7-letter words with O as the 1st letter and A as the 6th letter

The pattern fixes O at the opening and A in the sixth slot, leaving four positions to do most of the sorting. OPTICAL and ORBITAL show the pattern clearly; OVERLAP and OVERPAY offer another recognizable cluster. Only 9 entries rank among common English words, so expect a mix of everyday vocabulary and tournament-only discoveries rather than 78 equally familiar answers.

At a glance: O-and-A pattern facts

• All 78 matches begin O and place A in position six; the final letter varies.
• N is the most frequent ending, with 16 words; L follows with 14.
• S accounts for 11 endings, ahead of R with 9 and Y with 6.
• Only 9 matches are common by frequency, despite 59 having definitions.
• OFFPEAK leads the score list at 19; OVERTAX and OVERLAX score 17.

Which endings appear most often?

N and L are the strongest closing-letter clues: 16 words end in N and 14 end in L. S follows at 11, then R at 9; Y appears 6 times. At the tail of the distribution, D occurs 5 times, while T and W each occur 3 times.

That pattern matters when your rack or crossing letters suggest a final consonant. Start with OVERLAP, OPTICAL, or ORBITAL when L fits; use OVERMAN or OARSMAN as N-ending candidates. The constraint is not simply “starts with O”: the sixth slot is fixed, so candidates such as OATMEAL and OVERPAY separate quickly once that A is checked.

Scrabble scores for 7-letter words with O first and A sixth

OFFPEAK tops the set at 19, while OVERTAX and OVERLAX tie at 17. OFFBEAT and OVERPAY each score 15. These values reflect tile points before board premiums, so a double- or triple-letter square can change the play's total.

OFFPEAK's doubled F and K explain its edge, while OPTICAL and OVERLAP make easier pattern anchors to recognize.

One limitation: only 9 words are common, and the dictionaries do not contain identical sets. Collins includes 76 matches, NWL2023 includes 60, and ENABLE includes 54. Treat niche forms as dictionary-dependent plays; check your game's list before committing.