are all that vary, so the frame is compact.

Which O-to-L words are easiest to recognize?

ORDEAL and OXTAIL are the accessible anchors, with OSTEAL and OGIVAL also in the group. OXGALL and ORCHIL look stranger on the page. Since every word shares the same two end letters, the interior four are what separate the candidates.

Eight of the 14 end in -AL: ORDEAL, OGIVAL, OSTEAL, OMASAL, OBITAL, OOIDAL, OORIAL and OSTIAL. That is more than half the group, so a spare A on your rack is a strong hint. The other six finish in -IL, -EL or -LL.

How wide is the scoring range for O-L words?

OXYMEL tops the list at 18 points, followed by OXGALL at 14 and OXTAIL at 13. ORDEAL scores 7, which is a long way behind the leader. That gap separates a likely answer from a speculative board play.

Collins is the safe choice here, with 13 of the 14 playable. In an NWL2023 game only 6 survive, and in ENABLE only 5, so check the list before trying OXGALL. The 4-letter middle is where mistakes happen.

Which tile gives O-L words their points?

Tip

X is the engine. OXYMEL, OXGALL and OXTAIL take the three top spots, so an X on your rack is worth more here than any other tile.

Questions people ask

How many six-letter words start with O and end in L?
There are 14. ORDEAL and OXTAIL are the recognizable ones, and OXYMEL is the top scorer at 18 points. Only one of the 14 sits among the 25,000 most common English words, so most are specialist terms.
Which O-L word has the highest Scrabble score?
OXYMEL scores 18 points, followed by OXGALL at 14 and OXTAIL at 13. ORDEAL scores just 7, which shows how far the familiar option trails the leader in this small group.
Are O words ending in L common?
No, only one entry falls within the 25,000 most common English words by frequency. ORDEAL is the clearest common example. Most of the other 13, such as OSTIAL and ORCHEL, are specialized terms.

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