5 Letter Words with O as 2nd and U as 3rd Letter

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  • BOUGE
  • BOUGH
  • BOULE
  • BOULT
  • BOUND
  • BOURD
  • BOURG
  • BOURN
  • BOUSE
  • BOUSY
  • BOUTS
  • COUCH
  • COUDE
  • COUGH
  • COULD
  • COUNT
  • COUPE
  • COUPS
  • COURB
  • COURS
  • COURT
  • COUTH
  • DOUAR
  • DOUBT
  • DOUCE
  • DOUGH
  • DOUMA
  • DOURA
  • DOUSE
  • FOULS
  • FOUND
  • FOUNT
  • FOURS
  • FOUTH
  • GOUGE
  • GOURA
  • GOURD
  • GOUTS
  • GOUTY
  • HOUGH
  • HOUND
  • HOURI
  • HOURS
  • HOUSE
  • JOUAL
  • JOUGS
  • JOUKS
  • JOULE
  • JOURS
  • JOUST
  • LOUGH
  • LOUIE
  • LOUIS
  • LOUPE
  • LOUPS
  • LOURS
  • LOURY
  • LOUSE
  • LOUSY
  • LOUTS
Use ? for unknowns

One hundred nineteen words carry O second and U third, and no vowel pair in English is less predictable.

OU Is the Least Reliable Vowel Pair on the Site

COULD says uu, HOUSE says ow, YOUTH says oo and TOUGH says uf. Common words, entirely different sounds, from the same two letters in the same position.

That makes this a pattern you cannot reason towards by ear. On most vowel pair pages the sound narrows the field, and here it tells you almost nothing.

  • WOULD
  • HOUSE
  • YOUTH
  • SOUND
  • COURT

R Leads the Fourth Box in OU Words

R takes it in twenty two of the one hundred nineteen, with S and T on fifteen each and L on fourteen. HOURS, HOUSE, COUNT and FOULS show the main shapes.

The GH Ending Is a Cluster of Its Own

BOUGH, COUGH, DOUGH, HOUGH, LOUGH, ROUGH, SOUGH and TOUGH all close the same way, and Eight of the one hundred nineteen finish in GH.

They are also where the pronunciation problem is worst. ROUGH and TOUGH rhyme, BOUGH and DOUGH do not rhyme with either, and nothing in the spelling warns you.

Where OU Words Finish

S closes twenty nine of the one hundred nineteen, E closes twenty two and H closes nineteen. That H rate is unusually high and comes almost entirely from the GH words.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is SOUND or HOUSE the better opening

SOUND tests the N and D, which the SE and GH endings never use. HOUSE confirms a common ending but leaves the consonant branches untouched.

Why is OU pronounced so many ways

The pair covers several sounds that were once distinct and drifted apart while the spelling stayed fixed. English never reformed it, so the inconsistency is permanent.

What is a HOURI

A beautiful young woman of the Islamic paradise. It came into English through French from Persian.

Does any OU word repeat a letter

One does, and across one hundred nineteen entries that is remarkably few for a group of this size.

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