Crossplay Sweep Words
A sweep — using all 7 tiles in one move — is worth +40 on top of the word. These six-letter stems are the ones that produce them most often.
- AENTASIA, TAENIAS
- BBANTIES, BASINET
- CACETINS, CINEAST
- DDESTAIN, DETAINS, INSTEAD, SAINTED, STAINED
- EETESIAN
- FFAINEST
- GEASTING, EATINGS, INGATES, INGESTA, SEATING, TEASING
- HSHEITAN, STHENIA
- IISATINE
- KINTAKES
- LELASTIN, ENTAILS, NAILSET, SALIENT, SALTINE, SLAINTE, TENAILS
- METAMINS, INMATES, TAMEINS
- NINANEST, STANINE
- OATONIES
- PPANTIES, PATINES, SAPIENT, SPINATE
- RANESTRI, ANTSIER, NASTIER, RATINES, RETAINS, RETINAS, RETSINA, STAINER, STEARIN
- SENTASIS, NASTIES, SESTINA, TANSIES, TISANES
- TINSTATE, SATINET
- UAUNTIES, SINUATE
- VNAIVEST, NATIVES, VAINEST
- WTAWNIES, WANIEST
- XANTISEX, SEXTAIN
- ZZANIEST, ZEATINS
Holding SATINE? Put it in the solver to see where it fits on your board.
Check your own rack
Need the board too? The full solver places these words on real squares and scores the premiums.
Why stems work
Sweeps are not really about knowing long words. They are about holding six letters that cooperate, and then drawing almost anything. SATIRE plus a B is BAITERS. Plus a C, it is RACIEST. Plus a D, ASTRIDE. The stem does the work; the seventh tile barely matters.
That changes how you play a turn. When you hold a stem and a junk tile, the correct move is often a small play that sheds only the junk — four points now, in exchange for a realistic chance at sixty next turn.
Recognising one at the table
- Count vowels. Three is the target; two or four still works, five almost never does.
- Look for the letters S, E, A, I, R, T, N. A rack made mostly of those is a stem whether or not it matches one here exactly.
- Spot the intruder. Usually one tile is spoiling it — a V, a W, a second U. That is the tile to play.
Where to put a sweep
Seven tiles need seven consecutive squares, which disappear fast. Two habits help: play towards the open side of the board, and check the row two above and two below your target line for blocking tiles before you commit to keeping the rack.
Related
- Seven-Letter WordsFind the sweep hiding in your rack.
- Strategy GuideTen ideas that add points to every game.
- Scoring RulesHow a play is scored, worked through step by step.
- Crossplay SolverEnter your board and rack, get every legal move ranked by score.
- Post-Game CoachScore your move and see the points you left behind.
- Practice ModeFind the best move yourself, one hint at a time.
Common questions
What is a stem?
Six letters that make a seven-letter word with an unusually large number of seventh letters. Recognising one on your rack tells you a sweep is likely, so it is worth keeping the shape together rather than breaking it for a small play.
How were these chosen?
They were computed from the dictionary at build time — for each candidate stem, every letter of the alphabet was tested to see whether the seven tiles form a valid word. The list is ordered by how many letters work.
Do I have to keep the exact stem?
No. The stems are a pattern, not a rule: they tell you which letters cooperate. Holding five of the six letters of SATIRE is already a strong rack, because the sixth and seventh are common tiles you are likely to draw.