7-letter words with A as the 2nd letter and C as the 5th letter

Lock the pattern as _A__C__, then check each candidate against the crossing letters on your board. The group ranges from familiar words such as HAIRCUT and PANACEA to less familiar entries such as KACHCHA. Only four matches rank among the top 25,000 English words by frequency, so a dictionary check matters more here than it does with an everyday word list.

Pattern facts at a glance

• There are 98 matches with A second and C fifth.
• RADICAL, MAGICAL, HAIRCUT, and PANACHE are recognizable examples.
• The average Scrabble score across the matches is 13.2 points.
• C and P tie as the most common starting letters, with 19 words apiece.
• A final S appears in 32 matches; E is next, with 23.

Which words stand out in this pattern?

PANACHE and PANACEA share the opening P-A-N-A-C, while PANICKY changes the fourth letter and finishes with a Y. Those familiar-looking starts make the pattern easier to scan, but the endings vary: 32 words finish in S and 23 finish in E.

The score leaders are much less ordinary. PAJOCKE and PAJOCKS each score 22 points, ahead of KACHCHA at 21; PANICKY and TAXICAB score 18 apiece. A high tile score does not make an entry familiar, so check that a candidate fits your game’s word list before playing it.

How can you narrow the matches?

Start with the fixed frame _A__C__, then use the first and last letters to cut down the candidates. C and P each lead 19 matches, while M begins 11 and B begins 10. If the final square is S, the 32 matching words make that ending the strongest first filter.

The seven-letter frame fits crosswords and board games, where crossing letters narrow the candidates. The dictionary totals also overlap rather than add up: Collins has 92, NWL2023 has 65, and ENABLE has 58. Confirm your game’s dictionary, especially for the rarer score leaders.