3rd Grade spelling
3rd Grade Silent Letter Words
Spelling words with silent letters: kn in knee, wr in write, mb in lamb. Play hangman with the list or print a worksheet with an answer key.
Read the spelling list
The pattern: Words with a letter you write but do not say: the k in knee, the w in write, the b in lamb.
Some English words contain a letter that is written but not said. The k in knee and know, the w in write and wrong, and the b in climb and thumb are all silent. These spellings are historic: the letters were once pronounced, and the sound dropped away while the spelling stayed. Students cannot predict silent letters from the sound, so they have to notice and remember them.
The list is in three groups. The kn group has know, knee, knife, knot, knit and knowledge. The wr group has write-family words such as wrong, wrap, wrist and wreck. The mb group has climb, thumb, comb, tomb, limb, numb and crumb. The groups follow the position of the silent letter: k and w are silent at the start of a word before n and r, and b is silent at the end after m. Third graders can use this to guess where silent letters hide.
35 entries. Our solver needed 4.5 wrong guesses on average: 3 easy, 13 medium and 19 hard. The toughest is knife (8 misses), the quickest knowledge (0).
kn
- know Hard · 5
- known Hard · 5
- knew Hard · 7
- knowledge Easy · 0
- knife Hard · 8
- knock Hard · 5
- knee Medium · 4
- knight Hard · 6
- knives Medium · 4
- knot Medium · 4
- knit Hard · 6
- knockout Medium · 3
wr
- wrong Hard · 5
- written Medium · 2
- wrote Medium · 3
- write Hard · 6
- writer Medium · 2
- wrap Hard · 6
- wrestling Easy · 1
- wrist Medium · 3
- wreck Medium · 4
- wrath Medium · 3
- wrestler Easy · 0
- wrestle Medium · 2
mb
- climb Hard · 5
- lamb Hard · 7
- thumb Hard · 6
- tomb Hard · 7
- limb Hard · 6
- numb Hard · 6
- comb Hard · 7
- succumb Medium · 4
- crumb Hard · 7
- honeycomb Medium · 2
- plumb Hard · 8
Words worth a closer look
- succumbSilent b at the end after m, plus a double c. A long word for a pattern normally found in short ones.
- honeycombEnds in comb with silent b. A compound of honey and comb.
- knowledgeSilent k at the start, plus a d in the middle that students forget. Know plus ledge.
- plumbSilent b at the end, as in thumb and lamb. Plumb means straight up and down.
Teaching it
Silent letters are a problem for spelling but not for reading, so students often get the sound right and the spelling wrong, writing nife for knife or clim for climb. Give them a trick for each word: say it the way it is written, kuh-nife, as a memory aid. The exaggerated pronunciation puts the silent letter back.
In hangman, a silent letter can be the last one players guess, since it does not match any sound they are listening for. Ask them to guess k or w early when the word starts with n or r. The printable works as a sort: students underline the silent letter in each word and write the group name above it.
Print a 3rd Grade Silent Letter Hangman worksheet
Eight puzzles on one US Letter page, with a clue, letter blanks, an empty frame to draw in, an alphabet strip to cross off and circles to count misses. Page two is the answer key.
Need another sheet?
Draw eight different words from this list, right here. Same layout, new answer key.
Keep going
- 3rd Grade Words With the Prefix UnSpelling words that start with the prefix un, meaning not, like unhappy, unfair, unsafe and unlucky. Play hangman or print a worksheet with an answer key.
- 3rd Grade Words With the Prefix ReSpelling words that start with the prefix re, usually meaning again, like rebuild, restart, replace and remove. Play hangman or print a worksheet.
- 3rd Grade Words With the Prefix DisSpelling words starting with the prefix dis, meaning not or the opposite of, like disagree, dislike, disappear and discount. Play hangman or print a list.
- 3rd Grade Words Ending in Ful and LessSpelling words ending in ful and less, like helpful, hopeful, careless and homeless. Play hangman with the list or print a worksheet with an answer key.
- 3rd Grade Words Ending in LySpelling words ending in ly, like quickly, slowly, finally and friendly. Play hangman with the list or print a worksheet with an answer key.
- 3rd Grade Words Ending in NessSpelling words ending in ness, like kindness, sadness, darkness and happiness. Play hangman with the list or print a worksheet with an answer key.