Free Printable Decodable Words Lists
Try these free decodable word lists to help improve your child’s reading skills.
What are Decodable Words?
Decodable words are those that emergent readers can sound out by following the rules of phonics. At first, new readers can only decode very simple words–typically those that follow the basic rules they’ve learned. Over time, they learn more rules and can decode a wider array of words.
Once a child knows all the applicable rules of phonics, regular words are fully decodable. For example, to decode the word “dog,” a child can segment the sounds into “/d/ + /o/ + /g/” and then blend them together to make the word.
Decoding is taught as early as preschool or kindergarten and goes hand-in-hand with phonics. Along with language comprehension, decoding is a critical part of reading comprehension.
Free Decodable Words Lists
Practicing decoding is a wonderful way to help children grow their ability to sound out and decipher new words, and the following word lists are a great tool.
Below, you’ll find free printable decodable word lists for kindergarten, first grade, and second grade. For more resources on decoding check out our list of 23 Decoding Activities for Early Elementary Children.
Decodable Words List for Kindergarten
Kindergarteners mainly focus on one-syllable decodable words that fit the consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) pattern. Learn more about kindergarten phonics here.
2-Letter Decodable Words
| ad | am | an | at |
| ax | if | in | is |
| it | ma | on | ox |
| pa | up | us |
CVC Decodable Words
| SHORT A | |||||
| bad | bag | bat | cab | can | |
| cap | cat | dad | fan | fat | |
| had | ham | hat | jam | mad | |
| man | map | mat | nap | pat | |
| rag | ran | rat | sag | sat | |
| tab | tag | tap | van | ||
| SHORT E | |||||
| bed | beg | bet | fed | get | |
| hen | jet | led | leg | let | |
| men | met | net | pen | pet | |
| red | set | ten | wet | yes | |
| SHORT I | |||||
| big | bin | bit | did | dig | |
| fin | fit | hid | him | hit | |
| kid | lid | lit | pig | pin | |
| pit | rid | sit | wig | win | |
| SHORT O | |||||
| box | cop | dog | dot | fog | |
| fox | got | hog | hop | hot | |
| job | jog | log | lot | mob | |
| mom | mop | not | pop | pot | |
| rob | rod | rot | sob | top | |
| SHORT U | |||||
| bug | bun | bus | but | cub | |
| cup | cut | dug | fun | gum | |
| hug | hum | hut | jug | mud | |
| mug | nut | pup | rub | rug | |
| run | sub | sun | tug | tub |
Decodable Words List for First Grade
In first grade, students add more advanced phonics concepts like silent-E, consonant blends, and multi-syllable words. Here’s more about phonics for first grade students.
Consonant Blends Decodable Words List
| BEGINNING BLENDS | |||||
| blank | blossom | blend | cling | clip | |
| crab | flag | flat | flip | flop | |
| glad | grab | plot | plug | skin | |
| skunk | slug | stem | stop | swim | |
| twig | twin | trip | |||
| ENDING BLENDS | |||||
| brick | desk | disk | last | pond | |
| risk | sand | send | test | ||
| BEGINNING & ENDING BLENDS | |||||
| black | clock | plant | snack | stamp | |
| twist |
Decodable CVCe Words
| bike | bite | bone | cake | cane | cone |
| cute | date | dive | five | game | gave |
| hide | hole | hose | joke | kite | lake |
| late | line | make | mine | mute | nine |
| nose | note | pile | pine | pipe | pole |
| rake | ride | ripe | rose | same | side |
| tame | tape | time | vote | wipe | zone |
Two-Syllable Decodable Words List
| basket | concrete | contract | escape |
| expand | extinct | explode | figure |
| habit | insect | invite | jacket |
| pavement | planet | puppet | reptile |
| rocket | subtract | trumpet |
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Decodable Words Lists for Second Grade
Second graders tackle trickier concepts like vowel teams (including diphthongs), prefixes and suffixes, and r-controlled vowels. Discover more about second grade phonics here.
Vowel Teams Decodable Words List
| EA Vowel Team | ||||
| bead | clean | deal | feast | |
| heal | hear | lead | meat | |
| neat | read | real | sneak | |
| weak | ||||
| AI Vowel Team | ||||
| braid | brain | chain | fail | |
| jail | paid | plain | ||
| train | ||||
| UI Vowel Team | ||||
| bruise | cruise | juice | suit | |
| OA Vowel Team | ||||
| boat | coat | float | loaf | |
| throat | ||||
| IE Vowel Team | ||||
| thief | brief | niece | ||
| EE Vowel Team | ||||
| cheek | feed | sleep | speed | |
| week | wheel |
Decodable Words with Prefixes and Suffixes
| PREFIX | |||||
| decide | dislike | mislead | preheat | protect | |
| reheat | rerun | retie | rewrite | unhook | |
| unlock | unpack | unplug | unsafe | ||
| SUFFIX | |||||
| acted | calmly | cloudy | drinkable | endless | |
| golden | harden | helpful | hopeless | jumped | |
| jumping | jumper | kindness | lasting | meeting | |
| playful | rainy | shorten | shortly | useful | |
| watched | wider | windy | wooden |
Decodable R-Controlled Vowel Words
| bird | birth | blur | born | burn | burnt |
| burp | burst | caper | corn | curl | farm |
| fewer | firm | first | fork | germ | girl |
| hard | horse | hurt | mark | north | nurse |
| part | shirt | short | sister | skirt | skort |
| star | start | stir | surf | term | third |
| thirst | torn | turf | turn | twirl | verb |
| winter | yard |
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