7-letter words with H as the 2nd letter and L as the 6th letter

The fixed pattern is _H___L_: H sits in position two, and L sits in position six. The opening letter varies, but S leads with 34 matches, ahead of W with 18. Most entries end in E, Y, or S, so those final letters offer a quick way to narrow a longer candidate list.

7-letter words with H second and L sixth at a glance

• The pattern _H___L_ matches 90 tournament-dictionary words.
• S starts 34 matches; W is next with 18.
• E ends 32 words, Y ends 30, and S ends 25.
• Only 11 matches rank among the most common English words.
• The list averages 14.4 points in the scoring system.

Which letters appear most often around this pattern?

S, W, C, and T account for most of the opening letters: they begin 34, 18, 15, and 13 matches. That makes SH- words especially prominent, with examples such as shortly, shuttle, sharply, shuffle, and shingle.

The endings are even more concentrated. E, Y, and S together close 87 of the 90 words; familiar examples include whistle, ghostly, and thrills. If your crossing letters rule out those endings, the remaining options are just two words ending in A and one each ending in F.

Dictionary coverage varies: Collins includes 87 matches, NWL2023 includes 65, and ENABLE includes 58. The full count combines words appearing in at least one of those lists, so check your game's word list before playing an unfamiliar entry.

Which matches score well in word games?

• Thickly scores 19 points, helped by its K and Y.
• Chuckle scores 18 and is a more familiar high-value option.
• Chiefly also scores 18, pairing a high-value F with a Y.
• Whaizle and wheezle top the scoring list at 22 points each, but are much less familiar.
• The group averages 14.4 points, so even a 19-point play like thickly sits well above a typical match.