CVC Spelling Words Worksheets

Word list, under More options, has more lists of 8. Words you type lose 1 letter, not always the vowel.

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Made at homeroomtools.comList 1: short a, atWord boxWrite the missing letters. Then write the whole word.1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.Spelling: missing lettersfatpatbatcatsatratmathatbtctfthtmtptrtst

8 words (List 1: short a, at), missing letters, on 1 page, Letter portrait.

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The spelling lists

List 1: short a, at 8

  • bat Only the vowel tells bat from bet, bit and but. Backward it spells tab.
  • cat A c starts cat, cot and cut. A k starts kit and kid, because c before i would sound like s.
  • fat Short a in the middle. With an i it is fit.
  • hat Change the vowel and hat turns into hit, hot or hut.
  • mat Short a. With an e it is met, as in we met today.
  • pat Backward it spells tap, so check that the p comes first.
  • rat Short a. With o it is rot, and with u it is rut.
  • sat Only the vowel tells sat from set and sit.

List 2: short a, an 8

  • ban The b in ban has its line on the left. A d has it on the right.
  • can The k sound before a is written c, as in cat and cap.
  • fan With an i it is fin, and with a u it is fun.
  • man One man, two men: only the vowel changes.
  • pan Backward it spells nap. With other vowels it is pen, pin or pun.
  • ran Yesterday I ran, today I run: only the vowel changes.
  • tan Short a. With e it is ten, and with i it is tin.
  • van Starts with v, not f. Say van and fan to hear the difference.

List 3: short a, ap 8

  • cap With o it is cop, and with u it is cup.
  • gap Starts with the g of go, then a short a and a p.
  • lap Backward it spells pal. With an i it is lip.
  • map With an o it is mop.
  • nap Backward it spells pan, so say the sounds in order: n, a, p.
  • rap A rap is a sharp blow, as in a rap on the door. To wrap a present takes a silent w.
  • tap Backward it spells pat. With other vowels it is tip or top.
  • zap z buzzes and s hisses. With an s this word would be sap.

List 4: short a, ad and am 8

  • bad b first, d last. With other vowels it is bed, bid or bud.
  • dad The same letter at both ends: d, a, d. With an i it is did.
  • had With an i it is hid.
  • ham The vowel is all that changes in ham, hem, him and hum.
  • jam Starts with j, not g.
  • mad Backward it spells dam. With a u it is mud.
  • pad With an o it is pod.
  • sad s, a, d. The last letter is d, with its line on the right.

List 5: short a, ag and ab 8

  • bag Five words share b and g: bag, beg, big, bog and bug. Listen for the a.
  • cab With o it is cob, and with u it is cub. The last letter is b, not d.
  • jab Starts with j. With an o it is job.
  • lab Ends in b. With a d it would be lad, another word on these lists.
  • rag With i it is rig, and with u it is rug.
  • tab Backward it spells bat. With a u it is tub.
  • tag With a u it is tug.
  • wag With an i it is wig.

List 6: short a, more endings 8

  • dam A dam holds back water. Backward it spells mad.
  • gas One s at the end. Pass and mass have two.
  • lad A lad is a boy. With e it is led, and with i it is lid.
  • pal Backward it spells lap. One l at the end, though bell and hill have two.
  • ram With an i it is rim.
  • tax Ends in x, like wax, fix and box. Watch for taks.
  • wax The ks sound at the end is one letter, x.
  • yam The y at the start sounds as it does in yes and yet.

List 7: short e, et 8

  • get The g is hard, as in go. With an o it is got.
  • jet Starts with j. With an o it is jot.
  • let With i it is lit, and with o it is lot.
  • met Short e. With an a it is mat.
  • net Backward it spells ten. With other vowels it is not or nut.
  • pet Say pet and pit aloud: short e and short i are easy to mix up.
  • vet Starts with v. A vet is an animal doctor.
  • wet With an i it is wit.

List 8: short e, en and eg 8

  • beg With other vowels it is bag, big, bog or bug.
  • den d, not b: the line of the d is on the right.
  • hen Rhymes with ten, pen and men, and is spelled the same way.
  • leg With o it is log, and with u it is lug.
  • men More than one man. Only the vowel changes.
  • peg With i it is pig, and with u it is pug.
  • pen Say pen and pin aloud and listen for the vowel. Pan and pun are close too.
  • ten Backward it spells net. With other vowels it is tan or tin.

List 9: short e, more endings 8

  • bed b first and d last. In small letters the word looks like a bed with a post at each end.
  • fed Short e. It ends in d, with the line on the right.
  • hem With other vowels it is ham, him or hum.
  • led She led the way. Lead with ea can sound the same, but it is a metal.
  • red The color is r, e, d. Read with ea can sound the same: I read it yesterday.
  • web Ends in b. Short e, as in wet.
  • wed To wed is to marry. Short e, then d.
  • yes One s at the end. Mess and less have two.

List 10: short i, ig 8

  • big With other vowels it is bag, beg, bog or bug.
  • dig Today I dig, yesterday I dug. With an o it is dog.
  • fig With an o it is fog.
  • gig The same letter at both ends: g, i, g.
  • jig A jig is a dance. With o it is jog, and with u it is jug.
  • pig With e it is peg, and with u it is pug.
  • rig With a it is rag, and with u it is rug.
  • wig With an a it is wag.

List 11: short i, it 8

  • bit Only the vowel tells bit from bat, bet and but.
  • fit With an a it is fat.
  • hit Change the vowel and hit turns into hat, hot or hut.
  • kit Starts with k, because a c before i would sound like s.
  • lit With e it is let, and with o it is lot.
  • pit Backward it spells tip. With other vowels it is pat, pet or pot.
  • sit Today I sit, yesterday I sat. Set with an e is another word.
  • wit With an e it is wet.

List 12: short i, ip 8

  • dip d, not b. Short i, then a p with its tail below the line.
  • hip With an o it is hop.
  • lip With an a it is lap.
  • nip Backward it spells pin.
  • rip With an a it is rap.
  • sip With an a it is sap. With a z at the start it is zip.
  • tip Backward it spells pit. With other vowels it is tap or top.
  • zip Starts with z. With an s it would be sip.

List 13: short i, in and id 8

  • bin With a it is ban, and with u it is bun.
  • fin With a it is fan, and with u it is fun.
  • hid Today I hide it, yesterday I hid it. With an a it is had.
  • kid Starts with k, like kit. A c before i would sound like s.
  • lid With a it is lad, and with e it is led.
  • pin Backward it spells nip. Say pin and pen aloud to hear the vowel.
  • tin With a it is tan, and with e it is ten.
  • win Starts with a plain w, with no h after it.

List 14: short i, more endings 8

  • bib The same letter at both ends: b, i, b. Each b has its line on the left.
  • dim With an a it is dam.
  • fix Ends in x. With an o it is fox.
  • him With other vowels it is ham, hem or hum.
  • mix The ks sound at the end is x. Watch for miks.
  • rib With o it is rob, and with u it is rub.
  • rim With an a it is ram.
  • six The number 6. It starts with s and ends with x.

List 15: short o, og and ox 8

  • box Ends in x. Watch for boks.
  • cog A cog is a wheel with teeth. It starts with c, like cot and cod.
  • dog Starts with d. With i it is dig, and with u it is dug.
  • fog With an i it is fig.
  • fox With an i it is fix.
  • hog With a u it is hug.
  • jog Starts with j. With i it is jig, and with u it is jug.
  • log With e it is leg, and with u it is lug.

List 16: short o, op and ob 8

  • cop With a it is cap, and with u it is cup.
  • hop With an i it is hip.
  • job Starts with j and ends with b. With an a it is jab.
  • mop With an a it is map.
  • pop The same letter at both ends: p, o, p. With a u it is pup.
  • rob With i it is rib, and with u it is rub.
  • sob To sob is to cry. With a u it is sub.
  • top Backward it spells pot. With other vowels it is tap or tip.

List 17: short o, ot 8

  • cot With a it is cat, and with u it is cut.
  • dot Starts with d: the round part comes first, then the line.
  • got Today I get, yesterday I got.
  • hot Change the vowel and hot turns into hat, hit or hut.
  • lot With e it is let, and with i it is lit.
  • not Knot with a silent k is a tied rope. This one means no.
  • pot Backward it spells top. With other vowels it is pat, pet or pit.
  • rot With a it is rat, and with u it is rut.

List 18: short o, more endings 8

  • cob Corn grows on a cob. With a it is cab, and with u it is cub.
  • cod A cod is a fish. It starts with c, like cot and cob.
  • jot To jot is to write a quick note. With an e it is jet.
  • mom Mom is the spelling in the US and Canada. In the UK, Ireland and Australia it is mum.
  • nod Ends in d. Short o, as in not.
  • pod With an a it is pad.
  • rod With an e it is red.
  • tot The same letter at both ends: t, o, t. A tot is a small child.

List 19: short u, ug 8

  • bug With other vowels it is bag, beg, big or bog.
  • dug Yesterday I dug a hole. With i it is dig, and with o it is dog.
  • hug With an o it is hog.
  • jug Starts with j. With i it is jig, and with o it is jog.
  • mug Backward it spells gum.
  • pug A pug is a small dog. With e it is peg, and with i it is pig.
  • rug With a it is rag, and with i it is rig.
  • tug With an a it is tag.

List 20: short u, un and um 8

  • bun With a it is ban, and with i it is bin.
  • fun With a it is fan, and with i it is fin.
  • gum Backward it spells mug.
  • hum With other vowels it is ham, hem or him.
  • nun The same letter at both ends: n, u, n.
  • run Today I run, yesterday I ran.
  • sum The sum of 3 and 4 is 7. Some, as in some milk, sounds the same.
  • sun The sun in the sky has a u. A son with an o is a boy in a family.

List 21: short u, ut and ub 8

  • but Only the vowel tells but from bat, bet and bit. Backward it spells tub.
  • cub A cub is a young bear or lion. With a it is cab, and with o it is cob.
  • cut With a it is cat, and with o it is cot.
  • hut Change the vowel and hut turns into hat, hit or hot.
  • nut With e it is net, and with o it is not.
  • rub With i it is rib, and with o it is rob.
  • rut A rut is a groove worn in a road. With a it is rat, and with o it is rot.
  • tub Backward it spells but. With an a it is tab.

List 22: short u, more endings 8

  • bud b first and d last, as in bad, bed and bid.
  • bus One s at the end. Backward it spells sub.
  • cup With a it is cap, and with o it is cop.
  • hub The hub is the middle of a wheel. It ends in b.
  • mud With an a it is mad.
  • pun A pun is a joke that plays on words. With other vowels it is pan, pen or pin.
  • pup The same letter at both ends: p, u, p. With an o it is pop.
  • sub Backward it spells bus. With an o it is sob.

List 23: all five vowels 8

  • bet Only the vowel tells bet from bat, bit and but.
  • bid b first and d last. With other vowels it is bad, bed or bud.
  • bog A bog is wet, soft ground. With other vowels it is bag, beg, big or bug.
  • did The same letter at both ends: d, i, d. With an a it is dad.
  • lug To lug is to carry something heavy. With e it is leg, and with o it is log.
  • sap Sap is the juice inside a tree. With an i it is sip.
  • set Only the vowel tells set from sat and sit.
  • yet Starts with y, like yes and yam.

How it works

CVC spelling words are three-letter words built consonant, vowel, consonant, such as cat, hen and pig. This page holds 184 in 23 lists of 8, sorted by short vowel and ending. Each prints with a blank where its vowel goes.

Read the full guide

Short a worksheets first, then e, i, o and u

Lists 1 to 6 are short a, 7 to 9 short e, 10 to 14 short i, 15 to 18 short o and 19 to 22 short u, so short a and e worksheets are Lists 1 to 9. Inside one list every blank takes the same vowel. List 23 is the mixed vowel worksheet: bet, bid, sap, lug.

CVC spelling worksheets for sorting word families

Under More options, set What goes on the sheet to Sort by list. From List 1 it prints 15 words, 5 each from the at, an and ap lists, to sort under three headings. For 3 letter words worksheets from your own list, type up to 20 words. A typed word loses 1 letter, and Shuffle the words picks again.

  • Missing letters at Large (19 mm) takes 2 pages for 8 words. Medium (14 mm) keeps it to 1.
  • Mom is the US and Canadian spelling. For mum, type List 18 in the box with mum in its place.
  • Under the tool every word has a hint. Pat backward is tap, and only the vowel tells pen from pin.

Questions and answers

What are CVC words?

Three-letter words in the order consonant, vowel, consonant, with a short vowel. In most, each letter stands for one sound, so a child can spell the word by saying it slowly. The x in box, fix and wax stands for two: k and s.

What are some CVC words for kindergarten?

Short a: cat, map, bag. Short e: bed, hen, net. Short i: pig, sit, lip. Short o: dog, hop, box. Short u: sun, cup, bug. All 15 are on these lists. As kindergarten vowel worksheets these lists are our suggestion, not a school's.

Can I print CVC words worksheets with an answer key?

Yes. Under More options, switch on Add an answer key as the last page and 1 more page prints with every vowel written in. To keep a sheet, press Print worksheet and save it as a PDF from your browser's print window.

Which lists make short vowel a worksheets?

Lists 1 to 6, 48 words. Lists 1 to 3 keep to one ending each: at, an and ap. Lists 4 and 5 pair two, so dad and sad print with ham and jam. List 6 holds the rest: wax, gas, pal.

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