7-letter words with A as the 3rd letter and L as the 6th letter

Lock in the pattern _ _ A _ _ L _ when a puzzle fixes A in position three and L in position six. The 188 matching words vary widely: EXAMPLE and EXACTLY are easy to recognize, while FRAZZLE and SWAZZLE lead the score list. Only 13 entries rank among the most common English words, so expect plenty of less familiar options.

7-letter words with A third and L sixth at a glance

• The pattern has 188 matches across the tournament dictionaries.
• Collins includes 182 matches, compared with 147 in NWL2023 and 135 in ENABLE.
• Only 13 matches are among the top 25,000 English words by frequency.
• S is the leading first letter, with 58 words; B follows with 20.
• Y and E dominate the final position, with 73 and 68 words respectively.

Which words fit the A-third, L-sixth pattern?

EXAMPLE, EXACTLY, HEAVILY, FRANKLY, TRAVELS, READILY, SHARPLY, FRAGILE, PLAINLY, and SPARKLE all fit. Their varied endings show how much the fixed A and L leave open in the other five slots.

The last letter is especially revealing: 73 words end in Y and 68 end in E, while 32 end in S. Just 3 end in L; D, K, and O appear once each.

At the start, S leads with 58 matches. B has 20 and G has 17, so an S opening is far more likely than any other listed start. That count can narrow a search quickly when the first tile is known.

How can you use these pattern matches?

For score-focused play, FRAZZLE and SWAZZLE top the list at 28 points apiece. QUAKILY and OXAZOLE score 23, while QUACKLE and WHAIZLE reach 22.

Those leaders are less familiar than EXAMPLE or EXACTLY, and only 13 matches are common by frequency. Treat the score leaders as candidates to check, not as everyday vocabulary.

Dictionary coverage differs: Collins has 182 matches, but NWL2023 has 147. Check your game's word list before playing a less familiar entry; a match in one dictionary does not guarantee acceptance in another.