7-letter words with A as the 1st letter and O as the 4th letter

The fixed pattern is A _ _ O _ _ _: A begins each entry, while O sits in the fourth slot. Five positions remain open, so ACCOUNT, ALLOWED, and ALCOHOL share a frame but look quite different. Fourteen entries count as common by English word frequency; most are less familiar, which matters when you need a playable word quickly.

At a glance: counts and familiar examples

• 177 tournament-dictionary entries match the pattern; dictionary totals overlap, so do not add them together.
• Collins includes 174 matches, NWL2023 includes 135, and ENABLE includes 121.
• Fourteen entries qualify as common, including ACCOUNT, ALLOWED, ALCOHOL, and AUTOPSY.
• The average letter score is 10.6, but obscure high-value words lift the top of the range.

How does the fixed pattern narrow your options?

Start with A _ _ O _ _ _ and place confirmed letters before guessing the open slots. ACCOUNT and ACCORDS both put C in the second and third positions, while ALLOWED uses L there. Those shared shapes make the middle letters a better filter than the opening A.

The fourth letter is fixed, but the endings vary: ACCOUNT ends in T, ALLOWED in D, and ALCOHOL in L. When a clue gives you a final letter, sort by that slot first; it cuts down the candidates without changing the A-and-O frame.

Which entries score well, and what is the catch?

ALCORZA leads the score ranking at 18 points, followed by ALFORJA at 17. ATROPHY, ADJOURN, ADJOINS, and ADJOINT each score 15. Those results make the pattern more than a list of everyday vocabulary, but the top scorers are much less familiar than ACCOUNT or AUTOPSY.

Treat the score leaders as board-play candidates, not automatic plays: a high face-value total still depends on finding a legal placement. Only 14 of the 177 matches are common, so many entries may be unfamiliar at the table. Check your game's word list before playing an obscure candidate.