Words Starting With HEA

100 words

Words beginning with HEA form a compact but essential corner of English vocabulary. This cluster brings together fundamental concepts—health, hearing, hearts, and heat—that touch nearly every aspect of human experience.

4-letter words

5

5-letter words

8
View all 8

6-letter words

13

7-letter words

17

8-letter words

15

9-letter words

19

10-letter words

13

11-letter words

3

12-letter words

6

13-letter words

1

Pattern Guide

Insights and recommendations for these words.

The HEA pattern offers reliable options for word game players, with several high-scoring compounds and emotionally resonant terms worth mastering.

Vocabulary & Language

Linguistic patterns and usage statistics

The HEA combination frequently appears in words related to the body and basic human experience. The head-heart-health-hear cluster represents some of English's oldest vocabulary for describing physical and emotional states. Many HEA words form compounds easily, creating longer terms like HEADWAY, HEARTBREAK, and HEATSTROKE that pack substantial meaning.

Total Words

228

0.1% of dictionary

Avg Length

8.8 letters

2.3 syllables

Top Scrabble

HEAVYHEARTEDNESS

29 points

Longest Word

HEAVYHEARTEDNESS

16 letters

Parts of Speech

Nouns
70%
Verbs
4%
Adjectives
21%
Adverbs
4%

With 70% nouns and 21% adjectives, HEA words lean heavily toward naming things and describing them. The average length of 8.8 letters reflects how many HEA words are compounds—simple roots that combine into longer, descriptive terms.

Middle English and Old English dominate this pattern, marking HEA words as deeply native to the language. The word HEAVE traces a clear path from Middle English 'heven' through Old English 'hebban' back to Proto-West Germanic. This Germanic heritage explains why HEA words feel so fundamental—they've been part of English since its earliest forms.

Word Games

High-value words for board games

Short (2-4)

HEAP

a car that is old and unreliable

9 pts
HEAD

(computer science) a tiny electromagnetic coil and metal pole used to write and read magnetic patterns on a disk

8 pts
HEAL

provide a cure for, make healthy again

7 pts

Medium (5-7)

HEADWAY

vertical space available to allow easy passage under something

17 pts
HEALTHY

promoting health; healthful

16 pts
HEAVILY

slowly as if burdened by much weight

16 pts

Long (8+)

HEAVYHEARTEDNESS

a feeling of dispirited melancholy

29 pts
HEARTBREAKINGLY
28 pts
HEATHENIZING
28 pts
HEATHENIZED
27 pts

HEAVYHEARTEDNESS tops Scrabble at 29 points but drops to 28 in Words With Friends due to different tile valuations. For medium-length plays, HEADWAY scores 17 points in Scrabble, while HEAVILY and HEAVING both hit 16 points in WWF. The H tile is worth 4 points in both games, so focus on premium square placement rather than hoping for scoring differences.

Wordle

5-letter words for daily puzzles

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

HEARDStarter

detected or perceived by the sense of hearing

HEARTStarter

the hollow muscular organ located behind the sternum and between the lungs; its rhythmic contractions move the blood through the body

HEADSStarter
HEATHStarter

a tract of level wasteland; uncultivated land with sandy soil and scrubby vegetation

Common Words (likely answers)

HEARDCommon

detected or perceived by the sense of hearing

HEARTCommon

the hollow muscular organ located behind the sternum and between the lungs; its rhythmic contractions move the blood through the body

HEAVYCommon

slowly as if burdened by much weight

HEADSCommon

HEART and HEARD make excellent Wordle starters, covering E and A while testing the common consonants R, T, and D. HEADS offers similar vowel coverage with a different consonant check.

Length Extremes

Longest and shortest valid words

Longest

HEAVYHEARTEDNESS16 letters
HEARTBREAKINGLY15 letters
HEARTBROKENNESS15 letters
HEADMASTERSHIP14 letters

HEA words skip the shortest lengths entirely—no 2 or 3-letter options exist. This happens because HEA itself needs a meaningful ending to form complete words, pushing even the simplest terms to 4 letters minimum.

Hidden Gems

Rare but valid words to surprise opponents

HEADSHAKE

the act of turning your head left and right to signify denial or disbelief or bemusement

"I could tell from their headshakes that they didn't believe me"

HEADSTAND

an acrobatic feat in which a person balances on the head (usually with the help of the hands)

HEADLAND

a natural elevation (especially a rocky one that juts out into the sea)

HEARER

someone who listens attentively

HEADLAND describes a natural rocky elevation jutting into the sea—think dramatic coastal cliffs. Beyond its geographic precision, it's a valid Scrabble play that uses common letters while reaching into less-contested vocabulary. Worth knowing for both crossword puzzles and describing rugged coastlines.

Popular crossword answers

Words frequently used in crossword puzzles with common clues.

More "HEA" Pages

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