7-letter words with M as the 2nd letter and L as the 4th letter

The fixed positions make a narrow search: M must occupy slot two, L slot four, and five other letters can vary. The 56 matches are not evenly familiar: just 9 are common by frequency, while the opening letters cluster around E, S, A, and I. SMALLER, SMILING, and IMPLIED show the everyday side of the pattern.

How many matches fit the pattern?

• 56 tournament-dictionary entries match the pattern _M_L___.
• Collins accepts 54; ENABLE accepts 36, and NWL2023 accepts 39.
• Only 9 are classed as common; SMALLER, SMILING, and IMPLIED are recognizable picks.
• EMBLAZE and IMBLAZE score 20 apiece; AMPLIFY follows at 17.

Starting and ending letters in the 56 matches

The opening letter most often is E: 17 matches start there. S contributes 15, A 13, and I 9; O and Y appear once each. That makes EMPLOYS, SMILING, AMPLIFY, and IMPLIES useful anchors when you have already fixed the two internal letters.

Endings concentrate differently. S closes 16 matches and E closes 14, while D and R account for 8 and 7. A clue suggesting an S ending points toward EMPLOYS or EMBLEMS; a final D fits IMPLIED or SMELLED.

The source figures are overlapping dictionary memberships, not separate piles to add: the combined list stays at 56 even though Collins, ENABLE, and NWL2023 each cover their own subset. A word can fit the pattern but still fail in a particular app.

7-letter words with M as the 2nd letter and L as the 4th letter

Changing the fourth position while keeping M second produces more options: the R version has 82 matches and the A version has 68, compared with 56 here. The tight pool makes exact placement more valuable than simply spotting an M and an L anywhere in the word.

Scoring has a surprise: EMBLAZE and IMBLAZE lead at 20 points, but both are unusual beside SMALLER or SMILING. AMPLIFY reaches 17, and EMPLOYS scores 14. Use the high-value forms when the board permits; don't assume a rare-looking entry belongs in your game's dictionary.