Phonics word list

Or that says er

In short

Or says /er/ after w, as in word, work and world, and in unstressed endings, as in doctor, color and actor. Our checked list has 389 words where or says /er/.

At a glance

Words in our list: 389
By syllables: one syllable: 12 · two syllables: 143 · three or more syllables: 234
Taught in: Lesson 82 in the sequence

One spelling, more than one sound

Most lists mix these up. We count each sound separately, so a student practicing one sound only sees words that make it.

How many words in our list spell each sound with or
Sound	Example	Words	List
/or/	or	522	See the list
/er/	word	389	This page

Or words that say /er/, 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

12 words, most common first.

One syllable
Word	Spelling units	Syllables	Readable after
word	w·or·d	1	Lesson 82
work	w·or·k	1	Lesson 82
words	w·or·d·s	1	Lesson 82
works	w·or·k·s	1	Lesson 82
world	w·or·l·d	1	Lesson 82
worse	w·or·s·e	1	Lesson 82
worst	w·or·s·t	1	Lesson 82
worth	w·or·th	1	Lesson 82
worked	w·or·k·ed	1	Lesson 82
worm	w·or·m	1	Lesson 82
worms	w·or·m·s	1	Lesson 82
worlds	w·or·l·d·s	1	Lesson 82

Two syllables

The 60 most common of 143 words. 83 more are in our list.

Two syllables
Word	Spelling units	Syllables	Readable after
error	e·rr·or	2	Lesson 111
major	m·a·j·or	2	Lesson 111
minor	m·i·n·or	2	Lesson 111
prior	p·r·i·or	2	Lesson 111
author	au·th·or	2	Lesson 111
cursor	c·ur·s·or	2	Lesson 111
effort	e·ff·or·t	2	Lesson 111
errors	e·rr·or·s	2	Lesson 111
factor	f·a·c·t·or	2	Lesson 111
senior	s·e·n·i·or	2	Not in the sequence
vector	v·e·c·t·or	2	Lesson 111
worded	w·or·d·ed	2	Lesson 82
worker	w·or·k·er	2	Lesson 82
worthy	w·or·th·y	2	Lesson 82
authors	au·th·or·s	2	Lesson 111
efforts	e·ff·or·t·s	2	Lesson 111
factors	f·a·c·t·or·s	2	Lesson 111
network	n·e·t·w·or·k	2	Lesson 82
wording	w·or·d·i·ng	2	Lesson 82
workers	w·or·k·er·s	2	Lesson 82
working	w·or·k·i·ng	2	Lesson 82
networks	n·e·t·w·or·k·s	2	Lesson 82
worthwhile	w·or·th·wh·i_e·l	2	Lesson 82
actor	a·c·t·or	2	Lesson 111
mayor	m·ay·or	2	Lesson 111
motor	m·o·t·or	2	Lesson 111
razor	r·a·z·or	2	Lesson 111
tutor	t·u·t·or	2	Lesson 111
actors	a·c·t·or·s	2	Lesson 111
censor	c·e·n·s·or	2	Lesson 117
doctor	d·o·c·t·or	2	Lesson 111
forbid	f·or·b·i·d	2	Lesson 111
horror	h·o·rr·or	2	Lesson 111
junior	j·u·n·i·or	2	Not in the sequence
mirror	m·i·rr·or	2	Lesson 111
motors	m·o·t·or·s	2	Lesson 111
sector	s·e·c·t·or	2	Lesson 111
tailor	t·ai·l·or	2	Lesson 111
terror	t·e·rr·or	2	Lesson 111
vendor	v·e·n·d·or	2	Lesson 111
censors	c·e·n·s·or·s	2	Lesson 117
comfort	c·o·m·f·or·t	2	Lesson 111
doctors	d·o·c·t·or·s	2	Lesson 111
forbade	f·or·b·a_e·d	2	Lesson 111
forbids	f·or·b·i·d·s	2	Lesson 111
forgave	f·or·g·a_e·v	2	Lesson 111
keyword	k·ey·w·or·d	2	Lesson 85
mirrors	m·i·rr·or·s	2	Lesson 111
sponsor	s·p·o·n·s·or	2	Lesson 111
tailors	t·ai·l·or·s	2	Lesson 111
vectors	v·e·c·t·or·s	2	Lesson 111
worship	w·or·sh·i·p	2	Lesson 82
censored	c·e·n·s·or·ed	2	Lesson 117
firework	f·i_e·r·w·or·k	2	Lesson 82
keywords	k·ey·w·or·d·s	2	Lesson 85
password	p·a·ss·w·or·d	2	Lesson 82
sponsors	s·p·o·n·s·or·s	2	Lesson 111
tailored	t·ai·l·or·ed	2	Lesson 111
workings	w·or·k·i·ng·s	2	Lesson 82
workload	w·or·k·l·oa·d	2	Lesson 86

Three or more syllables

The 60 most common of 234 words. 174 more are in our list.

Three or more syllables
Word	Spelling units	Syllables	Readable after
editor	e·d·i·t·or	3	Lesson 111
memory	m·e·m·or·y	3	Lesson 111
theory	th·e·or·y	3	Lesson 111
editors	e·d·i·t·or·s	3	Lesson 111
forever	f·or·e·v·er	3	Lesson 111
history	h·i·s·t·or·y	3	Lesson 111
monitor	m·o·n·i·t·or	3	Lesson 111
director	d·ir·e·c·t·or	3	Lesson 111
governor	g·o·v·er·n·or	3	Lesson 111
processor	p·r·o·c·e·ss·or	3	Lesson 117
processors	p·r·o·c·e·ss·or·s	3	Lesson 117
thoroughly	th·or·ough·l·y	3	Lesson 116
inferior	i·n·f·e·r·i·or	4	Not in the sequence
operator	o·p·er·a·t·or	4	Lesson 111
original	or·i·g·i·n·a·l	4	Lesson 117
superior	s·u·p·e·r·i·or	4	Not in the sequence
directory	d·ir·e·c·t·or·y	4	Lesson 111
operators	o·p·er·a·t·or·s	4	Lesson 111
temporary	t·e·m·p·or·a·r·y	4	Not in the sequence
compulsory	c·o·m·p·u·l·s·or·y	4	Lesson 111
supervisor	s·u·p·er·v·i·s·or	4	Lesson 111
originally	or·i·g·i·n·a·ll·y	5	Lesson 117
opportunity	o·pp·or·t·u·n·i·t·y	5	Lesson 111
temporarily	t·e·m·p·or·a·r·i·l·y	5	Not in the sequence
theoretical	th·e·or·e·t·i·c·a·l	5	Lesson 111
opportunities	o·pp·or·t·u·n·i·t·ie·s	5	Lesson 111
anorak	a·n·or·a·k	3	Lesson 111
creator	c·r·e·a·t·or	3	Lesson 111
factory	f·a·c·t·or·y	3	Lesson 111
horizon	h·or·i·z·o·n	3	Lesson 111
reactor	r·e·a·c·t·or	3	Lesson 111
visitor	v·i·s·i·t·or	3	Lesson 111
ancestor	a·n·c·e·s·t·or	3	Lesson 117
attorney	a·tt·or·n·ey	3	Lesson 111
corridor	c·o·rr·i·d·or	3	Lesson 111
detector	d·e·t·e·c·t·or	3	Lesson 111
dictator	d·i·c·t·a·t·or	3	Lesson 111
humorous	h·u·m·or·ou·s	3	Not in the sequence
ignorant	i·g·n·or·a·n·t	3	Lesson 111
inventor	i·n·v·e·n·t·or	3	Lesson 111
memories	m·e·m·or·ie·s	3	Lesson 111
monitors	m·o·n·i·t·or·s	3	Lesson 111
rigorous	r·i·g·or·ou·s	3	Not in the sequence
theories	th·e·or·ie·s	3	Lesson 111
visitors	v·i·s·i·t·or·s	3	Lesson 111
workable	w·or·k·a·b·le	3	Lesson 82
ancestors	a·n·c·e·s·t·or·s	3	Lesson 117
attorneys	a·tt·or·n·ey·s	3	Lesson 111
censoring	c·e·n·s·or·i·ng	3	Lesson 117
conductor	c·o·n·d·u·c·t·or	3	Lesson 111
connector	c·o·nn·e·c·t·or	3	Lesson 111
corporate	c·or·p·or·a·t·e	3	Lesson 111
directors	d·ir·e·c·t·or·s	3	Lesson 111
factories	f·a·c·t·or·ie·s	3	Lesson 111
ignorance	i·g·n·or·a·n·c·e	3	Lesson 111
monitored	m·o·n·i·t·or·ed	3	Lesson 111
successor	s·u·cc·e·ss·or	3	Not in the sequence
tailoring	t·ai·l·or·i·ng	3	Lesson 111
censorship	c·e·n·s·or·sh·i·p	3	Lesson 117
chancellor	ch·a·n·c·e·ll·or	3	Lesson 117

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 after	Words
Lesson 82	53
Lesson 85	3
Lesson 89	5
Lesson 96	4
Lesson 111	239
Lesson 116	3
Lesson 117	27
Lesson 119	7
Not in the sequence	38

How do you teach or words that say /er/?

Teach this in the /er/ spelling lesson. "After w, or says /er/: word, work, worm." Then show the ending group: doctor, actor, visitor. The -or ending often means a person who does something (actor, inventor), which helps spelling.

What mistake do students make with or words that say /er/?

Students read word as /wŏrd/. Teach the w clue: "W changes the sound of or." In spelling, they write wurd. A short card of wor- words fixes most of it.

Where do or words that say /er/ come in the sequence?

Or /er/ after w is usually taught with er, ir and ur. The -or ending comes again with suffixes. In the sequence we use, the pattern is taught in Lesson 82.

Exceptions worth knowing

Worn and sworn keep /or/ after w. Some speakers say forward and toward with /er/ too.

Decodable sentences

Every word in these sentences can be read at Lesson 82 or earlier, or is a heart word taught by then.

The worm is at work.
I want a word for it.
The world is big.

Questions people ask

What are 5 or words that say /er/?

Word, work, words, works, world. Those are the five most common of the 389 words where or says /er/ in our checked list.

Why does or sound like er in word?

The w before it changes how the vowel is said. The same happens to ar (war says /wor/).

When is the ending spelled or and when er?

Both mean a person who does something. -er is far more common (teacher). -or is common in Latin words (actor, doctor, visitor).

When can a student read or words that say /er/?

Or words that say /er/ are taught at Lesson 82 in the lesson sequence we use. 53 of the 389 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.