6-letter words with P as the 2nd letter and L as the 3rd letter

The pattern is _PL___, and its entries cluster around two openings: 14 begin with S and 11 with U. Only five qualify as common by frequency, so familiar choices such as SPLASH and UPLOAD sit beside rarer terms. Dictionary coverage also varies: Collins includes 27, NWL2023 includes 21, and ENABLE includes 20.

What stands out in this six-letter pattern?

• There are 28 qualifying words; five are classified as common.
• SPLIFF and UPLOCK lead the listed Scrabble scores at 14 points each.
• Final E and final T are tied as the most frequent endings, with five words apiece.
• SPLASH, SPLITS, and SPLINT show how often the S opening appears.

Which words fit _PL___?

S words dominate: 14 entries start with S, compared with 11 starting with U. Examples include SPLASH, SPLITS, SPLINT, and SPLINE; the U group includes UPLOAD, UPLIFT, UPLAND, and UPLINK. AAPL? No: the remaining openings are just two A words and one Y word.

The endings are more evenly spread. Five words finish in E and five in T; D and S each close four, while K closes three. That makes SPLICE and SPLENT useful candidates when E is known, while SPLITS and UPLIFT fit a final T.

6-letter words with P second and L third: scores and limits

SPLIFF and UPLOCK each score 14 points before board premiums, the highest listed total. UPLINK, APLOMB, SPLAKE, and UPLOOK score 12; SPLASH, UPLIFT, SPLOSH, and SPLAYs score 11. The average score across the pattern is 9.9, so a less familiar word can beat an everyday one on raw tile value.

This pattern is not a Wordle-answer shortcut: none of its entries appears among the matching answers or allowed guesses. Its main limitation is familiarity, since only five entries are common. Check your game's word list before playing a less familiar form; Collins covers more of these words than either NWL2023 or ENABLE.