Year 3 and 4 spelling list
All 100 entries on the national curriculum word list for Years 3 and 4, with the tricky part of every word and a spelling test to try.
The answer
The Year 3 and 4 statutory spelling list has 100 entries. Some, such as accident(ally) and actual(ly), cover more than one spelling, so there are 109 spellings to learn in all. Children learn them in Years 3 and 4, when they are 7 to 9.
The full Year 3 and 4 list, A to Z
Tap a word to see how it is spelt, the mistakes children make with it and a tip for remembering it.
| Word | The part to watch |
|---|---|
| accident | a double c, and it ends -ent |
| accidentally | accidental + ly, so it has -ally |
| actual | the ch sound is spelt tu |
| actually | actual + ly, so it has a double l |
| address | a double d and a double s |
| although | al + though, with one l |
| answer | a silent w after the s |
| appear | a double p, then ear |
| arrive | a double r, and a silent e at the end |
| believe | a lie in the middle (be-lie-ve) |
| bicycle | bi + cycle, with a y after the first c |
| breath | ea says a short e, and there is no e at the end |
| breathe | the same letters as breath, with an e on the end |
| build | ui makes a short i sound |
| business | busy + ness, with the y changed to i |
| busy | u says i, and it ends with y |
| calendar | e in the middle, -ar at the end |
| caught | c + augh + t, with augh saying "or" |
| centre | a soft c, and it ends -re in British English |
| century | a soft c at the start, and tu in the middle |
| certain | a soft c, and it ends -ain |
| circle | two c letters making two different sounds |
| complete | e, t, e at the end |
| consider | s in the middle, not c |
| continue | it ends -ue |
| decide | de + cide, where the c says s |
| describe | it starts de-, not dis- |
| different | a double f, and e twice after it |
| difficult | a double f, then a c that says k |
| disappear | dis + appear, so one s and two p letters |
| early | ear + ly, with ear saying "ur" |
| earth | ear + th, with ear saying "ur" |
| eight | eigh says "ay" |
| eighth | eight + h, keeping the t |
| enough | ough says "uff" |
| exercise | no c after the x, and a soft c in cise |
| experience | exper + ience, with four e letters and no a |
| experiment | ex, per, i, ment |
| extreme | e, m, e at the end |
| famous | it ends -ous |
| favourite | favour + ite, keeping the u |
| February | a capital F, and an r after the b |
| forward | for + ward, with the r you hardly hear |
| forwards | forward + s |
| fruit | ui says "oo" |
| grammar | a double m, and it ends -ar |
| group | ou says "oo" |
| guard | g + u + ard, with the u silent |
| guide | g + u + ide, with the u silent |
| heard | hear + d |
| heart | ear says "ar" |
| height | h + eight, but it says "hite" |
| history | his + tory, with an o you hardly hear |
| imagine | imag + ine, with a silent e at the end |
| important | it ends -ant, not -ent |
| increase | ea in the middle, and a silent e at the end |
| interest | inter + est, with an e you hardly hear |
| island | a silent s (is + land) |
| knowledge | know + ledge, with a silent k |
| learn | l + ear + n, with ear saying "ur" |
| length | long becomes length, keeping the g |
| library | two r letters (li-brar-y) |
| material | e after the t, and -ial at the end |
| medicine | from medical, so it keeps the c |
| mention | it ends -tion |
| minute | it ends -ute, but says "it" |
| natural | nature + al, so the ch sound is tu |
| naughty | augh says "or", and it ends -ty |
| notice | it ends -ice |
| occasion | a double c and one s |
| occasionally | occasional + ly, with a double c, one s and a double l |
| often | of + ten, with a t many people do not say |
| opposite | from oppose, with a double p and o in the middle |
| ordinary | ordin + ary, with an a you hardly hear |
| particular | par at the start and -lar at the end |
| peculiar | it ends -iar |
| perhaps | per + haps, starting p, e, r |
| popular | pop + u + lar, ending -ar |
| position | one s, and it ends -tion |
| possess | two double s pairs (po-ss-e-ss) |
| possession | possess + ion, keeping two double s pairs |
| possible | a double s, and it ends -ible |
| potatoes | one potato, two potatoes (add -es) |
| pressure | press + ure |
| probably | probable, with -le changed to -ly |
| promise | it ends -ise, but says "iss" |
| purpose | pur + pose |
| quarter | quar + ter, with an r you hardly hear |
| question | qu at the start, -tion at the end |
| recent | re + cent, where the c says s |
| regular | reg + u + lar, with one g |
| reign | ei says "ay", and a silent g |
| remember | re + member |
| sentence | sen + tence, with three e letters and no a |
| separate | par in the middle (sep-a-rate) |
| special | spe + cial, with ci saying sh |
| straight | aigh says "ay", with a silent gh |
| strange | the silent e makes the a say "ay" |
| strength | strong becomes strength, keeping the g |
| suppose | a double p, then pose |
| surprise | sur + prise, with an r in each half |
| therefore | there + fore |
| though | ough says "oh" |
| thought | ough says "or" |
| through | ough says "oo" |
| various | vari + ous |
| weight | w + eight |
| woman | one woman, ending -man with an a |
| women | more than one, ending -men, and the o says i |
Download the Year 3 and 4 list with a blank test sheet (PDF)
Year 3 and 4 spelling test
Ten words from the list, picked at random. Each word is read out, used in a sentence and read again, then everything is marked at the end.
A short spelling test of ten words from the Year 3 and 4 list, read aloud. It works in your browser.
The words grouped by pattern
Learning words in groups that share a pattern is quicker than learning them in alphabetical order.
Words with a double letter
A consonant is doubled somewhere in the word, and that is the part that goes wrong. Say the word slowly and count the doubles before you write it.
Words with a silent letter
These words have a letter you write but do not say. Many were said long ago and the spelling kept them.
Words with a letter you hardly hear
When we speak quickly, a letter or a whole beat gets swallowed. Say the word slowly, the way it is spelt, so every letter has a sound.
Words with the -ly ending
Most of these words are made by adding -ly to a root word. Spell the root first, then add -ly. A root ending in -le swaps the -le for -ly, as probable becomes probably.
Words with a smaller word behind it
Each of these words is built from, or related to, a smaller word you may already know. Find the smaller word and most of the spelling follows.
Words with a -tion, -cial or -cient ending
These words end in -tion, -cial or -cient, where ti or ci usually says "sh": men-tion, spe-cial, an-cient. After an s, as in question, -tion says "chun" instead, but the letters stay the same.
Words with the -ous ending
The ending that sounds like "us" at the end of a describing word is spelt -ous. It is never -us or -ouse.
Words with the letters ei, eigh or ie
The letters ei, eigh and ie can make several sounds. These words have to be learnt as a group, because the sound does not tell you which letters to use.
Words with a soft c
The letter c says s when it comes before e, i or y, as in centre, circle and bicycle. Before a, o, u or another consonant it says k.
Words with the letters ough or augh
The letters ough make at least five different sounds, and augh often says "or". Learn these words by sight, as a family.
Words with the letters ear
The letters ear do not always say "ear". In early, earth, heard and learn they say "ur", and in heart they say "ar".
Words with an -ar ending
These words end in a sound like "er", but it is spelt -ar. Saying the ending as "ar" while you write it helps.
Words with an -ant, -ance, -ent or -ence ending
The endings -ant and -ent sound almost the same, and so do -ance and -ence. The only reliable way is to learn which one each word takes.
Words with a vowel that makes a surprising sound
In these words a vowel, or a pair of vowels, makes a sound it does not usually make, such as the u in busy or the o in women.
Words with a silent e at the end
Each of these words ends in an e you do not hear. Remember to write it, and remember it drops before -ing or -ed: complete, completing, completed.
Words with tu saying "chu"
When t is followed by u in the middle of a word it often says "ch", as in actual and nature. The spelling is t, even though you hear ch.
Words with the letters ngth
Long and strong become length and strength. Keep the g when you add th, even though it is easy to miss.
Words to learn by heart
These words follow no single rule. Look, say, cover, write and check them a few times a week until they stick.
What the list is and when it is taught
This is the first of the two statutory word lists in English Appendix 1 of the national curriculum for England. It is taught across Years 3 and 4, when children are 7 to 9. The curriculum describes the words as a mixture of words children often use in their writing and words they often misspell.
The list comes alongside the spelling rules for Years 3 and 4: prefixes such as dis- and re-, the suffix -ly, endings like -tion and -ous, and letter patterns such as ei and eigh. Many of the words are there because they show one of those rules; the rest simply have to be learnt.
There is no national spelling test in Year 3 or Year 4. Schools usually set their own weekly tests. The list counts again at the end of Year 6, when teachers assess writing: a child working towards the expected standard spells most of these words correctly.
Practising at home
- Practise five or six words a week, not the whole list. Pick words that share a pattern, such as the ear words or the -ly words, so the rule does some of the work.
- Use look, say, cover, write, check: look at the word, say it, cover it, write it from memory, then check it letter by letter. The checking step matters most.
- For words like February, library and separate, say them the way they are spelt while writing: Feb-ru-ar-y, li-brar-y, sep-a-rate.
- Retest last week’s words as well as this week’s. Mixing old words in is what makes spellings stick beyond Friday.
- Ask your child to use each word in a sentence of their own. Words that are only ever learnt in a list do not always make it into their writing.
More spelling help
Questions parents ask
How many words are on the Year 3 and 4 spelling list?
The Year 3 and 4 statutory spelling list has 100 entries. Some, such as accident(ally) and actual(ly), cover more than one spelling, so there are 109 spellings to learn in all.
When are the Year 3 and 4 spelling words taught?
Across Years 3 and 4, when children are 7 to 9. The national curriculum does not set an order, so each school decides which words to teach each week, usually alongside the spelling rule the class is learning.
Are the Year 3 and 4 spelling words tested?
There is no national spelling test in Year 3 or Year 4. Schools often set weekly tests of their own. The list matters most at the end of Year 6, when teachers assess writing: a child working towards the expected standard spells most of the Year 3 and 4 words correctly.
Which Year 3 and 4 words are hardest to spell?
Words that trip up many children include February, separate, probably, library, occasionally and grammar. Each has its own page with the tricky part explained and a memory tip.
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