7-letter words with O as the 3rd letter and L as the 6th letter

The pattern __O__L_ fixes O in the third slot and L in the sixth, leaving four positions open. Familiar fits include PROFILE, TROUBLE, and CLOSELY; SWOZZLE and KNOBBLY are less obvious. Only 12 entries count as common, so expect a mix of everyday words and tougher finds.

At a glance: the strongest clues

• 104 seven-letter words match the pattern __O__L_.
• PROFILE, TROUBLE, and CLOSELY are recognizable examples.
• 43 matches end in Y; 28 end in E, and 20 end in S.
• SWOZZLE tops the score list at 28 points; WOOZILY follows at 22.

How many words have O third and L sixth?

Exactly 104 words fit O in position three and L in position six across the tournament dictionaries. The count is a combined pool, not a promise that every word appears in every game’s word list.

Collins includes 101 matches, NWL2023 has 76, and ENABLE has 69. Those dictionary totals overlap, which is why the combined count is not the sum of the three lists. Check your game’s word list before playing an unfamiliar entry.

S is the most frequent first letter, with 20 matches; P follows with 13. C and W each start 10 words, while the full set has only 12 common entries. PROFILE and TROUBLE are easier to recognize than many of the less familiar options.

The final letter gives a useful narrowing clue: Y leads with 43 words, ahead of E at 28 and S at 20. Only three matches end in L, so an L at the end is a much tighter clue than a Y.

How can you narrow the pattern further?

Start with the last letter when your clue supplies one: the 43 Y-ending matches are a large group, while the 28 ending in E give you a smaller branch. Then use the first letter; S leads with 20, making it the strongest starting-letter bet in this set.

A nearby pattern can change the size of your search dramatically. Keep O in the third position but switch the sixth letter to E, and the matching count rises to 837. By contrast, the O-third, L-sixth clue has 104 matches, so confirm both fixed positions before trying a candidate.

For a score-first search, SWOZZLE leads at 28 points, followed by WOOZILY at 22 and BOOZILY at 21. Those are scoring standouts, not the most familiar answers; PROFILE and TROUBLE are easier to spot in ordinary wordplay.