2 Letter Words Starting With I
There are 19 valid 2 letter words that start with I, drawn from NWL2023, CSW24, and Words With Friends. Sorted below by score, with the single highest scorer called out.
Highest Scoring 2-Letter Words
US Scrabble (NWL)
iq - 11 points
UK Scrabble (CSW)
iq - 11 points
Words With Friends
iq - 11 points
2 Letter Words (19)
View all words starting with ITop 20 Highest-Scoring 2 Letter Words Starting With i
Point values shown for US Scrabble, UK Scrabble, and Words With Friends. The average across this full 19 word list is 12.0 combined points.
| Rank | Word | US Scrabble | UK Scrabble | WWF Points | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | ia | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| #2 | ib | 4 | 4 | 5 | 13 |
| #3 | ic | 4 | 4 | 5 | 13 |
| #4 | id | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| #5 | ie | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| #6 | if | 5 | 5 | 5 | 15 |
| #7 | ii | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| #8 | ik | 6 | 6 | 6 | 18 |
| #9 | il | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
| #10 | im | 4 | 4 | 5 | 13 |
| #11 | in | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 |
| #12 | io | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| 🏆 #13 | iq | 11 | 11 | 11 | 33 |
| #14 | ir | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| #15 | is | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| #16 | it | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| #17 | iv | 5 | 5 | 6 | 16 |
| #18 | iw | 5 | 5 | 5 | 15 |
| #19 | ix | 9 | 9 | 9 | 27 |
Where 2 Letter Words Fit on the Board
At 2 letters, a word almost always uses your entire rack plus tiles already on the board these are realistically bingo-adjacent plays rather than everyday moves, which is why the list leans heavily on compound and suffixed forms (-nesses, -ation, -izing). If you're looking for words you can play more often, shorter lengths starting with I will give you far more flexible options try 2 letter words starting with I for a more practical middle ground.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the highest-scoring 2 letter word starting with i?
iq — worth 33 combined points (US Scrabble: 11, UK Scrabble: 11, Words With Friends: 11).
How many 2 letter words start with i?
19 valid words, combining entries from NWL2023, CSW24, and the Words With Friends dictionary.
Are 2 letter words realistic to actually play?
Only occasionally — you'd need most of your rack plus letters already on the board to reach 2 tiles. They're worth knowing for the rare bingo-extension play, but for regular turns, shorter i words will come up far more often.