I had the same issue when I started playing, then I noticed that if a letter is locked, by a vine for example, then it doesn't count towards the letter count. So if you make the 6 letter word and the last letter is trapped, then it will only count as a 5. I hope this makes sense. It's true, but there is actually a glitch…
You're right. There is a glitch that starts in this level. All larger words will seem to only count as four letter words. Good news is that they still do count even if they don't seem to be. You can still finish the level even if it looks like you have six-letter words to go.
You're right. There is a glitch that seems to begin in this level. It will seem to recognize all larger words as four letter words. Good news is that even if it looks like they're not counting, they are, and you can finish the level.