Hooking with -KEY words
Endings like -KEY let you tack a word onto a tile already on the board, often turning a small play into a big one. Look for the high-value entries above to maximise points.
A quick statistical tour
The shape of this list: 46 entries between 5 and 10 letters long, peaking at 6 letters with 27 words. Five-letter picks number 8 and seven-letter picks 6. Nothing here outscores HOKEYPOKEY — 29 points from 10 tiles on plain squares.
The five biggest scorers on the page: HOKEYPOKEY (29), OKEYDOKEY (24), DOOHICKEY (22), JOCKEY (22), LATCHKEY (20). At 10 letters, HOKEYPOKEY is the longest word on the list; a typical entry scores around 17. The most useful tiles to hold for this list are Y, E and K, which appear in 46, 46 and 46 of the words respectively.
Start with these three
- SNAKEY — a 6-letter, 13-point play that slots into tight board lanes where longer words won't fit.
- TURKEY is easy to keep in memory: 6 letters, 13 points, and no awkward tiles to hunt for.
- DARKEY — 6 letters for 14 points; every tile in it is a common draw, so it shows up rack after rack.
Once those stick, file away the next tier too: DINKEY (14), DONKEY (14), REKEY (12), COOKEY (15), CRIKEY (15).
Why -KEY endings win turns
Endings are Scrabble's cheapest points. A word finishing in -KEY can often be built backwards from a tile already on the board, so you pay for fewer letters than you score. Scan the high scorers above, then look for a spot where the final -KEY lands on a premium square — the multiplier applies to your whole word, not just the hook.
More endings
Narrow it down
Pair an ending with a length or starting letter in the Word Finder.