Words Starting With PH
100 wordsThe PH combination represents one of English's most distinctive Greek imports, where phi (φ) became our F sound through Latin transliteration. These words span medicine, philosophy, and science—fields where Greek thinking shaped Western knowledge.
3-letter words
14-letter words
25-letter words
66-letter words
137-letter words
88-letter words
109-letter words
1010-letter words
1311-letter words
1012-letter words
913-letter words
614-letter words
615-letter words
6Pattern Guide
Insights and recommendations for these words.
PH words reward players who know their Greek roots. The letter combination creates reliable high-scoring options across word games.
Vocabulary & Language
Linguistic patterns and usage statistics
The PH spelling almost always signals Greek ancestry. Words like PHILOSOPHY, PHYSICS, and PHARMACY descend from φιλος (loving), φύσις (nature), and φάρμακον (drug). This pattern dominates scientific and medical terminology because Greek was the language of ancient scholarship. When you see PH, you're usually looking at vocabulary that entered English through education and specialized fields.
Total Words
729
0.2% of dictionary
Avg Length
11.0 letters
3.9 syllables
Top Scrabble
PHYSICOCHEMICALLY
39 points
Longest Word
PHOTOPHOSPHORYLATION
20 letters
Parts of Speech
This pattern skews heavily toward nouns at 80%, reflecting PH words' concentration in technical and scientific vocabulary. The average length of 11 letters confirms these aren't everyday terms—they're the specialized language of academia and medicine.
Ancient Greek dominates this pattern's origins, with Latin and French serving as intermediary languages that carried Greek words into English. The etymology of PHILOSOPHY traces a clear path: Greek φιλοσοφία passed through Latin and Old French before reaching Middle English. This pattern reveals how Greek intellectual vocabulary flowed through Roman and French scholarship before English adopted it.
Word Games
High-value words for board games
Short (2-4)
the human face (`kisser' and `smiler' and `mug' are informal terms for `face' and `phiz' is British)
a unit of subjective loudness
Medium (5-7)
the passage to the stomach and lungs; in the front part of the neck below the chin and above the collarbone
a body of troops in close array
Long (8+)
Short (2-4)
the human face (`kisser' and `smiler' and `mug' are informal terms for `face' and `phiz' is British)
a unit of subjective loudness
Medium (5-7)
the passage to the stomach and lungs; in the front part of the neck below the chin and above the collarbone
a body of troops in close array
Long (8+)
an adrenergic drug used in many preparations to relieve allergic reactions or respiratory infections
PHARYNX scores 22 points in both games, making it a reliable seven-letter powerhouse when you draw the right tiles. PHIZ offers exceptional efficiency—18 points in just four letters works identically across Scrabble and WWF. For longer plays, PHYSICOCHEMICALLY jumps from 39 points in Scrabble to 42 in WWF, where the Y tile's higher value adds up in such lengthy words.
Wordle
5-letter words for daily puzzles
Good Starters (E, A, R, S, T)
a particular point in the time of a cycle; measured from some arbitrary zero and expressed as an angle
Common Words (likely answers)
(phonetics) an individual sound unit of speech without concern as to whether or not it is a phoneme of some language
a representation of a person or scene in the form of a print or transparent slide or in digital format
a particular point in the time of a cycle; measured from some arbitrary zero and expressed as an angle
a person who professes beliefs and opinions that he or she does not hold in order to conceal his or her real feelings or motives
PHASE makes an excellent starter with three vowels (A and E) plus common consonants S and H. It tests frequent letter positions while eliminating or confirming sounds that appear across many five-letter words.
Length Extremes
Longest and shortest valid words
Longest
Shortest
Short PH words are rare because Greek roots tend toward compound forms. Terms like PHOTOPHOSPHORYLATION stack multiple Greek elements together, following the language's original pattern of building complex concepts from simpler roots.
Hidden Gems
Rare but valid words to surprise opponents
imagination unrestricted by reality
a collector and student of postage stamps
often grown as a houseplant
of or relating to speech sounds
PHANTASY—an alternate spelling of 'fantasy' meaning imagination unrestricted by reality—remains valid in word games. This older form preserves the Greek spelling more faithfully and catches opponents off guard. It's particularly useful when the F tile isn't available but PH is.
Popular crossword answers
Words frequently used in crossword puzzles with common clues.