3 Letter Words

Word-Finder Guide to 3-Letter Words

3-letter words are foundational in English language and you can hardly create a sentence without using a word with at least three letters. In the same vein, you cannot do without 3-letter words in word games like Scrabble and Words With Friends.

YOU CAN GET your opponents in a TIZ or HEX them with the right combination of three-letter words— JAB after JAB.

There are 1065 valid three-letter Scrabble words in the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary. And while you can’t memorize them all, knowing a handful will help you easily earn points from multiple words.

Since small words get into small spaces, getting 3-letter words in a grid will earn you extra points, and they can form foundations for lengthier words.

Unlike two-letter words, you may not be able to commit a lot of 3-letter words to memory— however, a good place to start is with the most common ones.

Common 3-Letter Words

From pronouns to conjunctions, adjectives to adverbs, three-letter words are part of our DAY to DAY conversations.

So it is easier to create a word with 3 letters than you think, and even toddlers can play a game where they can score 3-letter words with ease.

3-letter words are easily formed with either two vowels and a consonant or vice versa. However, there are uncommon ones that consist of all vowels or all consonants like TRY and CWM, which is a valid Welsh word for a type of mountain valley.

And you can definitely depend on a Word-Generator tool to play a game. But if you're intent on building your 3-letter words capacity, below are some of the most common three-letter words.

Nouns like AIR, ANT, FOX, DEW, DOG, ELF, GYM, JET, KEY, LOG, BOY, DAD, JIM, CAR, MOM, VET, ZOO, SUN, SUN, and MAN.

Pronouns like HER, SHE, OUR, HIM, and YOU.

Adjectives and determiners like BAD, BIG, MAD, ONE, NEW, HOT, SIX, ANY, FEW, TEN, OLD, RED, THE, and SAD.

Verbs like EAT, JAM, ADD, ZIP, ACT, RUN, WAS, SAY, HAS, MET, GET, ARE, SEE, OUT, NAP, ACE, ASK, FIX, and JOG.

Conjunctions and Prepositions like AND, BUT, YET, FOR, and OFF.

Gameplay Tips for 3 Letter Words

For a Scrabble or Words With Friends player, having a three-letter word skill is as crucial as having a robust vocabulary.

If you know how to use your 3-letter words well, you’ll be able to maintain good rack management and earn huge points with unlikely words.

Here are some things you should know.

1. In the Official Scrabble dictionary, there’s only one legal three-letter word ending in a Q, and three others that start with a Q namely SUQ (a word for a street market), QAT (meaning the leaves of an Ethiopian plant), QIS (the plural form of QI, meaning spiritual energy), and QUA (a preposition showing that someone is standing in for another person).

2. There are only two legal 3-letter words that start with an X namely XED and XIS.

3. 3-letter words are important for rack management. This implies getting rid of your non-bingo letters in order to make room for new tiles in your rack.

4. The highest scoring three letter words that you can play in Scrabble or a Words With Friends game include: ZZZ, ZUZ, ZAX, ZEK, FEZ, FIZ, FIX, WIZ, PYX, WUZ, YEZ, BIZ, COZ, CUZ, KEX, WAX, and ZAP.

5. In Words with Friends, you can play other three-letter Q words like COQ, LQQ, QUE, QUI, ESQ, and SEQ.

6. The letter ‘X’ is the best hooking letter in Scrabble and Words with Friends. And if you manage to place it on a triple square, you’ll earn up to 70 points for a three-letter word — who needs a bingo when you hit that jackpot! Some cool X 3-letter words include: ZAX, ZZZ, ZUZ, ZEK, WIZ, FEZ, ZEN, FIZ, ZAP, ZIP, and BIZ.

Beyond having these 3-letter words tips at your fingertips, you can sign in to our Word Finder website to specifically search for 3-letter words that you can play from your combination of letters.

Three-letter Words FAQs

What are the most common three letter words?

The most common 3-letter words include: THE, ANY, HIM, BAT, HOW, FUN, INK, BIT, AND, CAN, YET, NEW, TRY, PEN, WIN, TAG, FEW, ARE, BAD, WAX, MAX, JAM, OLD, and MAN.

There are also abbreviations like CUZ for because, REZ for reservation, VAR for value at risk or virtual assistant referee, and TIZ for tizzy which is a state of nervous excitement.

What are three-letter words that start with A?

Some three-letter legal Scrabble and Words With Friends words that start with A include: ADZ, AZO, AJI, AMP, APP, AFT, AHA, ASK, ARF, AWE, ACT, ACE, APE, ASS, ATE, ANI, and ARM.

How many 3-letter words are in the English Language?

There are 1065 3-letter words in the English language, 1066 in the tournament word list (TWL06) Scrabble dictionary, and 1347 in the Collins Scrabble words dictionary formerly the SOWPODS (an anagram for the Official Scrabble Players dictionary and the Official Scrabble words combo).

If you’re playing Hasbro Inc. or Mattel Inc. owned Scrabble games, our comprehensive list of 3-letters words has all the legal words.

What are the highest scoring words in scrabble?

The three top 3-letter words that you can create to score some cool points include ZZZ which goes for 30 points, ZUZ for 21 points, and ZAX for 19 points.