Hooking with -WISE words
Endings like -WISE 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.
What the numbers say
A few numbers before you scroll: the 38 words here run from 6 to 13 letters, with 8-letter words the largest group (14 entries). Wordle players have 0 five-letter options, and there are 7 seven-letter candidates for a Scrabble bingo. The single best scorer is ANTICLOCKWISE at 24 points before multipliers.
Chasing points? The best five entries here are ANTICLOCKWISE (24), BREADTHWISE (20), CLOCKWISE (20), THWARTWISE (19), PROFITWISE (18). The longest entry is ANTICLOCKWISE at 13 letters, and the average word here is worth about 14 points. Letter-wise, S is the workhorse — it appears in 38 of these words, ahead of W (38) and E (38).
Three easy picks from this list
- NOWISE — a 6-letter, 9-point play that slots into tight board lanes where longer words won't fit.
- UNWISE is easy to keep in memory: 6 letters, 9 points, and no awkward tiles to hunt for.
- STREETWISE — 10 letters for 13 points; every tile in it is a common draw, so it shows up rack after rack.
Round out your set with LEASTWISE (12), SLANTWISE (12), CONTRARIWISE (17), AIRWISE (10), SUNWISE (10) — all built from common tiles.
Why -WISE endings win turns
Endings are Scrabble's cheapest points. A word finishing in -WISE 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 -WISE 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.