7-letter words with S as the 1st letter and U as the 5th letter

A fixed fifth-letter clue narrows the search, but the matches are far from one-note: STATUTE and STATUES share a root, while SEIZURE, SUNBURN and SPATULA point in very different directions. Only eight matches rank among common English words, so expect plenty of specialist vocabulary alongside familiar choices.

The S–U pattern at a glance

• There are 111 seven-letter matches, with S first and U fifth.
• STATUTE, SEIZURE and STATURE are recognizable examples that fit the pattern.
• Only eight matches are common English words; many entries are less familiar.
• SCHMUTZ leads the scoring rankings at 23 points.
• The most frequent final letter is S, found on 37 matches; E follows with 21.

What defines 7-letter words with S first and U fifth?

The pattern is S _ _ _ U _ _: the first and fifth letters are fixed, while the other five positions vary. That leaves room for words such as SUBDUED, SENSUAL and SPROUTS, which all satisfy the same clue despite having different endings. SAWDUST and SOJOURN fit as well.

Final S is the leading ending, with 37 matches, compared with 21 ending in E and 13 in A. STATUES and SPROUTS illustrate the S ending; STATUTE ends in E, and SPATULA ends in A. Check the last letter too when a crossing clue supplies it.

Which 7-letter words with S first and U fifth score well?

SCHMUTZ scores 23, ahead of SAWBUCK and SCHTUCK at 18. Those standouts rely on high-value letters, while familiar SEIZURE scores 16. A long word is not automatically a high scorer; the Z and K do much of the work here.

The Collins list contains 107 matches, while NWL2023 contains 87, so the full set is not identical across tournament dictionaries. Ninety matches have definitions, and just eight are common. For competitive play, confirm the word in your game's dictionary rather than assuming every match is accepted.