CVC Words List
CVC words are three-letter words made of a consonant, a short vowel and another consonant, like c-a-t, p-i-g and s-u-n. They are the first words most children learn to sound out, because every letter makes its most common sound. Below is a free list of 122 CVC words, sorted by short vowel, that you can print or use on screen.
CVC words list by short vowel
| Short a | Short e | Short i | Short o | Short u |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| cat | bed | big | dog | bug |
| bat | red | dig | fog | hug |
| hat | fed | fig | hog | jug |
| mat | led | pig | jog | mug |
| rat | wed | wig | log | rug |
| sat | hen | bin | cot | tug |
| can | pen | fin | dot | bun |
| fan | ten | pin | got | fun |
| man | men | tin | hot | run |
| pan | den | win | lot | sun |
| ran | jet | kid | not | cup |
| van | net | lid | pot | pup |
| cap | pet | hid | box | cut |
| map | wet | hit | fox | hut |
| nap | vet | kit | mop | nut |
| tap | get | pit | hop | bus |
| bag | set | sit | pop | cub |
| rag | beg | fit | top | rub |
| tag | leg | lip | cob | tub |
| wag | peg | dip | job | sub |
| jam | web | hip | rob | gum |
| ham | yes | sip | nod | hum |
| dad | gem | zip | rod | mud |
| pad | hem | six | sob | bud |
| sad | mix |
To print this list, use your browser’s Print button (Ctrl+P on Windows, Cmd+P on a Mac).
How to practice CVC words
- Make sure the letter sounds are solid first. Your child should know the short vowel sounds and hard consonant sounds. Our letter sounds chart and free alphabet coloring pages help.
- Sound it out, then blend. Point under each letter and say its sound (/c/ /a/ /t/), then slide the sounds together: “cat!”
- Work one vowel at a time. Start with short a words, then add the other vowels once your child is confident.
- Change one letter. Turn cat into hat, then hot, then hop. It shows children that every letter matters.
- Read CVC words in real sentences. Word lists are a start, but children also need short stories where they can sound out every word.
CVC books for beginning readers
Once your child can read CVC words, the next step is reading them in a story. Miss Wendy’s Favorite Phonetic Books are decodable readers written for exactly this stage: Level 1 is made mostly of CVC words, and the only sight words are a, the and is. No surprise words, and no pictures to guess from.
More free practice: short vowel word list and word families · all free phonics printables