Spelling Bee Words
A hand-curated list of 10,986 common, rewarding words for spelling-bee practice — each with pronunciation and meaning. These are the most useful words drawn from our full 167,000+ word dictionary; filter by letters, sort by length, and practice in the free game.
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10,986 words · hand-picked from 167,000+ for useful practice
- that/ˈðæt/
- what/ˈhwət/
- this/ˈðɪs/
- have/ˈhæv/a person who possesses great material wealth
- your/ˈjɔɹ/
- know/ˈnoʊ/the fact of being aware of information that is known to few people
- with/ˈwɪð/
- just/ˈdʒəst/free from favoritism or self-interest or bias or deception
- there/ˈðɛɹ/a location other than here
- here/ˈhiɹ/the present location
- they/ˈðeɪ/
- like/ˈɫaɪk/a kind of person
- right/ˈɹaɪt/a turn toward the side of the body that is on the south when the person is facing east
- about/əˈbaʊt/(of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct
- come/ˈkəm/the thick white fluid containing spermatozoa that is ejaculated by the male genital tract
- well/ˈwɛɫ/a deep hole or shaft dug or drilled to obtain water or oil or gas or brine
- yeah/ˈjæ/not only so, but
- will/ˈwɪɫ/the capability of conscious choice and decision and intention
- want/ˈwɑnt/a specific feeling of desire
- think/ˈθɪŋk/an instance of deliberate thinking
- good/ˈɡʊd/articles of commerce
- from/ˈfɹəm/
- when/ˈhwɛn/
- going/ˈɡoʊɪn/the act of departing
- time/ˈtaɪm/the continuum of experience in which events pass from the future through the present to the past
- okay/ˌoʊˈkeɪ/an endorsement
- back/ˈbæk/(American football) the position of a player on a football team who is stationed behind the line of scrimmage
- look/ˈɫʊk/the act of directing the eyes toward something and perceiving it visually
- would/ˈwʊd/
- them/ˈðɛm/
- where/ˈhwɛɹ/
- were/ˈwɝ/
- take/ˈteɪk/the act of photographing a scene or part of a scene without interruption
- then/ˈðɛn/that time
- been/ˈbɪn/
- tell/ˈtɛɫ/a Swiss patriot who lived in the early 14th century and who was renowned for his skill as an archer
- some/ˈsəm/remarkable
- could/ˈkʊd/
- need/ˈnid/the psychological feature that arouses an organism to action toward a desired goal
- more/ˈmɔɹ/English statesman who opposed Henry VIII's divorce from Catherine of Aragon and was imprisoned and beheaded
- down/ˈdaʊn/(American football) a complete play to advance the football
- make/ˈmeɪk/the act of mixing cards haphazardly
- very/ˈvɛɹi/used as intensifiers
- only/ˈoʊnɫi/exclusive of anyone or anything else
- people/ˈpipəɫ/(plural) any group of human beings (men or women or children) collectively
- over/ˈoʊvɝ/(cricket) the division of play during which six balls are bowled at the batsman by one player from the other team from the same end of the pitch
- because/bɪˈkɑz/
- little/ˈɫɪtəɫ/a small amount or duration
- please/ˈpɫiz/give pleasure to or be pleasing to
- love/ˈɫəv/sexual activities (often including sexual intercourse) between two people
- should/ˈʃʊd/
- mean/ˈmin/an average of n numbers computed by adding some function of the numbers and dividing by some function of n
- said/ˈsɛd/
- sorry/ˈsɑɹi/causing dejection
- give/ˈɡɪv/the elasticity of something that can be stretched and returns to its original length
- thank/ˈθæŋk/express gratitude or show appreciation to
- even/ˈivɪn/the latter part of the day (the period of decreasing daylight from late afternoon until nightfall)
- much/ˈmətʃ/a great amount or extent
- doing/ˈduɪŋ/
- sure/ˈʃʊɹ/exercising or taking care great enough to bring assurance
- thing/ˈθɪŋ/a separate and self-contained entity
- these/ˈðiz/
- help/ˈhɛɫp/the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose
- first/ˈfɝst/the fielding position of the player on a baseball team who is stationed at first of the bases in the infield (counting counterclockwise from home plate)
- into/ˈɪntu/
- anything/ˈɛniˌθɪŋ/
- still/ˈstɪɫ/a plant and works where alcoholic drinks are made by distillation
- find/ˈfaɪnd/the act of discovering something
- life/ˈɫaɪf/living things collectively
- nothing/ˈnəθɪŋ/a quantity of no importance
- work/ˈwɝk/activity directed toward making or doing something
- their/ˈðɛɹ/
- again/əˈɡeɪn/anew
- maybe/ˈmeɪbi/by chance
- must/ˈməst/the quality of smelling or tasting old or stale or mouldy
- before/ˌbiˈfɔɹ/earlier in time
- other/ˈəðɝ/very unusual
- wait/ˈweɪt/the act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)
- stop/ˈstɑp/a brief stay in the course of a journey
- call/ˈkɔɫ/the option to buy a given stock (or stock index or commodity future) at a given price before a given date
- after/ˈæftɝ/happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
- talk/ˈtɔk/the act of giving a talk to an audience
- away/əˈweɪ/(of a baseball pitch) on the far side of home plate from the batter
- than/ˈðæn/
- thought/ˈθɔt/the process of using your mind to consider something carefully
- home/ˈhoʊm/housing that someone is living in
- night/ˈnaɪt/Roman goddess of night
- great/ˈɡɹeɪt/a person who has achieved distinction and honor in some field
- those/ˈðoʊz/
- last/ˈɫæs/a person's dying act
- better/ˈbɛtɝ/something superior in quality or condition or effect
- told/ˈtoʊɫd/
- keep/ˈkip/a cell in a jail or prison
- long/ˈɫɔŋ/desire strongly or persistently
- leave/ˈɫiv/the act of departing politely
- does/ˈdəz/
- money/ˈməni/wealth reckoned in terms of money
- around/ɝˈaʊn/(of quantities) imprecise but fairly close to correct
- name/ˈneɪm/by the sanction or authority of
- place/ˈpɫeɪs/a job in an organization
How we chose these words
This is a deliberately curated list, not a dump of the dictionary. We started from a 167,000-word English dictionary and kept the 10,986 words that are common enough to be genuinely useful for practice — filtering out rare, archaic, and obscure entries that only make a spelling bee frustrating. We also set aside plain inflected forms (simple -ed, -ing and -s endings) so the list rewards real vocabulary. Every word here is shown with its pronunciation and meaning so you learn it properly, not just memorize letters.
Want the complete picture instead? Browse every word by length — 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8-letter words — where nothing is filtered out.
How to practice spelling bee words
Read each word, cover it, and spell it aloud, then check the pronunciation and meaning. Words like that, what, this, have, your, know are great starting points. For an active workout, play HiveWords — build as many words as you can from seven letters.
Spelling bee words for kids and adults
This list favors common, useful vocabulary rather than obscure tournament words, so it suits learners of all ages and English-language students. Sort by length to ramp up difficulty.
Frequently asked questions
Why are only common words shown, not every word?
This is a curated practice list. We deliberately show the 10,986 most useful, common words rather than all 167,000+ in the dictionary, because practising obscure or archaic words is frustrating and unhelpful. To browse every word with no filtering, use the word-by-length lists.
How many words does HiveWords actually have?
Our dictionary contains over 167,000 English words. This page curates the common, practice-worthy subset; the full set is browsable by length and by starting or ending letter.
What are good words for a spelling bee?
Good practice words are common enough to be useful but varied in spelling patterns. This list is sorted by frequency so you can start with everyday words and work toward harder ones.
How can I practice spelling bee words for free?
Browse this list for pronunciations and meanings, then play the free HiveWords game to practice building and spelling words with no login or paywall.