7-letter words with E as the 1st letter and P as the 7th letter

Seven of the twelve words that start with E and end in P begin with EN, and not one of the twelve is a common word. ENVELOP and ESCALOP are the ones most players know, while ENSTEEP and ENGRASP live mostly in word lists. The frame is E _ _ _ _ _ P, so five middle slots stay open.

The E-to-P pattern at a glance

• Twelve seven-letter words start with E and finish with P.
• Collins accepts all 12, while NWL2023 and ENABLE accept 7 each.
• None of the 12 counts as a common word by frequency.
• EXOCARP scores 18; EPICARP and ENDSHIP follow at 13.
• Seven begin EN, two begin EA, and EP, ES and EX open one word each.

Which E-first, P-last words will you recognise?

ENVELOP, ESCALOP and EARDROP are the three you can picture without a dictionary. ENVELOP means to wrap up, ESCALOP is a spelling of scallop, and EARDROP is a hanging earring. EPICARP and EXOCARP are botanical names for the outer skin of a fruit.

The EN group does most of the work. ENDSHIP, ENSTEEP, ENCLASP, ENGRASP, ENSTAMP and ENSWEEP sit beside ENVELOP in it. If your first two tiles are E and N, you are already looking at seven of the 12.

Which 7-letter words start with E and end in P score best?

EXOCARP scores 18 points, five more than EPICARP and ENDSHIP at 13. ENVELOP, EARFLAP and ENSWEEP score 12, and ESCALOP and ENCLASP score 11. The X tile is why EXOCARP stands alone; the average word here scores 11.8.

The catch is dictionary coverage. Collins accepts all 12, but NWL2023 and ENABLE accept 7 each, so check your game's word list before you spend a turn on ENGRASP or ENSTAMP.