7-letter words with U as the 1st letter and T as the 4th letter

Three stems carry most of this list: UNST with 14 words, UPST with 10 and UNIT with 10. The Z in UNITIZE gives it a three-point lead over everything else. Behind it, a four-way tie at 13 comes from the K in UNSTACK, UNSTICK, UNSTOCK and UNSTUCK.

The 41 words in numbers

• Stems: UNST 14, UPST 10, UNIT 10, URET 3, UMPT 2, UNCT 1 and ULST 1.
• Top scores: UNITIZE 16, then UNSTACK, UNSTICK, UNSTOCK and UNSTUCK at 13.
• Endings: S closes 10, E closes 8, and D, K and N close 4 each.
• Everyday words: UPSTATE and UNITING.
• Word lists: Collins 40, NWL2023 33, ENABLE 32.

What are the UNST and UPST words?

UNST covers UNSTACK, UNSTAID, UNSTATE, UNSTEEL, UNSTEPS, UNSTICK, UNSTOCK, UNSTOPS, UNSTOWS, UNSTRAP, UNSTRIP, UNSTUCK, UNSTUFT and UNSTUNG. Most undo a verb that begins with ST, so UNSTACK reverses STACK and UNSTRAP reverses STRAP.

UPST has UPSTAGE, UPSTAIR, UPSTAND, UPSTARE, UPSTART, UPSTATE, UPSTAYS, UPSTEPS, UPSTIRS and UPSTOOD. UPSTATE is the only one with real everyday weight, and UPSTART is the other familiar entry. Seven words sit outside the three big stems: UMPTEEN, UMPTIER, UNCTION, ULSTERS, URETERS, URETHAN and URETHRA.

Why does UNITIZE beat UNITISE?

UNITIZE is worth 16 because the Z is worth 10, and it is accepted by Collins, NWL2023 and ENABLE. UNITISE swaps the Z for an S, scores 7, and is Collins-only.

The rest of the UNIT family is UNITAGE, UNITARD, UNITARY, UNITERS, UNITIVE, UNITIES, UNITION and UNITING. UNITING is the common one, and UNITION is Collins-only.

Do all the UNST words work everywhere?

Not quite: UNSTAID, UNSTOCK, UNSTOWS, UNSTRIP and UNSTUFT are Collins-only, along with UPSTAYS. Collins accepts 40 of the 41, NWL2023 accepts 33 and ENABLE accepts 32, so check your game's word list. UNSTACK, UNSTICK and UNSTUCK are the safe 13-point plays, since every list accepts them.