Word List

Dolch Sight Words

All 220 Dolch sight words, from the pre-primer and primer lists for kindergarten up to third grade. Each level is split into the words to sound out and the heart words to learn by heart, with worksheets for both. Only 49 of the 220 are heart words.

What is the Dolch sight word list?

The Dolch list is 220 of the most common words in children’s books, in five levels. Educator Edward Dolch built it in the 1930s and 40s from the words that turned up most often in children’s books of the time, according to sightwords.com. This page follows dolchword.net, which splits the words into pre-primer, primer, first, second and third grade lists and orders each one by frequency, most common word first. Both the pre-primer and the primer list are kindergarten lists here.

Level	Grade	Words	Heart words
Pre-primer	Kindergarten	40	8
Primer	Kindergarten	52	12
First grade	1st	41	11
Second grade	2nd	46	12
Third grade	3rd	41	6
All five		220	49

Dolch also kept a separate list of 95 nouns, which this page leaves out. He set them apart because a child can usually get a noun from the picture on the page, while the 220 are the words a picture cannot help with.

How many Dolch words have to be memorized?

Only 49 of the 220. Most Dolch words are decodable: every part of the word follows a spelling pattern your child learns in phonics, so they can sound it out. The rest are heart words, where part of the word breaks the usual patterns, so it has to be learned by heart. That is how every level below is split: the words to sound out, with worksheets that practise their sounds, and the heart words, with worksheets that build them through repetition.

Counts vary with how strictly “decodable” is drawn. Reading specialists Linda Farrell, Michael Hunter and Tina Osenga, writing for Reading Rockets, count 138 of the 220 as decodable, which leaves 82. This page counts a word as decodable whenever it follows a pattern taught by third grade, which is why it finds fewer. How to teach sight words covers how to practise both kinds.

For a kindergartner the job is smaller still. Across the pre-primer and primer lists, 20 of the 92 words are heart words, close to the twenty sight words reading researcher Timothy Shanahan suggests by the end of kindergarten in Sight Words for Kindergarten? Yes, But Not Too Many.

How is Dolch different from Fry?

Dolch sorts words by grade; Fry ranks them by how common they are.

	Dolch	Fry
Size	220 words	1,000 words
Sorted by	Grade level, pre-primer to third, most common first within each	How often each word appears, in groups of a hundred
Built from	Children’s books of the 1930s and 40s	Reading materials for grades 3 to 9, in the 1950s, updated in 1980

All 1,000 Fry words together make up about 90 percent of the words in a typical book, according to sightwords.com. If your school sends Fry words, the kindergarten, 1st grade and 2nd grade pages sort its first 200 by grade.

Pre-primer Dolch words (kindergarten)

The pre-primer list is Dolch's first: 40 words, taught here in kindergarten. Of those, 32 can be sounded out and only 8 are heart words.

Pre-primer: words to sound out

These 32 can be sounded out with phonics. Some use a pattern your child meets a little later, such as the ee in see: read those together and name the pattern until it has been taught. On the sound boxes sheet, your child says each word and writes one spelling for each sound.

and
a
I
it
in
for
up
look
is
go
we
little
down
can
see
not
my
me
big
blue
red
jump
away
here
help
make
yellow
play
run
find
three
funny

Printables for Dolch Pre-Primer Words to Sound Out

Pre-primer: heart words

These eight are heart words, words that break the usual spelling patterns and need to be learned by heart.

the
to
you
said
one
come
where
two

Printables for Dolch Pre-Primer Heart Words

Primer Dolch words (kindergarten)

The primer list is Dolch's second: 52 words, also taught here in kindergarten. Of those, 40 can be sounded out and only 12 are heart words.

Primer: words to sound out

These 40 can be sounded out with phonics. Some use a pattern your child meets a little later, such as the oo in good: read those together and name the pattern until it has been taught. On the sound boxes sheet, your child says each word and writes one spelling for each sound.

he
that
she
on
but
at
with
all
out
be
am
did
so
get
like
this
will
yes
went
now
no
came
ride
good
too
saw
well
ran
brown
eat
new
must
black
white
soon
our
ate
say
under
please

Printables for Dolch Primer Words to Sound Out

Primer: heart words

These 12 are heart words, words that break the usual spelling patterns and need to be learned by heart.

was
they
there
have
do
what
are
into
want
pretty
four
who

Printables for Dolch Primer Heart Words

First grade Dolch words

Dolch's first grade list has 41 words. Of those, 30 can be sounded out and only 11 are heart words.

First grade: words to sound out

These 30 can be sounded out with phonics. Some use a pattern your child meets a little later, such as the ow in how: read those together and name the pattern until it has been taught. On the sound boxes sheet, your child says each word and writes one spelling for each sound.

his
had
him
her
as
then
when
them
ask
an
over
just
how
know
take
every
old
by
after
think
let
going
walk
may
stop
fly
round
open
has
thank

Printables for Dolch First Grade Words to Sound Out

First grade: heart words

These 11 are heart words, words that break the usual spelling patterns and need to be learned by heart.

of
some
could
were
from
any
put
again
give
once
live

Printables for Dolch First Grade Heart Words

Second grade Dolch words

Dolch's second grade list has 46 words. Of those, 34 can be sounded out and only 12 are heart words.

Second grade: words to sound out

These 34 can be sounded out with phonics. On the sound boxes sheet, your child says each word and writes one spelling for each sound.

very
its
around
right
green
call
sleep
five
or
before
off
cold
tell
first
goes
write
always
made
gave
us
those
use
fast
both
sit
which
read
why
found
best
upon
these
sing
wish

Printables for Dolch Second Grade Words to Sound Out

Second grade: heart words

These 12 are heart words, words that break the usual spelling patterns and need to be learned by heart.

would
your
don't
their
wash
been
work
does
buy
pull
because
many

Printables for Dolch Second Grade Heart Words

Third grade Dolch words

Dolch's third grade list has 41 words. Of those, 35 can be sounded out and only 6 are heart words.

Third grade: words to sound out

These 35 can be sounded out with phonics. On the sound boxes sheet, your child says each word and writes one spelling for each sound.

if
long
about
got
six
never
seven
today
myself
much
keep
try
start
ten
bring
drink
better
hold
light
pick
hurt
cut
kind
fall
carry
small
own
show
hot
far
draw
clean
grow
together
shall

Printables for Dolch Third Grade Words to Sound Out

Third grade: heart words

These six are heart words, words that break the usual spelling patterns and need to be learned by heart.

eight
only
warm
full
done
laugh

Printables for Dolch Third Grade Heart Words

Related lists

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