# The QWERTY-shortest word

For this puzzle, I define the distance between two letters as the shortest way on a QWERTY keyboard to go from a letter to another with a path.

Examples:

• Q and W are seperated by a distance of 1.
• 2 for E and T.
• 2 for I and N going through J.
• 9 for Z and P.

The average number of letters in the English langage for a word is approximately 4.7.

Can you find:

1. $$S$$: The shortest word in Merriam Webster such that its number of letters is greater than 4.7
2. $$L$$: The longest word in Merriam Webster such that its number of letters is lesser than 4.7

Score is $$L$$ minus $$S$$. Your aim is to get the highest score.

Example:

• Love, $$L=9$$
• Puzzle, $$S=23$$

Score is $$9-23 = -14$$

You can't get better than PAPA. 9 is the maximum shortest distance between 2 keys, and PAPA has a 9-letter distance between every letter pair. It's theoretically possible to get lower than ASSES(S) or WEEDS, but in the word list I just checked it with, nothing comes up that would match. The word would have to be an obscure format like awwaa, both letters being neighbors on the keyboard.