The following words share an unusual property. Can you determine what it is? #4 is a bit old-fashioned and #5 is less common than the others, but both are still valid.

1. MELANCHOLY

2. COWARDLY

3. STRAND

4. THRASH

5. PIERCE 

HINT:

Think of synonyms for the clue words.

Answers:

 

Each clue word has a synonym that's a color:

 

1. MELANCHOLY - BLUE

2. COWARDLY - YELLOW

3. STRAND - MAROON

4. THRASH - TAN (as in "tan your hide" [spank]) 

5. PIERCE - PINK