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Year 2 spelling words and practice

Spelling practice for every year. Free, with no sign-up, and nothing kept.

In Years 1 and 2 the NSW English syllabus has children spell by sound first: hear each sound in a word and write the letters that stand for it. Then come the two-letter spellings such as sh, ch, ai and ee, the rules for ck, tch and dge, the endings s, es, ed and ing, and a few common words that follow no rule, such as said and because, learnt by heart.

60 Year 2 words below, grouped by pattern, each from Learnest's own Stage 1 questions. The device reads a word aloud, then the sentence it comes from, your child types it, and the slip shows the right spelling with the tricky part marked.

Practise the words

The Year 2 words, by pattern

Ask a grown-up to read the words: say the word, then its sentence, then the word again, while your child writes it down. The list is the answer sheet.

Vowels with r: ar, or, ir, ur, er, air

  1. car Park the car in the garage.
  2. fork Please pass me a clean fork.
  3. first Mia came first in the race.
  4. burn The toast began to burn.
  5. her We gave her the last ticket.
  6. shirt
  7. bird
  8. chair She sat down on the wooden chair.

English words do not end in v: have, give

  1. have I have a red bike.
  2. give Please give the ball to Sam.
  3. sleeve My jumper has a hole in one sleeve.
  4. love

Double letters in the middle

  1. rabbit The rabbit hopped across the grass.
  2. kitten Our kitten likes to chase string.
  3. puppy The puppy chewed on its toy.
  4. yellow

Change y to i, or drop the e, before an ending

  1. babies The babies slept in their cots.
  2. puppies Two puppies played in the yard.
  3. cried The baby cried until she was fed.
  4. carried
  5. making Dad is making pancakes for breakfast.
  6. riding She is riding her bike today.
  7. hoped We hoped it would not rain.

Double the last letter before ing, and f becomes ves

  1. running The dog was running around the yard.
  2. hopping Kangaroos were hopping across the field.
  3. sitting The cat was sitting on the mat.
  4. clapping
  5. leaves Autumn leaves fell onto the path.
  6. shelves Dad built new shelves for the shed.
  7. wolves Wolves hunt together in a pack.

Endings ful, ly, est, er and y

  1. helpful My neighbour is very helpful.
  2. quickly She ran quickly to catch the bus.
  3. tallest He is the tallest boy in class.
  4. playful The playful puppy chased its tail.
  5. careful
  6. slowly
  7. teacher Our teacher read us a story.
  8. sunny It was a sunny day at the beach.
  9. bigger

Prefixes un, re and dis

  1. unhappy The child looked unhappy about the news.
  2. redo Please redo this page neatly.
  3. dislike Some people dislike loud noises.
  4. unfair That rule seemed unfair to everyone.
  5. retell Can you retell the story for me?
  6. unlock Dad will unlock the front door.

Tricky words to remember

  1. because I stayed inside because it was raining.
  2. friend My friend came over after school.
  3. people Many people watched the parade today.
  4. would They would love to visit the zoo.
  5. should
  6. again
  7. every
  8. once We visited the museum once last year.

Words that sound the same

  1. hear Can you hear the birds singing?
  2. here Please come and sit here.
  3. blew The wind blew the leaves away.
  4. knight The knight rode a white horse.
  5. son My aunt has a son called Leo.
  6. write Please write your name on the card.
  7. sea We swam in the sea today.

Questions parents ask

What spelling should a Year 2 child be able to do?

Stage 1 of the NSW English syllabus, which Year 2 follows, works on vowels with r such as ar and ir, double letters, changing y to i before an ending, doubling a letter before ing, the endings ful, ly, er and est, the prefixes un, re and dis, and the homophones hear and here. The syllabus sets patterns, not a list of words, so schools choose their own words. The words on this page come from Learnest's own Stage 1 questions and show those patterns.

How does the practice work?

Pick a pattern, or ten mixed words, and press Start. The device reads a word aloud, then the sentence it comes from, and your child types the word and presses Check. A right answer gets a tick. A wrong one shows the right spelling with the letters that differ marked, and the pattern it follows. At the end you see the score and the words to practise, and can try those again or print them.

What if the device cannot read the words aloud?

Some browsers have no voice, and a tablet with the sound off says nothing. Then a grown-up reads the words from the list on this page: say the word, the sentence, then the word again, and let your child write it. The list is the answer sheet, and it prints on a few pages, with a sheet of lines for your child at the end.

Spelling by pattern, every English day.

Ten words can show a pattern that slips, not fix it. On English days Learnest sets spelling by pattern, names the slip under a wrong answer and brings the pattern back until it holds.

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Learnest is not affiliated with ACARA, NESA, the NSW Department of Education or the Australian Maths Trust. Every word and sentence on this page is Learnest's own, from the questions it sets. None comes from a school list or a past paper.