Word Lists · G + Z
5 Letter Words With G and Z
Every five-letter word that contains both G and Z, in any position — answer-eligible words flagged in green, tap any word to play.
How Many 5-Letter Words Have G and Z?
Only 11 five-letter words carry both G and Z, which makes this one of the tighter pairs on the board — narrower than about 98% of all letter pairings. The answer pool trims it further, to 4: GAUZE, GAZER, GLAZE and the rest. A list this short is one you read rather than guess at.
Nearly half the list agrees on one square: Z in the 1st, 5 words out of 11. It is the percentage play when nothing else separates two candidates.
Green-dotted words are answer-eligible — the everyday vocabulary the daily puzzle actually draws from — while hollow-dotted words are valid guesses you can play but that will never be the solution. Flip on Answers only to focus on the 4 words that can truly win the board.
Best Wordle Words With G and Z
When G and Z are both in play, the strongest guess keeps them and rules out as many remaining answers as possible. These three score highest across all 2296 possible answers:
- 01 GRAZE — eliminates about 93.4% of remaining answers on average.
- 02 GAZER — eliminates about 92.9% of remaining answers on average.
- 03 GLAZE — eliminates about 92.4% of remaining answers on average.
The Full List, Grouped by First Letter
Grouping by first letter is lopsided here: the Z group alone holds 5 words against 11 total. If your board has not fixed square one yet, that is where the odds sit.
G/Z Words That Have Been Wordle Answers
This shape is rare in the daily puzzle. In 1916 Wordles, only 2 words with G and Z have been the answer: GLAZE (#873, 2023-11-09), GAUZE (#435, 2022-08-28). That leaves 2 candidates the puzzle has never used — GAZER, GRAZE.
| Puzzle | Date | Answer |
|---|---|---|
| #873 | 2023-11-09 | GLAZE |
| #435 | 2022-08-28 | GAUZE |
Never used as an answer
2 answer-eligible G/Z words have never been the solution: GAZER, GRAZE . Wordle avoided repeats entirely for its first 1,688 puzzles and only began reusing old answers in February 2026 — 24 times so far. An unused word is still the likelier bet, just no longer a certainty; see how repeats work for the full picture.
The other 7 words on this list are valid guesses the game accepts but never chooses as a solution. They still make useful probes for placing G and Z, but when you guess to win, a green-dotted answer word is the smarter pick.
Where G and Z Land in 5-Letter Words
The whole puzzle now is placement, so here is exactly where each letter tends to sit across the 11 words. Try the busiest square first.
| Position | Words with G here | Words with Z here |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | 4 | 5 |
| 2nd | 1 | 1 |
| 3rd | 3 | 1 |
| 4th | 3 | 4 |
| 5th | 0 | 0 |
Play a candidate that seats each letter in its busiest square and one of two good things happens: a tile turns green and you have locked a position, or it turns yellow again and you have eliminated the single most likely slot in one move.
How to Use These Words to Win Wordle
- Lead with the busiest square. G in slot 1 covers 4 of these 11 words and Z in slot 1 covers 5 — try that shape before rarer placements.
- Favor distinct letters early. 9 of the 11 words here use five different letters and 2 repeat one.
- Lean toward an unused word. Repeats stayed at zero until February 2026 and number just 24 in 1916 puzzles, so the 2 never-used G/Z words above remain the stronger bet.
Full strategy lives in the how-to-play guide, and you can practice any time on the unlimited Wordle board.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many 5-letter words have G and Z?
There are 11 valid five-letter words that contain both G and Z in any position, and 4 of them can be a Wordle answer. Turn on "Answers only" above to narrow the list to answer-eligible words.
What is the best word to guess with G and Z confirmed?
GRAZE — it keeps both letters and still eliminates about 93.4% of the remaining answer pool. GRAZE, GAZER, GLAZE are the top three by that measure. See more best Wordle starting words.
Where do G and Z usually sit in these words?
G most often lands in the 1st position (4 of 11 words) and Z in the 1st (5). That is a strong enough lean to guess on directly.
Which G/Z words have been Wordle answers?
2 of them, out of 1916 puzzles so far. The most recent was GLAZE (#873) on 2023-11-09, and the first was GAUZE on 2022-08-28. 2 answer-eligible words have never been used, including GAZER, GRAZE. Browse the full past Wordle answers archive.
Do these words work in hard mode?
Yes. Once G and Z show as present you must reuse them, so this is exactly your hard-mode candidate set. 9 of the 11 words use five distinct letters and 2 repeat one, which matters because hard mode will not let you drop a confirmed letter to test elsewhere — see the how-to-play guide.
Are there 5-letter words with G and Z next to each other?
No. In all 11 words with G and Z, the two letters never sit side by side — there is always at least one square between them.
How many G/Z words have no repeated letters?
9 of the 11. Those are the ones that reveal the most board per guess, so they are the better probes early on. The other 2 double up on some letter, and 55% of the full list carries two or more vowels. For a full clue-by-clue solve, send your board to the Wordle Solver.