7-letter words with F as the 3rd letter and S as the 5th letter

The pattern leaves just 17 tournament-dictionary entries, and their endings are unusually concentrated: six finish in S. REFUSED, REFUSES, and REFUSAL show how a familiar word family can fill several slots without changing the fixed letters. Four entries rank among the top 25,000 English words, so most matches are less everyday.

The F-and-S pattern at a glance

• All 17 matches put F third and S fifth in a seven-letter word.
• Collins includes 17 matches; NWL2023 includes 16, while ENABLE includes 14.
• Six matches end in S, including REFUSES, INFUSES, and INFESTS.
• The first letters D, I, and R account for five, four, and four matches.
• EFFUSED leads the scores at 14 points; the average score is 11.1.

Which 7-letter words have F third and S fifth?

REFUSED, REFUSES, and REFUSAL are good starting points when you recognize the REFU- sequence. INFUSED, INFUSES, and INFUSER provide another cluster, while DEFUSED, DEFUSES, and DEFUSER share a different opening. These examples keep F in slot three and S in slot five, even as their endings change.

Other matches include INFESTS, UNFUSSY, UNFUSED, EFFUSED, EFFUSES, DUFUSES, DEFASTE, and REFUSER. The word endings split six ways: S appears six times, D five times, and R three times; E, L, and Y appear once each.

How should you use this pattern in a game?

For a score-first choice, EFFUSED is the standout at 14 points, followed by UNFUSSY and EFFUSES at 13 each. DEFUSED scores 12, while REFUSED and INFUSED score 11 apiece. Those are base word scores; board premiums can change the final total.

The exact phrase 7-letter words with F third and S fifth describes a narrow clue, not a promise that every match suits every dictionary. Collins has one more entry than NWL2023 and three more than ENABLE, so confirm the word list used in your game. When a match must start with D, its five options make that opening the strongest branch to check.