7-letter words with T as the 3rd letter and R as the 7th letter

Every match ends in R, so the last tile never helps you sort candidates and the opening letter has to do that job. M opens 13 words, O opens 12 and A opens 11. Only 6 of the 128 are common English words, so expect plenty of unfamiliar forms.

What defines the T-third, R-last words

• 128 words in total: Collins accepts 125, NWL2023 accepts 108 and ENABLE accepts 102.
• Only 6 count as common, although 102 have a dictionary definition.
• DITZIER tops the scores at 17 points, ahead of RITZIER at 16; the average word scores 9.8.
• M, O and A lead the opening letters with 13, 12 and 11 words.
• Seven of the ten top scorers end in -TCHER, including WATCHER, HATCHER and FETCHER.

How does this frame compare with other third letters?

Put A in third place with R seventh and you get 347 words; I gives 279 and S gives 126. T lands eighth among the thirteen third-letter frames, with L only one word behind at 127.

Change the last letter instead and the pool swells: T third with S seventh holds 778 words, against 128 here. Because the final R is fixed, many matches are agent nouns such as PITCHER, BUTCHER, CATCHER and SETTLER.

The -TCHER family is the signature of this frame. WATCHER, HATCHER, FETCHER and HITCHER all score 15 and share their last five letters, so test them first when your rack holds C, H, E and R.

Which of these words will a game accept?

Collins accepts 125 of the 128 words, but ENABLE accepts only 102, so 26 matches would be refused in a game built on that list. Only 6 are common, which makes a familiar play like OUTDOOR the exception rather than the rule. Check your game's word list before committing to a rare form such as WOTCHER.

A scoring note for the rack