5 letter words starting with U
U starts only 117 five letter words. It is the rarest vowel to open with, and a large share of the words that do use it are built from the UN prefix, which makes this page far more orderly than its size suggests.
Have the letters but not the word?
How many five letter words start with U?
There are 117, and 33 are common enough to be in everyday use. Most are built from UN plus a three letter root: UNBID, UNCAP, UNFED, UNPEN. Learn that pattern and you have effectively learned half of this page in one go.
The full list
Alphabetical, grouped by second letter, which is usually the fastest way to find what you want.
UD words 1
- udder
UH words 1
- uhlan
UK words 1
- ukase
UL words 11
- ulama
- ulans
- ulcer
- ulema
- ulnad
- ulnae
- ulnar
- ulnas
- ulpan
- ultra
- ulvas
UM words 8
- umbel
- umber
- umbos
- umbra
- umiac
- umiak
- umiaq
- umped
UN words 54
- unais
- unapt
- unarm
- unary
- unaus
- unban
- unbar
- unbid
- unbox
- uncap
- uncia
- uncle
- uncos
- uncoy
- uncus
- uncut
- undee
- under
- undid
- undue
- unfed
- unfit
- unfix
- ungot
- unhat
- unhip
- unify
- union
- unite
- units
- unity
- unlay
- unled
- unlet
- unlit
- unman
- unmet
- unmew
- unmix
- unpeg
- unpen
- unpin
- unrig
- unrip
- unsay
- unset
- unsew
- unsex
- untie
- until
- unwed
- unwit
- unwon
- unzip
UP words 9
- upbow
- upbye
- updos
- updry
- upend
- uplit
- upped
- upper
- upset
UR words 17
- uraei
- urare
- urari
- urase
- urate
- urban
- urbia
- ureal
- ureas
- uredo
- ureic
- urged
- urger
- urges
- urial
- urine
- ursae
US words 9
- usage
- users
- usher
- using
- usnea
- usque
- usual
- usurp
- usury
UT words 3
- uteri
- utile
- utter
UV words 3
- uveal
- uveas
- uvula
33 of these are common enough to be in everyday use. Turn on the filter above to hide the rest.
The words that are not UN words are the ones worth noting: UPPER, UPSET, URBAN, USUAL, UNITE, UTILE, USURY. That is a short enough list to hold in your head, which is rare for any starting letter.
U is also the tile that rescues a Q, so a five letter U word is often the wrong play in a tile game even when it scores: holding the U back for a QU opening is usually worth more than the points on the board.
Other word lengths
The same complete list treatment for every length from 2 to 15 letters.
Five letter words by starting letter
Each letter has its own page with the full list and notes on how that letter behaves at five letters.