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Phonics word list

Eigh words

In short

Eigh spells long a, /ā/, as in eight, weigh and neighbor. The g and h are silent. Our checked list has 26 words where eigh says /ā/.

At a glance

Words in our list
26
By syllables
one syllable: 11 · two syllables: 14 · three or more syllables: 1
Taught in
Lesson 114 in the sequence

Eigh words, most common first

Spelling units show how each word breaks into the letters that spell one sound; a_e is a vowel and silent e working together. Readable after is the first lesson where a student can sound out the whole word.

One syllable

11 words, most common first.

One syllable
WordSpelling unitsSyllablesReadable after
eighteigh·t1Lesson 114
weightw·eigh·t1Lesson 114
weighw·eigh1Lesson 114
eightheigh·th1Lesson 114
neighn·eigh1Lesson 114
eightseigh·t·s1Lesson 114
sleighs·l·eigh1Lesson 114
weighsw·eigh·s1Lesson 114
freightf·r·eigh·t1Lesson 114
weighedw·eigh·ed1Lesson 114
weightsw·eigh·t·s1Lesson 114

Two syllables

14 words, most common first.

Two syllables
WordSpelling unitsSyllablesReadable after
eighteeneigh·t·ee·n2Lesson 114
outweighou·t·w·eigh2Lesson 114
outweighsou·t·w·eigh·s2Lesson 114
eightyeigh·t·y2Lesson 114
weightyw·eigh·t·y2Lesson 114
eightieseigh·t·ie·s2Lesson 114
weighingw·eigh·i·ng2Lesson 114
weightedw·eigh·t·ed2Lesson 114
eighteenseigh·t·ee·n·s2Lesson 114
freighterf·r·eigh·t·er2Lesson 114
weightingw·eigh·t·i·ng2Lesson 114
freightersf·r·eigh·t·er·s2Lesson 114
outweighedou·t·w·eigh·ed2Lesson 114
lightweightl·igh·t·w·eigh·t2Lesson 114

Three or more syllables

1 word, most common first.

Three or more syllables
WordSpelling unitsSyllablesReadable after
outweighingou·t·w·eigh·i·ng3Lesson 114

When do these words become readable?

The lessons where the most words on this page become decodable. Words marked not in the sequence have a spelling the sequence never teaches as a pattern.

Lessons where the most words on this page become readable
Readable afterWords
Lesson 11426

How do you teach eigh words?

Teach eigh as one unit, like igh. "Eigh says /ā/." Read eight, weigh, sleigh, neighbor, freight. The number family (eight, eighteen, eighty) gives students a hook. Contrast with igh so they don't read eight as /īt/.

What mistake do students make with eigh words?

Students read eight with long i. Show eigh and igh side by side and point to the e at the start. In spelling, students write ate for eight; homophones help.

Where do eigh words come in the sequence?

Eigh is taught late, with ei, ey and ea for /ā/. In the sequence we use, the pattern is taught in Lesson 114.

Exceptions worth knowing

Height and sleight say /ī/. Weight and wait, eight and ate are homophones worth sorting.

Decodable sentences

Every word in these sentences can be read at Lesson 114 or earlier, or is a heart word taught by then.

  • I am eight.
  • Weigh the box.
  • The sleigh is in the snow.

Questions people ask

What are 5 eigh words?
Eight, weight, weigh, eighth, eighteen. Those are the five most common of the 26 words where eigh says /ā/ in our checked list.
How do you pronounce eigh?
As long a, /ā/, as in eight and weigh. In height it says /ī/.
What are common eigh words?
Eight, weigh, weight, neighbor, sleigh, freight and eighteen.
When can a student read eigh words?
Eigh words are taught at Lesson 114 in the lesson sequence we use. 26 of the 26 words on this page can be sounded out by then; the rest wait for a pattern taught later, and the tables show the lesson for each word.

How this list was built

Every word comes from our lexicon of common English words, each split into spelling units and checked against a pronouncing dictionary, so a word is listed under the sound its spelling really makes. Words a student sees in our assessments are left out. The readable after lesson comes from our decodability engine, which checks each spelling unit and syllable pattern against the lesson sequence. You can run your own text through the same engine with the free decodable text checker.