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CVC Words
Grouped by short vowel. Filter the list, then print a worksheet.
Matches anywhere in the word. Nothing is sent to us.
Short a 50 words
- bad
- bag
- ban
- bat
- cab
- can
- cap
- cat
- dad
- dam
- fan
- fat
- gap
- gas
- had
- hag
- ham
- has
- hat
- jab
- jam
- lab
- lad
- lap
- mad
- man
- map
- mat
- nap
- pad
- pan
- pat
- rag
- ram
- ran
- rap
- rat
- sad
- sag
- sap
- sat
- tab
- tag
- tan
- tap
- van
- wag
- wax
- yam
- zap
Short e 30 words
- bed
- beg
- bet
- den
- fed
- fen
- get
- hen
- hem
- jet
- keg
- led
- leg
- let
- men
- met
- net
- peg
- pen
- pep
- pet
- red
- set
- ten
- vet
- web
- wed
- wet
- yes
- yet
Short i 45 words
- bib
- bid
- big
- bin
- bit
- did
- dig
- dim
- din
- dip
- fib
- fig
- fin
- fit
- fix
- hid
- him
- hip
- his
- hit
- jig
- kid
- kit
- lid
- lip
- lit
- mix
- nip
- pig
- pin
- pit
- rib
- rid
- rig
- rim
- rip
- sip
- sit
- six
- tin
- tip
- wig
- win
- wit
- zip
Short o 36 words
- bob
- bog
- box
- cob
- cod
- cog
- cop
- cot
- dog
- dot
- fog
- fox
- got
- hog
- hop
- hot
- job
- jog
- jot
- log
- lot
- mob
- mom
- mop
- nod
- not
- odd
- pod
- pop
- pot
- rob
- rod
- rot
- sob
- sod
- top
Short u 33 words
- bud
- bug
- bun
- bus
- but
- cub
- cup
- cut
- dug
- fun
- gum
- gun
- hug
- hum
- hut
- jug
- jut
- mud
- mug
- nut
- pub
- pug
- pup
- rub
- rug
- run
- rut
- sub
- sum
- sun
- tub
- tug
- tux
No words match that filter.
What a CVC word is
A CVC word is three letters in the order consonant, vowel, consonant — cat, bed, pig, dog, sun. The vowel in the middle almost always makes its short sound, which is what makes these words the standard starting point for blending practice: a child who can sound out c-a-t can sound out several hundred more words with the same pattern.
Why this list is shorter than other sites'
Deliberately so. These are the conventional teaching words — the ones that appear in phonics programmes and that a five-year-old has a reasonable chance of knowing. A dictionary contains several hundred more three-letter consonant–vowel–consonant words, and nearly all of them are useless in a classroom: tup, kef, gib, wot. Some are worse than useless — a raw word list also contains crude and offensive words that nobody wants appearing on a worksheet.
Most word-list sites publish the raw list and call it a teaching resource. This one publishes the shorter, checked list, because a list you have to proof-read before handing out is not saving you any work.
A teaching order that works
Introduce one short vowel at a time and let it settle before adding the next. The usual sequence is a, i, o, u, e — short e comes last because it is the easiest to confuse with short i by ear. Use the vowel buttons above to show a single vowel at a time.
- Sound each letter separately — c … a … t
- Blend the first two, then add the third — ca … t
- Say the whole word, then use it in a sentence
- Swap one letter and re-read — cat to cot to cut
Printing a worksheet
Print / save as PDF prints exactly what is on screen — so filter first, then print. Choose a vowel, or type a letter into the filter, and only those words go on the page. The site header, navigation and this explanation are all left off the printout automatically.
About our word list. Results come from ENABLE, a large open English lexicon in the public domain, with offensive terms filtered out. It is not an official tournament dictionary, so a word that appears here may still be challenged in competitive play, and vice versa.
Common questions
Are these all the CVC words there are?
No, and that is intentional. A dictionary holds several hundred more, almost all of them obscure, and some of them crude. This is the conventional teaching set, checked so it can go straight onto a worksheet.
Why is short e taught last?
Short e and short i sound similar to a beginner, so most programmes separate them. Introducing e last, once the others are secure, reduces the confusion.
Do words like 'six' and 'fox' count?
Yes. The x is a single consonant letter, so six and fox follow the consonant–vowel–consonant pattern even though x spells two sounds. They are worth pointing out rather than avoiding.
Can I use these lists in my classroom?
Yes, freely. The words come from an open public domain word list, there is no sign-up, and the printout carries no advertising.