How it works
These 3 letter sight words are 36 common words, from and to was. Each card has a short sentence on the back and a line on its sounds. The choice is ours, not a published one.
Read the full guide
Three sets of three letter sight words
The page opens on the Sound out set, twelve words with a short vowel, such as and, can and not. Long vowels and vowel teams has twelve where two letters share a sound, such as the ay in day and the ow in how. Tricky part has twelve to learn by heart: the, you, are, was, for, his, has, her, all, one, two, who.
Flip, then print
Show the word and let the child read it, then turn the card and read the sentence together. Pick a set under Show only, turn a card and press the print button under the card: each set fills one sheet of Letter or A4, and all 36 take three.
- Say, day, may and way share one pattern: teach ay once and four words follow.
- Two, too and to sound the same. Put each in its own sentence so the spelling sticks.
- His and has end in /z/, like is and as. Read the pairs aloud together.
Questions and answers
What are the 3 letter sight words?
Our list has 36. Twelve sound out: and, but, can, did, get, got, had, him, not, big, run, yes. Twelve have a long vowel or a vowel team: see, she, say, day, may, way, too, new, how, now, out, why. Twelve have a tricky part.
Which three-letter sight words are hardest?
The ones whose letters do not make their usual sounds. One and two are the clearest cases: one starts with a /w/ sound that no letter spells, and the w in two is silent.
How are these different from CVC words?
CVC words such as cat and sun are chosen because every letter sounds out. This list is common words, so it mixes the two kinds: and, can and not sound out, while the, was and you do not.
Is this a published sight word list?
No. The 36 words are our own choice of common three-letter words of English. No published list is copied, so check the words against the list your school uses.