5 letter words starting with Z
Z starts 51 five letter words, one of the two shortest lists here, and Z is tied with Q for the highest tile value in most word games. That combination makes this a page worth reading rather than searching.
51 words
·
Compiled and checked by 
Rhea Vance
Have the letters but not the word?
What five letter words start with Z?
ZEBRA is the one everybody knows. Beyond it the list runs to ZESTY, ZILCH, ZLOTY, ZAPPY, ZINGY, ZIPPY and a handful of borrowings. All 51 fit on one screen, which is why memorising this page is realistic in a way that memorising S is not.
The full list
Alphabetical, grouped by second letter, which is usually the fastest way to find what you want.
ZA words 8
- zaire
- zamia
- zanza
- zappy
- zarfs
- zaxes
- zayin
- zazen
ZE words 10
- zeals
- zebec
- zebra
- zebus
- zeins
- zerks
- zeros
- zests
- zesty
- zetas
ZI words 13
- zibet
- zilch
- zills
- zincs
- zincy
- zineb
- zings
- zingy
- zinky
- zippy
- ziram
- zitis
- zizit
ZL words 2
- zlote
- zloty
ZO words 17
- zoeae
- zoeal
- zoeas
- zombi
- zonal
- zoned
- zoner
- zones
- zonks
- zooid
- zooks
- zooms
- zoons
- zooty
- zoril
- zoris
- zowie
ZY words 1
- zymes
9 of these are common enough to be in everyday use. Turn on the filter above to hide the rest.
5 letter words starting with Z ending on a Y 8 words
Eight words, and they are the most useful group on the page because the Y at the end costs four points on top of the ten the Z already brings. ZESTY and ZIPPY are the two in ordinary use. ZAPPY, ZINGY and ZINKY are informal but perfectly legal, ZINCY describes something containing zinc, ZOOTY means flashy in the manner of a zoot suit, and a ZLOTY is the currency of Poland.
- zappy
- zesty
- zincy
- zingy
- zinky
- zippy
- zloty
- zooty
5 letter words starting with Z that end in an S 21 words
Twenty one words, and on a board that final S is worth having, since it hooks onto a word already played and scores both of them again. ZONES, ZEROS, ZESTS and ZINCS are the ones nobody will question. ZAXES, ZERKS, ZILLS, ZOEAS, ZONKS, ZOOKS, ZORIS and ZYMES are the ones that win an argument. A ZAX is a slate cutting tool, which makes ZAXES two of the ten point tiles in a single five letter word.
- zarfs
- zaxes
- zeals
- zebus
- zeins
- zerks
- zeros
- zests
- zetas
- zills
- zincs
- zings
- zitis
- zoeas
- zones
- zonks
- zooks
- zooms
- zoons
- zoris
- zymes
5 letter words starting with Z with a repeated character 16 words
Sixteen words, and three of them repeat the Z itself, which is the best thing that can happen to a rack in any tile game: ZANZA, ZAZEN and ZIZIT each carry twenty points of Z before the other three squares are counted. A ZANZA is an African thumb piano, ZAZEN is seated meditation and ZIZIT are the fringes on a prayer shawl. The rest double a cheap letter instead, ZAPPY, ZIPPY, ZILLS, ZESTS, ZOOKS, ZOOMS, ZOONS and ZOOTY among them.
- zamia
- zanza
- zappy
- zazen
- zebec
- zests
- zills
- zippy
- zitis
- zizit
- zoeae
- zooid
- zooks
- zooms
- zoons
- zooty
The 5 letter Z words that score 19 points or more 10 words
Ten words clear nineteen. ZANZA, ZAZEN and ZIZIT lead on twenty three, all three of them by holding a second Z. ZAPPY, ZAXES, ZINKY and ZIPPY follow on twenty one, then ZILCH, ZINCY and ZYMES on nineteen. Since a Z is ten points on its own, every one of the fifty one words on this page scores at least ten, which is why the floor here is set so high: a lower one would simply print the page again.
- zanza 23
- zazen 23
- zizit 23
- zappy 21
- zaxes 21
- zinky 21
- zippy 21
- zilch 19
- zincy 19
- zymes 19
5 letter words with a Z somewhere that is not the start 160 words
A hundred and sixty words carry a Z away from the opening square, three times as many as begin with one, and that is where a Z actually gets played: onto a board that has already filled up. AMAZE, BLAZE, CRAZY, DOZEN, PIZZA, PRIZE and SEIZE are the shapes to know by heart. DIZZY, FIZZY, FUZZY and JAZZY put two of them in one word, and JAZZY at thirty three points is the highest scoring five letter word in this dictionary.
- abuzz
- adoze
- adzes
- agaze
- amaze
- azans
- azide
- azido
- azine
- azlon
- azoic
- azole
- azons
- azote
- azoth
- azure
- baiza
- baize
- bazar
- bazoo
- bezel
- bezil
- bizes
- blaze
- blitz
- bonze
- booze
- boozy
- bortz
- bozos
- braza
- braze
- cloze
- colza
- cozen
- cozes
- cozey
- cozie
- craze
- crazy
- croze
- czars
- dazed
- dazes
- diazo
- ditzy
- dizen
- dizzy
- doozy
- dozed
- dozen
- dozer
- dozes
- enzym
- fazed
- fazes
- feaze
- feeze
- fezes
- fizzy
- fritz
- frizz
- froze
- furze
- furzy
- fuzed
- fuzee
- fuzes
- fuzil
- fuzzy
- gauze
- gauzy
- gazar
- gazed
- gazer
- gazes
- ghazi
- gizmo
- glaze
- glazy
- glitz
- gloze
- gonzo
- graze
- grosz
- hafiz
- hamza
- hazan
- hazed
- hazel
- hazer
- hazes
- heeze
- hertz
- huzza
- izars
- jazzy
- kazoo
- klutz
- kudzu
- lazar
- lazed
- lazes
- lezzy
- maize
- matza
- matzo
- mazed
- mazer
- mazes
- mezes
- mezzo
- mirza
- mizen
- mozos
- muzzy
- nazis
- nertz
- nizam
- nudzh
- oozed
- oozes
- orzos
- ouzel
- ouzos
- ozone
- pizza
- plaza
- plotz
- prize
- razed
- razee
- razer
- razes
- razor
- ritzy
- seize
- sizar
- sized
- sizer
- sizes
- smaze
- soyuz
- sozin
- spitz
- tazza
- tazze
- tizzy
- topaz
- trooz
- tzars
- unzip
- vizir
- vizor
- waltz
- whizz
- winze
- wizen
- wizes
- woozy
Only 9 of the 51 words here are common vocabulary. Z entered English late and mostly through borrowing, so the dictionary keeps ZAYIN, ZAZEN, ZIBET and ZORIL alive without anybody using them.
The practical point is scoring. A Z in a five letter word is worth more than the rest of the word put together in most tile games, so knowing four or five of these by heart converts a difficult draw into your best turn of the match.
Every word by its first letter
The whole dictionary sorted by the letter a word opens with, any length, with the short cuts and the game slices broken out underneath each list.
Words with a rare letter
Every word carrying one hard letter, at any position and any length, split into the lists people actually look for: the ones without a U, the short ones, and the ones that start, hide or end with it.
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.