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th Words: Word List and Worksheets

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A list of quiet and buzzy th words, two trace-and-write pages, a picture hunt, a fill-in page and short th sentences to read.

Download the th words worksheets

Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.

About these th words worksheets

The letters th make one sound with the tongue peeking out between the teeth. th actually has two sounds: a quiet one with only air, as in thumb, three and bath, and a buzzy one with the voice on, as in this, that and the. Both are spelled th, so children only need to know that th can sound either way.

Quiet th words: thin, thick, thank, think, thumb, three, bath, math, path, tooth. Buzzy th words: this, that, the, then, them, they, these, mother, father, feather. The th word list below sorts them into the two sounds.

Digraphs are a 1st grade skill that many children start late in kindergarten. The pages below go from hearing th, to writing it, to reading it in short sentences.

Standards

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.1.3.AKnow the spelling-sound correspondences for common consonant digraphs.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.1.3.BDecode regularly spelled one-syllable words.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.K.3.ADemonstrate basic knowledge of one-to-one letter-sound correspondences by producing the primary sound or many of the most frequent sounds for each consonant.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.K.2.CWrite a letter or letters for most consonant and short-vowel sounds (phonemes).

How to use them

  1. Have your child put a hand on their throat and say thumb, then this. The throat buzzes on this but not on thumb. That's the whole difference.
  2. On the picture page, say each name out loud. Your child circles every picture with th, at the start, middle or end.
  3. The first tracing page uses picture words (thumb, three, bath); the second uses the buzzy words this, that and then, which children read in almost every book.
  4. Use the sentence page last: read each sentence and circle the matching picture.

Teaching tips

  • Many young children say f or v for th (fum for thumb, vis for this). That is normal speech development. Show the tongue peeking out, and don't mark a spelling wrong for it.
  • If your child writes t for th, say the word in a mirror together and look for the tongue.
  • The, this and that are high-frequency words. Reading them as th words makes them easier to spell.
  • Count with th: three, thirteen, thirty, third.

Questions teachers and parents ask

What are some th words for kids?

Quiet th words include thin, thick, thumb, three, bath, math and tooth. Buzzy th words include this, that, the, then, them and they.

Why does th have two sounds?

English uses th for two close sounds: quiet (air only) in thumb and buzzy (voice on) in this. The tongue is in the same place for both.

My child says fumb for thumb. Is that a problem?

No. Many children swap f or v for th until age 6 or 7. Keep modeling the sound with your tongue showing; reading and spelling th can still be learned now.