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Learn to spell hundreds of words easily with our digraph word lists. Having all these words in one place that include a digraph in them, makes learning to spell new words very engaging and fun. It is important to learn how to spell words that have a grapheme as this is critical to being able to read fluently.
These digraph word lists contain everyday words for children to use when writing poems, short stories and taking notes in their journal. Children can create their own posters, flashcards, charts and projects that display these words to improve their spelling skills during study time.
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What is a digraph and what it is not
A digraph is a grapheme made by two letters that represent one sound. The ‘ou’ in ‘soul’ is a digraph but not the ‘ou’ in ‘should’ and ‘foul’. The ‘oul’ in ‘should’ has one sound made by 3 letters, so it is a trigraph. The ‘ou’ in ‘foul’ is a diphthong as there are 2 sounds merging to make one.
The digraphs are ai, ay, aw, ea, ee, ei, ey, ew, ie, oa, oo, ou, ow, ch, ph, sc, sh, ss, gh, th, wh and wr. Each grapheme that is a digraph may represent one sound or several sounds. Here are 22 digraphs with many words that contain them to help improve a student’s spelling quickly.
Digraph word lists for 22 graphemes
ai digraph
vain, pain, chain, stain, drain, sprain, strain, domain, remain, obtain, captain, paint, contain, explain, curtain, mountain, maintain, fountain, saint, faint, taint, rain, train, gain, grain, brain, again, complain
ail, rail, mail, fail, pail, nail, sail, tail, jail, snail, frail, avail, trail, detail, daily, tailor, sailor
plait, bait, wait, waiter, await, trait, faith, portrait
paid, said, afraid, aid, raid, maid, laid, braid
maize, raisin, praise, daisy, raise, waist
aim, claim, proclaim
samurai, aisle
aw digraph
jaw, claw, paw, saw, law, straw, thaw, flaw, draw, slaw, awe, awful, raw, seesaw, outlaw, jigsaw, withdraw, coleslaw
ay digraph
may, say, pay, tray, play, day, way, stay, sway, gay, pray, clay, hay, lay, ray, spray, bay, away, okay, delay, today, stray, decay, essay, anyway, replay, airway, payday, betray, sideway, airplay, display, highway, doorway, someday, portray, freeway, sickbay
ea digraph
appeal, meal, conceal, deal, heal, health, ideal, meal, real, reveal, seal, surreal, steal, squeal, teal, veal, wealth, zeal
beat, cheat, death, defeat, eat, eaten, feat, great, heat, pleat, meat, neat, repeat, seat, sweat, threat, wheat
beak, bleak, break, creak, freak, leak, peak, sneak, speak, squeak, steak, streak, teak, weak, wreak
ahead, instead, ready, bread, bead, dead, dread, head, knead, lead, leader, mead, read, reader, spread, steady, tread
ease, easy, easily, cease, crease, fleas, grease, lease, peas, please, reason, release, season, tease
team, beam, cream, dream, gleam, ream, seam, scream, steam, stream
clean, bean, dean, lean, mean, meant, ocean, peanut, wean
eave, eavesdrop, greave, heave, heavy, heaven, leave, weave
each, reach, beach, bleach, breach, leach, teach, peach, preach
area, flea, idea, pea, plea, sea, shea, peace, tea
cheap, heap, reap, weapon
beast, breast, feast, east, least, yeast
eagle, meagre, eager, league
deaf, leaf
ee digraph
exceed, feed, freed, greed, heed, indeed, need, seed, speed, agreed, bleed, breed, deed, weed
beep, deep, creep, jeep, keep, peep, seep, sheep, sleep, steep, sweep, weep
agree, glee, see, bee, fee, free, tee, knee, tree, three, spree, free
eel, feel, kneel, peel, reel, steel, wheel
green, keen, teen, ween, seen, been, screen, queen, between
beet, feet, fleet, greet, meet, street, sweet, teeth
cheek, creek, geek, meek, leek, peek, seek, week
geese, cheese, breeze, freeze, sneeze, squeeze, wheeze
deem, seem, redeem, esteem, agreement
speech, screech, leech
beef, reef
ei digraph
conceive, receive, deceive, perceive
either, neither, conceit, deceit, receipt
rein, reindeer, vein, caffeine
feist, feisty, heist, leisure
veil, unveil, ceiling
ey digraph
they, obey, whey, grey, prey, survey, hey, convey
money, honey, kidney, chutney, chimney, cockney, journey
key, donkey, monkey, turkey, turnkey, whiskey, jockey, hockey
trolley, alley, volley, valley, pulley, barley, parsley
jersey, Malmsey, odyssey, eye, whimsey, choosey, curtsey, mousey, horsey, goosey, nosey, mosey, hosey, cosey
ew digraph
few, sew, chew, crew, dew, drew, pew, hew, blew, brew, threw, new, knew, stew, slew
ie digraph
die, lie, tie, pie
calorie, cookie, movie, beanie, hippie, junkie, genie, siege, shriek, eerie, smoothie, auntie, cutie, foodie, hoodie, bootie, baddie, goalie, birdie, weenie, bookie, hottie, veggie, softie, oldie, dearie, techie, doggie
cries, dies, flies, fiesta, kiddies, fries, lies, pies, patties, cookies, skies, ties, spies, priest
diesel, series, species, rabies
hygiene, ancient, deficient, deficiency, efficient, sufficient, patient, patience, friend, fiend
cried, fried, tried, died, lied, spied, shied, studied, varied, married, applied
grief, brief, chief, kerchief, mischief, thief, relief, belief
achieve, believe, grieve, relieve, retrieve, sieve
field, shield, yield, wield
niece, piece, masterpiece, centrepiece, earpiece, showpiece, headpiece, timepiece
oa digraph
oat, boat, lifeboat, speedboat, bloat, coat, raincoat, waistcoat, goat, gloat, float, throat, afloat, loath, loathe
approach, broach, coach, poach, roach
boast, coast, coastline, roast, toast
oak, cloak, croak, soak
hoax, coax
broad, download, overload, load, truckload, road, roadblock, toad
moan, groan, loan
coal, goal, foal, charcoal
cocoa
foam, foamy
soap, soapy, handsoap
oaf, loaf, meatloaf
oo digraph
blood, good, wood, hood, stood, food, flood, mood
boot, booth, foot, loot, moot, root, soot, scoot, shoot, toot, tooth
book, cook, crook, hook, jook, look, nook, took, shook, spook, cookie
cool, drool, fool, pool, school, spool, stool, tool, wool
boom, broom, bloom, doom, gloom, groom, loom, room, zoom
blooper, coop, poop, droop, hoop, loop, scoop, stoop, snoop, swoop, whoop, troop
goof, hoof, poof, proof, roof, spoof, woof
boost, choose, goose, loose, moose, noose, swoosh
moon, noon, soon, spoon, toon, saloon, maroon, balloon
ooze, booze, snooze, doozy, woozy
poodle, doodle, noodle, toodles
boogie, scrooge, stooge, googly
too, woo, zoo, igloo
ou digraph
you, through, throughout, cougar, souvenir, acoustic, coupon, bouquet, soup, group, youth, route, routine, boutique, wound
cough, rough, tough, trough, enough, lough, couple, country, courage, encourage, double, trouble, young, touch, ghoul
dangerous, jealous, gorgeous, numerous, generous, famous, humongous, fabulous, joyous, pompous, nervous, wondrous, enormous, righteous, courteous, poisonous
soul, limousine, shoulder, poultry, boulder, mould, moulding
ow digraph
owe, tow, row, bow, know, show, snow, low, glow, below, flow, blow, slow, sow
bellow, swallow, shallow, follow, hollow, yellow, fellow, pillow, mellow
throw, grow, crow, row, bow
arrow, barrow, sorrow, sparrow borrow, narrow
window, shadow, meadow
own, disown, thrown, known, flown, mown, renown, shown
ch digraph
chew, chop, chop, chap, chat, chin, chip, chief, chore, choke, chant, champ, chess, chick, chalk, chair. chill, chive, cheer, chuck, charm, chest, choose, chose, chosen, chasse, cheap, check, child, cheer, cheese, cheque, cherry, chance, change, choice, charge, cheetah, chocolate, challenge, chicken, children, champion, chapter, chapter, charity, chamber, cherish
much, rich, such, ouch, each, arch, munch, belch, ranch, bunch, couch, peach, pouch, porch, teach, coach, touch, lunch, bench, beach, punch, roach, perch, hunch, reach, march, which, brunch, scorch, stench, slouch, quench, crunch, branch, church, launch, search, speech, attach, trench, stench, bleach, crouch, grouch, broach, preach, brooch, detach, grinch
chord, choir, chaos, chorus, character, chemical, chemistry, charisma, technology, psychology
chef, champaign, chivalry
ph digraph
phone, photograph, phoneme
graph, morph, triumph, paragraph, autograph, telegraph, polygraph, digraph, trigraph, quadgraph, homograph, homophone
sh digraph
shy, she, shin, shoe, ship, shed, show, ship, shop, shut, shot, shed, shun, shave, shake, sheep, shine, shark, sheen, shout, shack, shred, shame, shield, shoot, shelf, shore, shell, shirt, share, shock, sheet, shall, shift, shown, shape, short, shriek, shrimp, shower, should, shadow, shiver, shrink
ash, sash, hush, posh, mash, lash, rash, dish, rush, push, dash, wash, dish, wish, fish, bush, cash, blush, smash, leash, stash, trash, clash, flush, brush, harsh, marsh, crush, slush, flesh, flash, fresh, crash, plush, slash, publish
sc digraph
science, scientist, scientific, scene, scent, scissors, scenario
conscious, conscience, luscious
discipline
ss digraph
pass, puss, hiss, moss, boss, mess, bass, kiss, pass, less, miss, bossy, mossy, posse, grass, bliss, bless, glass, gloss, abyss, sassy, missy, brass, issue, lasso, cross, press, gross, guess, dress, essay, fussy, class, asset, floss, assist, unless, assume, stress, lesson, hassle, recess, obsess, gossip, tissue, lesson, vessel, scissors, harass
passion, session, mission, pressure, Russian, fissure, professional
gh digraph
cough, rough, tough, laugh, trough enough
ghost, ghastly, ghoul, ghee, ghetto
lough
th digraph
think, thank, thought, through, throughout, thorough, thumb, thick, thin, thug, thud, thaw, thorn, thief, throw, threw, theme, third, three, thirteen, thing, thump, throne, threat, theory, thirty, thread, throat, thrown
the, this, that, then, there, their, thus, them, they, than, these, those, though, although
wh digraph
who, why, what, when, where, whom, whose, while, which, wheel, whip, whole, whale, white, wheat, whisk, whisker, whistle, whisper, whether, whereas, whereby, whack, whiplash, wheeze
wr digraph
write, wrote, wrong, wrist, wrath, wry, wren, wrack, wreck, wreak, wrap, wring, wrung, wrestle, writer, wrench, wrangle, wrinkle, wrought, written, wrecked, writing, wreathe, wreckage, wriggle
Conclusion
The word lists for these 22 digraphs can be used to create posters, flashcards, charts, short stories and poems. By reading and writing these words repeatedly, learning to spell them is easier and more fun. When students master spelling, reading fluently will happen smoothly.
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