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Word Families / Rhyming Words

Skilled readers recognize patterns in words rather than sound words out, letter by letter. Word families, also known as phonograms, rimes, or chunks, are letter patterns that are more stable than individual vowel sounds.

If a reader knows the word, back, for example, it's likely that he/she will be able to read other -ack words, such as snack and jacket. Recognizing word families helps students build large reading vocabularies.

Please click on the word family to see the words that can be made.

Long vowel sounds

ace , ade , age , aid , ail , ain , air , ake , ale , ame , ape , ate , ay
each , eal , ear , eat , ee , eel , eep , eet
ice , ide , ie , ife , ight , ike , ile , ind , ine , ite , y
oat , oke , old , sl-ow
ube , use , ute

Short vowel sounds

ab , ack , ad , ag , all , am , amp , an , and , ank , arm , ap , ar , ash , at , aw
ed , ell , en , ent , est , et
ick , id , ig , ill , in , ing , ink , ip , ish , it
ock , og , oil , oo , ood , oof , ook , ool , oom , oon , oop , oot , op , ore , orn , ot , ought , ould , ound , ouse , out , h-ow, br-ow-n, ox , oy
uck , ug , um , ump , un , unk , us , ust

The words below have been arranged in groups according to their ending sounds.

ab : cab, crab, dab, drab, grab, jab, stab, tab

ace : ace, brace, face, grace, lace, mace, pace, race, space

ack : attack, back, black, crack, Jack, jacket, knack, lack, pack, quack, rack, sack, snack, stack, tack, track, whack

ad : ad, bad, dad, fad, glad, grad, had, lad, mad, pad, rad, sad, tad

ade : blade, fade, jade, made, spade, trade, wade

age : age, cage, gage, page, rage, sage, stage, wage

ag : bag, brag, drag, flag, gag, hag, jag, lag, nag, rag, sag, snag, tag, wag

aid : aid, braid, laid, maid, paid, raid

ail : ail, fail, hail, jail, mail, nail, pail, rail, sail, snail, tail

ain : brain, chain, drain, gain, grain, main, pain, plain, rain, Spain, stain, strain, train

air : air, chair, fair, hair, lair, pair, stair

ake : awake, bake, brake, cake, flake, lake, make, rake, stake, take, wake

ale : bale, dale, gale, male, pale, sale, scale, stale, tale, whale

all : ball, call, fall, hall, mall, small, stall, tall, wall

am : am, dam, ham, jam, ram, Sam, sham, slam, spam, wham, yam

amp : amp, camp, clamp, damp, lamp, ramp, stamp

ame : blame, came, fame, flame, frame, game, lame, name, same, shame, tame

an : an, ban, bran, can, clan, Dan, fan, flan, Fran, man, pan, plan, ran, span, Stan, tan, van

and : and, band, bland, brand, grand, hand, land, sand

ank : bank, blank, crank, drank, Hank, plank, rank, sank, spank, tank, thank, yank

ap : cap, clap, flap, gap, lap, map, nap, rap, sap, slap, scrap, tap

ape : ape, cape, drape, grape, rape, shape, tape

ar : are, bar, char, car, far, jar, par, scar, cigar, guitar

arm : alarm, arm, army, charm, farm, harm

ash : ash, bash, cash, crash, dash, flash, gash, hash, mash, rash, sash, slash, smash, splash, trash

at : at, bat, brat, cat, chat, fat, flat, hat, mat, pat, rat, sat, spat, sprat, tat, that, vat

ate : ate, crate, date, fate, gate, grate, hate, Kate, late, locate, mate, plate, rate, skate, slate, state

aw : claw, draw, flaw, gnaw, jaw, law, paw, raw, saw, slaw, straw, thaw

ay : away, bay, bray, clay, day, gay, gray, hay, lay, may, okay, pay, play, ray, say, spray, stay, sway, tray, way

each : beach, breach, each, peach, preach, reach, teach

eal : deal, heal, meal, real, seal, steal

ear :appear, clear, dear, ear, fear, gear, hear, near, rear, spear, tear

eat : beat, cheat, eat, feat, heat, meat, neat, pleat, seat, treat, wheat

ed : bed, Ed, fed, Fred, led, Ned, red, shed, sled, Ted, wed

ee : bee, free, see, tee, tree

eel : eel, feel, heel, peel, reel, steel, wheel

eep : beep, creep, deep, keep, jeep, peep, seep, sheep, sleep, steep, sweep, weep

eet : beet, feet, fleet, greet, meet, sheet, sleet, street, sweet

ell : bell, cell, dell, dwell, fell, sell, shell, smell, spell, swell, tell, well, yell

en : Ben, den, fen, gentlemen, hen, men, pen, ten, then, when, wren

ent : bent, cent, dent, event, lent, rent, scent, sent, spent, tent, vent, went

est : best, crest, chest, guest, jest, nest, pest, quest, rest, test, vest, west, zest

et : bet, get, jet, let, met, net, pet, set, wet, yet

ice : advice, dice, ice, lice, mice, nice, price, rice, slice, spice, twice

ick : brick, chick, click, flick, kick, lick, nick, pick, quick, Rick, sick, slick, stick, thick, tick, trick, wick

id : did, grid, hid, kid, lid, rid, slid, squid, forbid

ide : bride, decide, glide, guide, hide, pride, ride, side, slide, stride, tide, wide

ie : die, lie, pie, tie

ife : fife, knife, life, wife

ig : big, dig, fig, gig, pig, rig, twig, wig

ight : bright, delight, fight, flight, fright, height, light, might, night, right, sight, slight, tight, tonight

ike : bike, dike, hike, like, Mike, pike, strike

ile : file, mile, Nile, pile, smile, tile, while

ill : bill, chill, dill, drill, grill, hill, ill, Jill, kill, mill, pill, sill, skill, spill, still, thrill, till, will

in : begin, bin, chin, din, fin, grin, in, kin, pin, sin, shin, skin, spin, tin, thin, twin, win, within

ind : bind, blind, find, grind, kind, mind, rind, wind

ine : dine, fine, line, mine, nine, pine, shine, spine, vine, wine

ing : bring, cling, fling, king, ping, ring, sing, sling, spring, sting, string, swing, thing, wing, wring, zing

ink : blink, brink, drink, ink, link, mink, pink, rink, shrink, sink, stink, think, wink

ip : chip, clip, dip, drip, flip, grip, hip, lip, nip, rip, ship, sip, skip, slip, tip, trip, whip

ish : dish, fish, wish

it : admit, bit, fit, grit, hit, it, kit, knit, lit, mitt, pit, quit, sit, skit, spit, split, twit, wit

ite : bite, kite, site, write

y : cry, dry, fly, fry, guy, my, shy, sky, sly, spy, try, why

oat : boat, coat, float, gloat, goat, moat, oat, throat

ock : block, clock, cock, dock, flock, frock, knock, lock, mock, o'clock, rock, shock, sock, stock

og : bog, clog, cog, dog, fog, frog, hog, jog, log, slog, smog

oil : boil, broil, coil, foil, oil, soil, spoil, toil

oke : awoke, bloke, broke, choke, coke, joke, poke, smoke, spoke, stroke, woke

old : bold, cold, fold, gold, hold, mold, scold, sold, told

oo : boo, goo, moo, shoo, too, zoo

ood : brood, food, good, hood, mood, stood, wood

oof : goof, proof, roof, spoof

ook : book, brook, cook, crook, hook, look, nook, shook, took

ool : cool, drool, fool, pool, school, spool, stool, tool

oom : bloom, boom, broom, doom, gloom, loom, room, zoom

oon : moon, noon, soon, spoon

oop : droop, hoop, loop, scoop, snoop, Snoopy, troop

oot : boot, foot, hoot, scoot, shoot, soot

op : bop, chop, cop, crop, drop, flop, hop, mop, pop, shop, slop, stop, top

ore : before, bore, chore, core, explore, ignore, more, ore, pore, score, shore, snore, sore, store, tore, wore

orn : born, corn, forlorn, horn, morn, scorn, thorn, torn

ot : apricot, blot, cot, clot, dot, forgot, got, hot, jot, knot, lot, not, plot, pot, rot, shot, spot, tot, trot

ought : bought, brought, fought, ought, sought, thought

ould : could, should, would

ound : bound, found, ground, hound, mound, pound, round, sound, wound

ouse : blouse, douse, grouse, house, louse, mouse, souse, spouse

out : about, out, pout, shout, spout, stout

ow : (as in 'slow') blow, bow, crow, flow, glow, grow, know, low, mow, row, show, slow, snow, sow, stow, throw, tow

ow : (as in 'how') bow, brow, chow, cow, how, now, plow, row, sow, vow, wow

ow : (as in 'brown') brown, crown, clown, down, downtown, drown, frown, gown, nightgown, town

ox : box, fox, ox

oy : boy, coy, joy, ploy, Roy, soy, toy

ube : ube, cube, flashcube, tube

uck : buck, chuck, cluck, duck, luck, muck, pluck, puck, struck, stuck, suck, truck, tuck, yuck

ug : bug, chug, drug, dug, hug, jug, lug, mug, plug, rug, shrug, slug, snug, tug

um : chum, drum, glum, gum, hum, plum, strum, sum, swum, yum

ump : bump, clump, dump, hump, jump, lump, plump, pump, rump, slump, stump, thump, trump

un : bun, gun, nun, run, sun

unk : bunk, chunk, clunk, drunk, dunk, flunk, hunk, junk, plunk, punk, shrunk, skunk, sunk, trunk

us : bus, plus, us

use : amuse, fuse, muse, use

ute : cute, flute, mute, shute

ust : bust, dust, gust, must, rust, trust