QUE Words: Queens, Queries, and Quests
QUE- sits at the heart of some of English's most recognizable words. QUEEN has been in the language since before the Norman Conquest — it comes from Old English cwen, meaning "woman" or "wife," and only later narrowed to mean a female monarch. QUESTION arrived from French in the 13th century. QUEST, QUERY, QUEUE — all Latin-French imports that English absorbed and kept. What ties them together beyond spelling is that QUE- words often relate to seeking, asking, or authority. Queens command, questions probe, quests pursue. That thematic consistency actually helps crossword solvers: if the clue involves searching or royalty, QUE- should be on your shortlist.
In Scrabble, QUE- words are your lifeline when you're holding the Q tile. QUEEN scores 14 points base, QUERY gets 17, and QUETZAL (a Central American bird) lands 25 — all before premium square bonuses. The beauty of QUE- is that the remaining letters (after Q-U-E) tend to be common tiles: N, R, S, T. That means building QUE- words from a typical rack is realistic, unlike some exotic Q plays that demand specific tile draws. QUEUED is worth knowing too — it's the only common English word with five consecutive vowels after the opening consonant.
Tip: QUEUE itself is a crossword regular. Six letters, and four of them are vowels — constructors use it when they need to dump vowels into a tight corner of the grid. If your clue says "waiting line" and you've got Q_ _ _ _ _, QUEUE is almost certainly right. For the broader Q family, see words starting with Q and words starting with QU. Also check words starting with E for words that cross well with QUE- entries.
FAQ
What is the highest-scoring QUE- word in Scrabble?
QUETZALS scores 26 points base (before premium squares).QUERULOUS at 18 points is another strong play. For shorter options, QUEAZY (if accepted in your dictionary) and QUEUED both score well relative to their length. Compare scoring strategies with words starting with EX, another prefix that uses a high-value tile early.
Does QUEUE really have five vowels in a row?
Not exactly five in a row — QUEUE is Q-U-E-U-E, so after the Q you get four consecutive vowel letters (U-E-U-E). It's still the longest vowel sequence in any common English word. The word came from French, meaning "tail" (as in a tail-like line of people). For other vowel-heavy words, explore words starting with I.
How often do QUE- words appear in crossword puzzles?
QUEEN, QUEST, and QUERY are among the 50 most frequently used Q-words in published crosswords. QUENCH and QUEUE also appear regularly. The QUE- opening is far more crossword-friendly than QUA- or QUO- because it leads to more common everyday words. For crossword frequency in other letter groups, browse words starting with N.