Dolch Sight Words List
All 315 Dolch sight words, free to read here and free to print. The 220 service words are grouped Pre-Primer through Grade 3, with the 95 Dolch nouns as their own list.
Free Dolch printables
Pick a type, then a level. Every file is a print-ready PDF.
Read, color & trace
One page per word — read it, color the outline, trace the letters.
Word cards — outline
Eight hollow-letter cards per page, ready to color and cut out.
Word cards — solid
The same cards in solid letters, for flashcards and word walls.
Want the same words as bingo, roll & read, word searches, and memory match? See the printable games →
About the Dolch sight word list
Who compiled it, and why
Edward William Dolch published his list in 1936 after counting the words that appeared most often in children's books. He left nouns out on purpose — nouns change with the subject, while words like “and”, “was”, and “from” turn up in everything. The resulting 220 “service words” make up between half and three-quarters of a typical early reader.
The five levels and the nouns
The service words are split into Pre-Primer (40 words), Primer (52), First Grade (41), Second Grade (46), and Third Grade (41). The names come from 1930s reading primers, but they still map onto pre-K through grade three. The 95 Dolch nouns are a separate list, usually taught alongside whichever level a child is on.
Why these words are taught by sight
The words a child meets most often are the ones that break phonics rules most often — “said”, “one”, “come”, “the”. Sounding them out fails, and the sentence is lost while trying. Learning them as whole shapes clears them out of the way so phonics can be spent on the words it actually works for.
The complete Dolch word list
All 315 words, level by level and in their standard order.
Dolch Pre-Primer sight words
Pre-K · 40 words · 40 pages
- a
- and
- away
- big
- blue
- can
- come
- down
- find
- for
- funny
- go
- help
- here
- I
- in
- is
- it
- jump
- little
- look
- make
- me
- my
- not
- one
- play
- red
- run
- said
- see
- the
- three
- to
- two
- up
- we
- where
- yellow
- you
Dolch Primer sight words
Kindergarten · 52 words · 52 pages
- all
- am
- are
- at
- ate
- be
- black
- brown
- but
- came
- did
- do
- eat
- four
- get
- good
- have
- he
- into
- like
- must
- new
- no
- now
- on
- our
- out
- please
- pretty
- ran
- ride
- saw
- say
- she
- so
- soon
- that
- there
- they
- this
- too
- under
- want
- was
- well
- went
- what
- white
- who
- will
- with
- yes
Dolch First Grade sight words
Grade 1 · 41 words · 41 pages
- after
- again
- an
- any
- as
- ask
- by
- could
- every
- fly
- from
- give
- going
- had
- has
- her
- him
- his
- how
- just
- know
- let
- live
- may
- of
- old
- once
- open
- over
- put
- round
- some
- stop
- take
- thank
- them
- then
- think
- walk
- were
- when
Dolch Second Grade sight words
Grade 2 · 46 words · 46 pages
- always
- around
- because
- been
- before
- best
- both
- buy
- call
- cold
- does
- don't
- fast
- first
- five
- found
- gave
- goes
- green
- its
- made
- many
- off
- or
- pull
- read
- right
- sing
- sit
- sleep
- tell
- their
- these
- those
- upon
- us
- use
- very
- wash
- which
- why
- wish
- work
- would
- write
- your
Dolch Third Grade sight words
Grade 3 · 41 words · 41 pages
- about
- better
- bring
- carry
- clean
- cut
- done
- draw
- drink
- eight
- fall
- far
- full
- got
- grow
- hold
- hot
- hurt
- if
- keep
- kind
- laugh
- light
- long
- much
- myself
- never
- only
- own
- pick
- seven
- shall
- show
- six
- small
- start
- ten
- today
- together
- try
- warm
Dolch Nouns sight words
All grades · 95 words · 95 pages
- apple
- baby
- back
- ball
- bear
- bed
- bell
- bird
- birthday
- boat
- box
- boy
- bread
- brother
- cake
- car
- cat
- chair
- chicken
- children
- Christmas
- coat
- corn
- cow
- day
- dog
- doll
- door
- duck
- egg
- eye
- farm
- farmer
- father
- feet
- fire
- fish
- floor
- flower
- game
- garden
- girl
- goodbye
- grass
- ground
- hand
- head
- hill
- home
- horse
- house
- kitty
- leg
- letter
- man
- men
- milk
- money
- morning
- mother
- name
- nest
- night
- paper
- party
- picture
- pig
- rabbit
- rain
- ring
- robin
- Santa Claus
- school
- seed
- sheep
- shoe
- sister
- snow
- song
- squirrel
- stick
- street
- sun
- table
- thing
- time
- top
- toy
- tree
- watch
- water
- way
- wind
- window
- wood
How to teach the Dolch sight words
Short and daily beats long and weekly.
- 1
Start with what they nearly know
Read a level aloud together and mark the words that come out instantly. Teach the ones that need a pause, and leave the rest alone for now.
- 2
Work in batches of five
Five new words a week is enough for most children. Add the next five only once the first set is instant.
- 3
Say it, color it, trace it
Use the worksheet page for each new word. Saying it aloud before and after coloring links the shape on the page to the sound.
- 4
Make the deck together
Print the outline cards and let the child color and cut them out. A deck they made themselves gets picked up far more often.
- 5
Play instead of drilling
Once a batch is familiar, switch to bingo, roll & read, or memory match with the same words.
- 6
Keep reviewing
Shuffle old words into every session. Sight words fade quickly without use.
Dolch sight words — frequently asked questions
The questions parents and teachers ask most.
Looking for the longer list? The Fry list covers the 1,000 most common words in English, ordered by frequency and split into ten sets of 100.
See the Fry sight words list →