5-Letter Words that Start with W | 120+ Words to Know
The 5-letter words that start with W are great to have in your back pocket when playing word games like Wordle of Scrabble, or when simply looking to expand your vocabulary. These include everyday words like “weigh” and “wheat,” as well as more advanced terms such as “wiley,” “wryly,” and “waifs.”
This guide includes 120+ 5-letter words that start with W, ordered alphabetically, along with tips for word games, and some definitions of less common terms on the list.
Key takeaways
- Discover 120+ five-letter words that start with W, from everyday terms to uncommon vocabulary.
- This guide contains lists organized to make finding the right word easy.
- You’ll also find useful Wordle guesses, high-scoring Scrabble and Words With Friends words, and advanced W words to expand your vocabulary.
Table of contents
- 5 letter words that start with W: The complete list
- Best 5-letter Wordle openers starting with W
- High-scoring 5-letter words that start with W
- 5-letter words that start with W sorted by ending letter
- 10 advanced 5-letter words that start with W
- Frequently asked questions about 5 letter words that start with W
- Other interesting articles
5 letter words that start with W: The complete list
Below you’ll find a full list of 5-letter words that start with W. Save them for word games as well as for general knowledge when writing essays or looking to expand your lexicon.
- WA: Wacky, wacko, waded, waged, wafer, wager, wages, wagon, waist, waits, waive, wakes, wales, walks, walls, waltz, wands, wanna, wants, wards, wares, warms, warns, warts, warty, wasps, waste, watch, water, watts, waved, waver, waves, waxed, waxen
- WE: Wears, weary, weave, wedge, weeds, weedy, weeks, weigh, weird, wells, wench
- WH: Whack, whale, wharf, whats, wheat, wheel, wheeze, whelp, where, which, whiff, while, whine, whiny, whips, whirl, whisk, white, whole, whoop, whose
- WI: Widen, wider, widow, width, wield, wiley, wiles, wills, willy, wimpy, wince, winch, winds, windy, wines, wings, wiped, wipes, wired, wires, wiser, wispy, witch, witty, wives
- WO: Woken, woman, women, woods, woody, wooer, wooly, woozy, words, wordy, works, world, worms, worry, worse, worst, worth, would, wound, woven
- WR: Wrack, wraps, wrath, wreak, wreck, wrest, wring, wrist, write, wrong, wrote, wrung, wryly
Best 5-letter Wordle openers starting with W
In Wordle, it can be useful to play 5-letter words that share common features in order to gain insights into the solution.If you know that a Wordle answer begins with W, your next guess can do more than simply try to solve the puzzle.
A strong guess should test letters that are common in English words, particularly useful vowels and frequently occurring consonants. The following table includes good options when playing 5-letter words that start with W because they contain multiple vowels and common consonants.
| Word | Vowels | Useful consonants | Helpful letter position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wafer | A, E | F, R | Final R |
| Wager | A, E | G, R | Final R |
| Waltz | A | L, T, Z | Second letter A |
| Weary | E, A, Y | R | Final Y |
| Wiser | I, E | S, R | Final R |
| Worse | O, E | R, S | Final E |
| Wrote | O, E | R, T | Final E |
| Witty | I, Y | T | Double T |
| Woken | O, E | K, N | Final N |
| Wince | I, E | N, C | Final E |
Once you know the solution begins with W, pay particular attention to the letters that commonly appear in the remaining four positions. Words beginning with W can take many forms, but combinations involving A, E, I, O, R, S, T, and N can be especially useful to investigate.
Some examples of five-letter W words that can help explore these patterns include:
- Wager
- Wafer
- Waste
- Water
- Weary
- Weird
- Whale
- Wheat
- Wheel
- Wiser
- Worse
- Wrote
High-scoring 5-letter words that start with W
If you’re looking to maximize your score in Scrabble or Words With Friends, consider some five-letter words that start with W. The W tile itself is worth 4 points in both games, but the biggest scoring potential comes from pairing it with high-value letters such as Z, Q, K, and Y. Words containing these letters can produce considerably more points than ordinary W words.
The table below highlights some of the highest-scoring five-letter words beginning with W for each game.
| Word | Scrabble points | Words With Friends points |
|---|---|---|
| Whizz | 29 | 28 |
| Woozy | 20 | 20 |
| Waltz | 17 | 18 |
| Wacky | 17 | 17 |
| Waxed | 16 | 16 |
| Waxen | 16 | 16 |
| Wazoo | 17 | 17 |
| Whack | 17 | 17 |
When playing on a real board, remember that the numbers above are base word scores. Landing a valuable letter on a double- or triple-letter space, or placing the word across a double- or triple-word space, can increase the final score.
5-letter words that start with W sorted by ending letter
The following chart organizes the 5-letter words that start with W by their ending letters so that you can quickly find what you need when playing word games.
| Ends with | Word options |
|---|---|
| A | Wanna |
| D | Waged, waved, waxed, weird, wield, wiped, wired, world, would, wound |
| E | Waive, waste, weave, wedge, whale, wheeze, where, while, whine, white, whole, whose, wince, worse, write, wrote, wince |
| F | Wharf, whiff |
| G | Wring, wrong, wrung |
| H | Watch, weigh, wench, which, width, winch, witch, worth, wrath |
| K | Whack, whisk, wrack, wreak, wreck |
| L | Wheel, whirl |
| N | Wagon, waxen, widen, woken, woman, women, woven |
| O | Wacko, wazoo |
| P | Whelp, whoop |
| R | Wafer, wager, water, waver, wider, wiser, wooer |
| S | Wages, waits, wakes, wales, walks, walls, wants, wards, wares, warms, warns, warts, wasps, watts, waves, wears, weeds, weeks, wells, whats, whips, wiles, wills, winds, wines, wings, wipes, wires, wives, woods, words, works, worms, wraps |
| T | Waist, wheat, worst, wrest, wrist |
| W | Widow |
| Y | Wacky, warty, weary, weedy, whiny, wiley, willy, wimpy, windy, wispy, witty, woody, wooly, woozy, wordy, worry, wryly |
| Z | Waltz |
10 advanced 5-letter words that start with W
Expand your vocabulary with these 10 advanced 5-letter words that start with W. Bonus points if you can try to use as many as possible in the same sentence.
- Wacke: Sandstone containing mineral and rock fragments
- Waifs: A homeless, abandoned, or neglected person—particularly a young woman with a gaunt appearance
- Wains: An archaic term for a wagon or cart, with “waifs” being the plural form
- Wanly: An adverb that describes doing something in a lifeless, weak, or tired way
- Wazoo: A slang term for someone’s hind quarters, often used as part of the phrase “out the wazoo” which refers to having something in abundance
- Weald: An archaic term for a forest, woodland, or wild natural landscape
- Wedel: A skiing term used to describe making quick and rapid turns
- Whelm: To inundate someone in thoughts, feelings, or water. (More commonly: “overwhelm”)
- Whorl: A term primarily used in botany, it refers to an object with a spiral or circular pattern
- Wryly: An adverb that describes speaking or acting in a dry, sarcastic or ironic manner
Frequently asked questions about 5 letter words that start with W
- What are some words with a silent W?
-
Words with a silent W include:
- Wreck
- Wryly
- Wren
- Wrestle
- Wriggle
- Wrinkle
- Wrist
- Writhe
- Wrong
- Wrought
- Write
- Answer
Quillbot’s free AI Chat can help you come up with other unexpected words that have the letter W.
- What are 5-letter words that start with W and end with E?
-
Some 5-letter words that start with W and end in E include:
- Waive
- Waste
- Weave
- Wedge
- Whale
- Wheeze
- Where
- While
- Whine
- White
- Whole
- Whose
- Wince
- Worse
- Write
- Wrote
- Wince
Use Quillbot’s free Spell Checker tool to help avoid spelling mistakes.
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