5-Letter Words Containing ER

100 words

The ER combination appears throughout English, forming agent nouns (someone who does something) and comparative adjectives. This pattern connects words as different as JOKER and HERTZ, making it one of the most versatile two-letter sequences you'll encounter.

Pattern Guide

Word recommendations for board games.

Word Games

High-value words for board games

Top 5-Letter Words

JERKY

meat (especially beef) cut in strips and dried in the sun

19 pts
XEROX

reproduce by xerography

19 pts
HAZER
17 pts
HERTZ

the unit of frequency; one hertz has a periodic interval of one second (named for Heinrich Rudolph Hertz)

17 pts
QUERY

an instance of questioning

17 pts
JOKER

a person who does something thoughtless or annoying

16 pts
MAZER

a large hardwood drinking bowl

16 pts
DOZER

large powerful tractor; a large blade in front flattens areas of ground

15 pts

JERKY leads both games, but the real strategic difference emerges with J-words. JOKER scores 16 in Scrabble but jumps to 18 in WWF, while JAPER and JIBER only appear among WWF's top performers at 17 points each. XEROX ties for the top spot in Scrabble at 19 but drops slightly in WWF rankings. Players switching between games should note that WWF's boosted J value makes words like JIBER more competitive than their Scrabble counterparts.

Wordle

5-letter words for daily puzzles

Good Starters (E, A, R, S, T)

THEREStarter

to or toward that place; away from the speaker

AFTERStarter

happening at a time subsequent to a reference time

OTHERStarter

belonging to the distant past

LATERStarter

coming at a subsequent time or stage

Common Words (likely answers)

THERECommon

to or toward that place; away from the speaker

WHERECommon
NEVERCommon

not ever; at no time in the past or future

OTHERCommon

belonging to the distant past

THERE and OTHER make strong openers, each testing two vowels plus the common consonants T and R. LATER adds L to the mix while keeping that valuable E-R ending that appears in countless English words.

Hidden Gems

Rare but valid words to surprise opponents

DIMER

a compound whose molecules are composed of two identical monomers

ELVER

young eel

MILER

a runner in a one-mile race

"the race was a 30-miler"

NAMER

a person who gives a name or names

"the owner is usually the namer of a boat"

ELVER means a young eel—those translucent juveniles that migrate upstream. It's a legitimate five-letter word that most opponents won't challenge, and its common letters make it surprisingly easy to play when you're stuck with a difficult rack.

Popular crossword answers

Words frequently used in crossword puzzles with common clues.

More "ER" Pages

Browse words by longer letter combinations starting with "ER".