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Spelling bee words for 3rd graders
226 spelling bee words for 3rd graders: plurals, prefixes and suffixes, homophones and the le ending. Easiest first.
Plurals with es
Add es to make more than one when a word ends in s, x, z, ch or sh.
- boxes
- foxes
- dishes
- wishes
- buses
- glasses
- benches
- lunches
- peaches
- brushes
- inches
- classes
Change y to i, add es
When a word ends in a consonant and y, change the y to i and add es.
- babies
- cities
- puppies
- ponies
- stories
- berries
- families
- parties
- flies
- bodies
- pennies
- ladies
Prefix un
The prefix un means not, or to undo.
- unhappy
- unlock
- undo
- unfair
- unkind
- unpack
- untie
- unsafe
- unwrap
- unable
- unfold
- unseen
Prefix re
The prefix re means again.
- redo
- reread
- rewrite
- refill
- retell
- replay
- reuse
- rebuild
- remake
- repaint
- reheat
- reopen
Prefix dis
The prefix dis means not, or the opposite of.
- dislike
- disagree
- disappear
- dishonest
- disobey
- disorder
- displace
- discolor
- disconnect
- disable
- distrust
- disloyal
Suffix ful
The suffix ful means full of, and it has only one l.
- helpful
- careful
- hopeful
- thankful
- playful
- joyful
- colorful
- useful
- peaceful
- powerful
- restful
Suffix less
The suffix less means without.
- careless
- helpless
- fearless
- endless
- sleepless
- spotless
- harmless
- useless
- pointless
- restless
- timeless
- painless
Suffix ly
Add ly to tell how something is done.
- slowly
- quickly
- sadly
- kindly
- softly
- loudly
- nicely
- safely
- quietly
- bravely
- gladly
- neatly
Suffixes er and est
Add er to compare two things and est to compare three or more.
- faster
- fastest
- taller
- tallest
- smaller
- smallest
- colder
- coldest
- longer
- longest
- kinder
- kindest
Suffixes ness and ment
The suffixes ness and ment turn a word into a thing you can name.
- kindness
- darkness
- sadness
- softness
- goodness
- brightness
- payment
- movement
- treatment
- agreement
- shipment
- enjoyment
Homophones, set one
Homophones sound the same but have different spellings and meanings.
- two“A bird has two wings.”
- there“Put the book over there, on the shelf.”
- their“The kids put on their coats.”
- hear“Can you hear the rain on the roof?”
- here“Come over here and see the puppy.”
- sea“The boat sailed out to sea.”
- son“The farmer and her son fed the goats.”
- ate“The rabbit ate a carrot.”
- eight“A spider has eight legs.”
Homophones, set two
Homophones sound the same but have different spellings and meanings.
- write“Please write your answer on the line.”
- knew“She knew the answer right away.”
- new“I have a new pair of shoes.”
- know“Do you know the way home?”
- no“No, thank you, I am full.”
- blue“The sky is blue today.”
- blew“The wind blew my hat away.”
- flower“A bee landed on the flower.”
- flour“We need flour to bake the bread.”
- male“The male lion has a big mane.”
Dge and tch
After a short vowel, use dge for the j sound and tch for the ch sound.
- badge
- bridge
- edge
- fudge
- judge
- ledge
- catch
- match
- watch
- kitchen
- pitch
- sketch
- such
Words that end in le
A consonant plus le makes the last syllable, as in ta-ble.
- table
- apple
- little
- candle
- puzzle
- bubble
- simple
- middle
- turtle
- gentlesoft and kind, not rough“Be gentle with the baby bunny.”
- jungle
Er, or and ar at the end
The endings er, or and ar can sound the same, so learn which one each word uses.
- teacher
- farmer
- painter
- writer
- actor
- sailor
- visitor
- inventor
- dollar
- collar
- cellar
- sugar
Aw and au
The letters aw and au both say aw, as in saw and sauce.
- saw
- draw
- straw
- lawn
- yawn
- crawl
- hawk
- claw
- sauce
- haul
- fault
- launch
- because
Book words
Words a reader meets in books, each with what it means and a sentence.
- giganticas big as a giant“A gigantic pumpkin won the prize.”
- nibbleeat with tiny bites“The mouse nibbles the cheese.”
- sturdystrong and hard to break“We built a sturdy tree house.”
- fragileeasy to break“Carry the fragile eggs carefully.”
- timidshy and easily scared“The timid deer hid behind a tree.”
- boldbrave and not afraid to try“The bold kitten climbed the tall fence.”
- gleamshine brightly“The trophy gleams on the shelf.”
- drowsysleepy and slow“The warm sun made us drowsy.”
- dampa little bit wet“The towel is still damp.”
- soarfly high in the sky“Eagles soar over the canyon.”
- plungejump or dive suddenly into something“We plunge into the cool lake.”
- dashrun very fast for a short way“I dash to the door when the bell rings.”
- glimmershine with a faint, flickering light“A candle glimmers in the window.”
- rumblemake a deep, rolling sound“Thunder rumbles over the hills.”
- mightyvery strong and powerful“The mighty river carved the canyon.”
- feebleweak and not strong“My feeble flashlight barely shines.”
- nimblequick and light in moving“The nimble goat hopped up the rocks.”
- clumsymoving in an awkward, careless way“The clumsy puppy knocked over the bowl.”
- tidyneat and in order“Her tidy room had every toy in its place.”
- sproutbegin to grow“Bean seeds sprout in a few days.”
- wiltdroop because there is no water“Flowers wilt in the hot sun.”
- hoverstay in one place in the air“The hummingbird hovers by the flower.”
- glidemove smoothly and easily“Skaters glide across the ice.”
- swayswing slowly from side to side“Tall grass sways in the breeze.”
- flutterflap quickly and lightly“Butterflies flutter around the garden.”
- crumblebreak into tiny pieces“The old cookie crumbles in my hand.”
- loyalalways true to your friends“My loyal dog waits for me after school.”
- patientable to wait calmly“Be patient while the cookies bake.”
- eagerreally wanting to do something“The eager students raised their hands.”
- rapidvery quick“The rapid river rushed past the rocks.”
- ancientvery, very old“We saw ancient bones at the museum.”
- vanishdisappear all of a sudden“The rabbit vanished from the magic hat.”
- delightedvery pleased and happy“We were delighted to see the rainbow.”
- wearyvery tired“The weary hikers sat down to rest.”
- politehaving good manners“It is polite to say please and thank you.”
- nervousworried and a little bit scared“I felt nervous before my first swim lesson.”
- slyclever in a sneaky way“The sly fox tricked the crow.”
- frostyvery cold and covered with frost“The frosty grass crunched under our boots.”
- gusta sudden, strong puff of wind“A gust of wind blew my hat away.”