Silent Letter Bingo

Call knee, wrist or castle in a sentence, and children find the word with the letter nobody says.

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Ready-made list, 100 words. Paste your own to replace it, or type to add to it.

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100 words in the bag

Every word is called once, in random order.

Playing with 100 words. The game is kept in this browser until you start a new one.

Called so far 0

Nothing called yet. Each call is listed here so a winning card can be checked.

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How it works

Silent letter bingo for a class: 100 words in five lists, one each for silent k, w, b, t and gh. It opens on 4 × 4 cards mixed from all five.

Read the full guide

Say the word inside its sentence

In Call the game, each word comes with a sentence: knot, My shoelace is tied in a tight knot. The sentence matters, because knot sounds like not and write like right. To check a win, the child reads each covered word and names the letter that makes no sound.

Where each silent letter hides

On these cards, silent k is always in kn (knee, knuckle). Silent w is in wr, and in answer, sword and two. Silent b follows m or comes before t (lamb, doubt). Silent t sits in castle, listen and soften and ends ballet and depot. Silent gh follows a vowel (eight, daughter).

  • Right and knight are left out: write and night are on the cards and sound the same.
  • One silent letter alone makes a short game: with 25 cards, 5 to 8 calls to a first line, not 16 to 33.

Questions and answers

What is a silent letter?

A letter that, in a particular word, matches no sound in the way the word is said. The k in knee and the b in lamb are written and never spoken.

Why do debt and doubt have a silent b?

The b was put into the spelling on purpose. Both words came from French, as dette and doute, and a b was added to match Latin relatives such as debit and dubitable.

Why is gh silent in light and night?

It used to be sounded. In Middle English the gh in words such as light was pronounced; the sound dropped out of the language and the spelling did not change.

Which silent letter words are on the cards?

100 words, 20 for each silent letter, from knee and comb to knowledge and subtle. Words where gh says f, such as laugh, are left out, and so is often, where many people sound the t.

All 100 words

Silent k 20

  • doorknob The doorknob felt cold in my hand.
  • knack She has a knack for drawing horses.
  • knapsack I packed a lunch in my knapsack.
  • knead Bakers knead bread by hand.
  • knee A bee landed on my knee.
  • kneecap A pad covers each kneecap when I skate.
  • kneel We kneel down to plant the seeds.
  • knelt She knelt to tie her shoe.
  • knew He knew every word of the song.
  • knife The clay cuts easily with a plastic knife.
  • knit I will knit a red scarf this winter.
  • knitting A ball of yarn sat beside her knitting.
  • knives The forks and knives go in this drawer.
  • knob Turn the knob to make the radio louder.
  • knock Please knock before you come in.
  • knot My shoelace is tied in a tight knot.
  • know I know how to ride a bike.
  • knowledge Reading adds to your knowledge.
  • known We have known each other since first grade.
  • knuckle He bumped a knuckle on the desk.

Silent w 20

  • answer Raise your hand if you have the answer.
  • shipwreck The map marked an old shipwreck.
  • sword The actor held up a wooden sword.
  • two Two ducks swam across the pond.
  • wrap Wrap a scarf around the snowman.
  • wrapper Put the granola bar wrapper in the trash.
  • wreath A wreath of leaves hung on the door.
  • wreck The old boat was a wreck on the beach.
  • wren A tiny wren sang in the hedge.
  • wrench Use a wrench to tighten the bolt.
  • wriggle Worms wriggle in the damp soil.
  • wring Wring out the wet towel.
  • wrinkle Iron out every wrinkle in the shirt.
  • wrist A friendship band is tied on my wrist.
  • write Write the date on the first line.
  • writer The writer signed her new book.
  • written The rules are written on the board.
  • wrong My shoes were on the wrong feet.
  • wrote He wrote a letter to his cousin.
  • wrung We wrung the water out of our socks.

Silent b 20

  • climb Goats climb the steep rocks.
  • climber The climber reached the top of the rock wall.
  • climbing The cat is climbing the fence.
  • comb A comb fell out of my backpack.
  • combed He combed his hair before the photo.
  • crumb Not a crumb was left on the plate.
  • debt She paid off the debt a little each month.
  • doubt I doubt it will rain today.
  • doubtful It is doubtful that the snow will last.
  • honeycomb Bees store honey in the honeycomb.
  • lamb The lamb followed its mother.
  • limb A squirrel ran along the limb of the oak.
  • numb Ice made my toes go numb.
  • plumber The plumber fixed the leaking pipe.
  • plumbing New plumbing went in under the sink.
  • subtle The soup had a subtle taste of lemon.
  • thumb I pressed the button with my thumb.
  • thumbnail I painted a star on my thumbnail.
  • thumbtack A thumbtack holds the poster on the wall.
  • tomb Explorers found paintings inside the tomb.

Silent t 20

  • ballet My sister takes a ballet class.
  • bristle One bristle fell out of the paintbrush.
  • bustle I like the bustle of the lunchroom.
  • castle The castle had a tall stone tower.
  • depot The bus pulled into the depot.
  • fasten Fasten your seat belt.
  • fastener The fastener on my coat is stuck.
  • glisten Raindrops glisten on the spider web.
  • gristle The dog chewed a bit of gristle.
  • hasten We hasten to finish before the bell.
  • hustle We had to hustle to catch the bus.
  • jostle Fans jostle for a spot near the stage.
  • listen Listen to the rain on the roof.
  • listener The listener nodded at every word.
  • moisten Moisten the sponge before you wipe the table.
  • nestle The kittens nestle in the blanket.
  • rustle Dry leaves rustle under our feet.
  • soften Let the butter soften on the counter.
  • thistle A purple thistle grew by the gate.
  • whistle A whistle hangs by the gym door.

Silent gh 20

  • bought I bought a pencil at the school store.
  • bright The sun is bright this morning.
  • brought Everyone brought a book to share.
  • caught My sleeve caught on the fence.
  • daughter Their daughter plays the drums.
  • dough Roll the dough into a ball.
  • eight School starts at eight.
  • flight The flight to the island was bumpy.
  • high The shelf is too high for me to reach.
  • light A light blinked on the robot's chest.
  • neighbor Our neighbor grows tomatoes.
  • night We saw the stars last night.
  • sigh She let out a happy sigh.
  • sleigh Bells jingled on the sleigh.
  • straight Draw a straight line with a ruler.
  • taught My uncle taught me to swim.
  • though I went outside, though it was cold.
  • thought I thought I heard the doorbell.
  • through Sunlight came through the curtains.
  • weigh Vets weigh puppies on a small scale.

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