3 Letter Words Starting with W
There are 38 3-letter English words that start with W, ranging alphabetically from WAB to WYN. Top Scrabble® scorers on this list: WIZ (15), WAX (13), WHY (12). Average word length in this list is 3 letters.
Word list
W
- WAB8 pts
- WAD7 pts
- WAE6 pts
- WAG7 pts
- WAN6 pts
- WAP8 pts
- WAR6 pts
- WAS6 pts
- WAT6 pts
- WAW9 pts
- WAX13 pts
- WAY9 pts
- WEB8 pts
- WED7 pts
- WEE6 pts
- WEN6 pts
- WET6 pts
- WHA9 pts
- WHO9 pts
- WHY12 pts
- WIG7 pts
- WIN6 pts
- WIS6 pts
- WIT6 pts
- WIZ15 pts
- WOE6 pts
- WOG7 pts
- WOK10 pts
- WON6 pts
- WOO6 pts
- WOP8 pts
- WOS6 pts
- WOT6 pts
- WOW9 pts
- WRY9 pts
- WUD7 pts
- WYE9 pts
- WYN9 pts
Point values shown are Scrabble® (letters only, before board bonuses). Browse deeper via the word-lists hub.
Top 10 highest-scoring words
Scored on letters only (no board bonuses). WWF uses different tile values from Scrabble — J, Q and Z are worth 10 points in WWF; X is worth 8.
| # | Word | Scrabble | WWF |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | wiz | 15 | 15 |
| 2 | wax | 13 | 13 |
| 3 | why | 12 | 10 |
| 4 | wok | 10 | 10 |
| 5 | waw | 9 | 9 |
| 6 | wow | 9 | 9 |
| 7 | wyn | 9 | 9 |
| 8 | way | 9 | 8 |
| 9 | wha | 9 | 8 |
| 10 | who | 9 | 8 |
Strategy for this list
W is worth 4 in Scrabble and starts ~2,500 words. W has strong two-letter plays (WE, WO) and hooks to common short words for premium scoring. W-openers with premium potential include WHIZZ, WOOZY, WAXY. In Wordle, W is common in position 1 (WORLD, WHILE, WATCH) and one of the strongest tests for early-round letter isolation.
FAQs
How many 3-letter words start with W?
38 valid 3-letter English words begin with W in the ENABLE English word list.
Are these valid in Wordle and Scrabble?
Words on this page come from the ENABLE English word list. UK Scrabble (Collins Scrabble Words) accepts the overwhelming majority; a handful may not be legal in the North American NASPA Word List (NWL2023).