5 Letter Words That Start With K

317 words in this list, every one checked against the YAWL dictionary.

Tap any word to copy it.

5 Letter Words 317

Which of these words score the most in Scrabble?

The highest scoring words from this list, ranked by Scrabble letter values.

Browse Words by First Letter

Word Finders by Length

Holding a rack rather than browsing? Most games are won at four, six, and seven tiles, so start with the 4 Letter Word Finder, the 6 Letter Word Finder, or the 7 Letter Word Finder, then pick any other length below.

This page lists every one of the 317 five letter words that start with K. Type the letters you hold into the filter above and the list narrows instantly to the plays that fit your rack or your puzzle, and sort by score or alphabet whenever it helps.

Common words and the silent K

The letter K opens a distinctive slice of the dictionary, and one of its most useful groups is the silent KN cluster, where the K is written but not heard: KNIFE, KNOCK, KNOWN, KNACK, KNAVE, KNEAD, KNEEL, and KNELT. Beyond it, everyday words fill the list, from KOALA, KAYAK, KHAKI, and KIOSK to KITTY, KRAUT, KUDOS, KAPPA, KETCH, and KINKY. Because the group is a good size, K rewards a careful browse.

A K opener Wordle set

For daily puzzle players a word starting with K makes a useful guess when the letter seems likely. KNIFE, KOALA, and KNEEL each place common letters in helpful spots, and answers such as KNOCK, KNOWN, KAYAK, KHAKI, KIOSK, KRAUT, and KUDOS all begin with K. Enter the letters you have confirmed and rule out the ones you have missed, and this list plus the filter collapses the field to a short, readable set.

Scoring the best five letter words that start with K

The opening K is worth five points, so words on this list start well ahead of most. KUDZU and KYLIX lead the board at 19 points, one carrying two Z tiles and the other an X and a Y, and KAZOO, KICKY, KLUTZ, and KOPJE all reach 18. When a bonus square sits under the first tile, the five point K alone gives these plays a strong head start.

How the count is made

Every figure on this page is recomputed from one pinned dictionary on each build, never written in by hand, and the list is a direct slice of that same file. That is why the count in the heading, the numbers in the copy, and the results from the filter can never disagree. If the total looks different from another site, this is the honest YAWL figure, and the dictionary page sets out the source list and its license. When you would rather rearrange a whole rack than browse by letter, send your letters to the five letter word finder.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many five letter words start with K?
There are 317 five letter words that start with K in this list, out of 12,036 five letter words in YAWL overall. Every count here is generated from the dictionary at build time, so it always matches what the filter finds.
What five letter words starting with K are good Wordle openers?
KNIFE, KOALA, and KNEEL are useful K openers, because they place common letters like N, I, F, E, O, A, L. If you have already found a green or yellow K, filter this list by your other placed letters to see only the words that still fit.
Which five letter word starting with K scores the most in Scrabble?
KUDZU and KYLIX lead at 19 points, one on its two Z tiles and the other on an X and Y, and KAZOO, KICKY, KLUTZ, and KOPJE all reach 18. The opening K is worth five points, so words that start with it carry a strong tile from the first square.
Why is a word I expected not on this list?
These pages are built from YAWL, a public domain list made for word games, which leaves out proper nouns, abbreviations, and hyphenated forms. Names starting with K will not appear as a result. The [dictionary page](/dictionary/) publishes the exact list, its license, and its full counts so you can check any word against the source.