• 108 words
  • Checked October 2026

Ou Spelling Words

Ou and ow spelling words in nine lists: pick one, then print it or press Start test.

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List 1: ou as in out (cloud)

Words to learn. Read each word, cover it, write it, then check it.

  1. 1.outTake the muffins out of the oven.
  2. 2.cloudA cloud drifted in front of the sun.
  3. 3.houseThe house on the corner has a blue roof.
  4. 4.mouthThe fish opened its mouth wide.
  5. 5.moundAnts built a mound beside the path.
  6. 6.boundThe package is bound with twine.
  7. 7.blouseShe wore a white blouse to the concert.
  8. 8.slouchI try not to slouch at my desk.
  9. 9.ouchThe cactus made me yell ouch.
  10. 10.mountThe rider will mount the horse now.
  11. 11.pounceThe kitten is ready to pounce on the yarn.
  12. 12.poutHe began to pout when the game ended.

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All 108 words

List 1: ou as in out (cloud) 12

  • blouse She wore a white blouse to the concert.
  • bound The package is bound with twine.
  • cloud A cloud drifted in front of the sun.
  • house The house on the corner has a blue roof.
  • mound Ants built a mound beside the path.
  • mount The rider will mount the horse now.
  • mouth The fish opened its mouth wide.
  • ouch The cactus made me yell ouch.
  • out Take the muffins out of the oven.
  • pounce The kitten is ready to pounce on the yarn.
  • pout He began to pout when the game ended.
  • slouch I try not to slouch at my desk.

List 2: ou in longer words (outfit) 12

  • announce They will announce the winner after lunch.
  • around We ran around the track twice.
  • background Mountains fill the background of the painting.
  • campground The campground closes after the first frost.
  • counter Crumbs covered the kitchen counter.
  • doghouse The puppy sleeps in a little doghouse.
  • loudly The drums boomed loudly in the gym.
  • mountain A goat trail winds up the mountain.
  • outfit She picked a green outfit for picture day.
  • outline Frost traced the outline of each leaf.
  • playground Woodchips cover the playground.
  • thousand The jar holds a thousand beads.

List 3: ow as in cow (town) 12

  • brow He wiped the sweat from his brow.
  • brown A brown leaf landed on my shoe.
  • cow A spotted cow licked the salt block.
  • crowded The crowded elevator stopped on every floor.
  • howdy The rancher said howdy and tipped his hat.
  • howl We heard a coyote howl at dusk.
  • meow A loud meow came from the closet.
  • owl The owl turned its head to watch us.
  • tower A water tower stands above the town.
  • town The clock in the town square runs slow.
  • vow The knight made a vow to guard the bridge.
  • wow Everyone said wow at the fireworks.

List 4: ow as in flower 12

  • downhill The ball rolled downhill into the creek.
  • download The download took only a minute.
  • downtown The parade goes through downtown.
  • downward The trail slopes downward to the river.
  • empower New tools empower the garden club.
  • flower A yellow flower grew through the crack.
  • flowerpot A flowerpot sat on the windowsill.
  • power The power went out during the storm.
  • superpower Her superpower in the story is flying.
  • towel A striped towel dried on the railing.
  • uptown The uptown bus stops at the museum.
  • watchtower A guard stood in the watchtower.

List 5: ow as in snow (grow) 12

  • bowling The bowling ball rolled into the gutter.
  • fellow A friendly fellow held the door.
  • flown The geese have flown south.
  • grow Mushrooms grow on the fallen log.
  • minnow A minnow slipped through the net.
  • mower The mower left stripes on the lawn.
  • outgrow I will soon outgrow these boots.
  • owner The owner of the lost mitten came back.
  • pillowcase I stuffed my pajamas into a pillowcase.
  • snow Fresh snow squeaked under my boots.
  • window Frost made ferns on the window.
  • yellow She wore yellow boots in the rain.

List 6: oi (coin) 12

  • boiling Bubbles rose in the boiling soup.
  • coin I found a shiny coin on the sidewalk.
  • midpoint Mark the midpoint of the line.
  • noise The blender makes a terrible noise.
  • oink The piglet gave a loud oink.
  • point My toes point out when I skate.
  • pointer The teacher used a pointer at the map.
  • rejoin He will rejoin the team after lunch.
  • spoiled The milk spoiled in the warm car.
  • toil The farmers toil in the fields until dark.
  • viewpoint From my viewpoint the plan seems fair.
  • voice She sang in a clear voice.

List 7: oy (boy) 12

  • ahoy The sailor shouted ahoy from the deck.
  • annoying That buzzing fly is annoying.
  • boy A boy on stilts led the parade.
  • boyish He gave a boyish grin.
  • convoy A convoy of trucks crossed the bridge.
  • disloyal The knight was never disloyal to the queen.
  • enjoy I enjoy reading on rainy days.
  • gargoyle A stone gargoyle crouched on the roof.
  • joystick He moved the joystick to the left.
  • overjoyed She was overjoyed to see her grandma.
  • royal The royal carriage rolled through the gate.
  • toy A toy boat floated in the bathtub.

List 8: au (sauce) 12

  • automatic The automatic doors slid open.
  • automobile The museum has an automobile from long ago.
  • autopilot The pilot switched off the autopilot.
  • autumn Acorns drop from the oaks each autumn.
  • cause A fallen tree was the cause of the detour.
  • default The game starts on the default level.
  • faulty A faulty wire made the lamp flicker.
  • launch The launch of the kite took three tries.
  • overhaul The old engine needs an overhaul.
  • sauce I like extra sauce on my pasta.
  • saunter We saunter along the pier after dinner.
  • taut Pull the rope until it is taut.

List 9: aw (saw) 12

  • awning We stood under the awning in the rain.
  • claw The crab waved one big claw.
  • draw Please draw a line under the title.
  • drawbridge The drawbridge rose to let the ship pass.
  • flaw The vase had a tiny flaw.
  • prawn A pink prawn hid among the sea grass.
  • saw We saw three shooting stars last night.
  • sawdust A pile of sawdust lay under the workbench.
  • scrawl I could not read the scrawl on the card.
  • sprawl The puppies sprawl across the rug.
  • squawk The parrot let out a loud squawk.
  • yawn The lion gave a huge yawn.

How it works

A spelling list of words with ou and ow, split by sound: 108 words in 9 lists of twelve. Ou and ow share the sound of cow, ow says long o in snow, and oi, oy, au and aw follow.

Read the full guide

Ou spelling words and the two sounds of ow

Lists 1 and 2 are the ou words (cloud, mouth, outfit, campground). Lists 3 and 4 give ow the same sound (town, howl, flower, downhill). List 5 is the other ow, the long o of snow, grow, minnow and pillowcase.

Oi oy spelling words and au aw spelling words

List 6 has oi (coin, boiling, viewpoint) and List 7 has oy (toy, enjoy, joystick). List 8 has au (sauce, launch, autopilot) and List 9 aw (claw, squawk, drawbridge).

  • Mower is in List 5, but lower is not: the dictionary has a second lower that rhymes with flower.

Questions and answers

Is this a list of spelling words with diphthongs?

Lists 1 to 7 hold diphthong spelling words: two vowel sounds glide together in one syllable, as in out, coin and the long o of snow. Au and aw in Lists 8 and 9 spell one steady sound.

Which are the spelling words with ow sound?

Lists 1 to 4: the sound of ow in cow is spelled ou in cloud, mound and pounce and ow in town, brow and tower. List 5 has the other sound of ow, long o, as in snow.

What are words with the spelling pattern "ou"?

Twenty-four of them fill Lists 1 and 2, from out, house and ouch to announce, background and doghouse. Each has the sound of out; ou words with other sounds, such as soup and touch, are left off.

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