Got it in 14 guesses. The trick for this sort of game is to always aim for the middle of the possible range. Spoiler-free example:
Guess a word starting with M=13 (midrange between A=1 and Z=26).
If the unknown word is before that, guess one starting with F=6 (midrange between A=1 and M=13). If it’s after that, guess one with S=19 (midrange between M=13 and Z=26). Etc.
Once you find the first letter, repeat the process for the second later. However take into account that not all strings are valid/common in English; e.g. you’ll see plenty words starting in MA/ME/MI/MO/MU/MY, but words starting with MR or MT are damn rare.
Got it in 14 guesses. The trick for this sort of game is to always aim for the middle of the possible range. Spoiler-free example: