Phonics word list

SQU blend words

In short

Squ is a three-letter blend of s and qu, so it says /skw/, as in square, squid and squeeze. Our checked list has 43 words that start with the squ blend.

At a glance

Words in our list: 43
By syllables: one syllable: 29 · two syllables: 14 · three or more syllables: 0
Taught in: Lesson 35c in the sequence

Squ 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

29 words, most common first.

One syllable
Word	Spelling units	Syllables	Readable after
square	s·qu·are	1	Lesson 112
squad	s·qu·a·d	1	Lesson 94
squash	s·qu·a·sh	1	Lesson 94
squared	s·qu·are·d	1	Lesson 112
squares	s·qu·are·s	1	Lesson 112
squeeze	s·qu·ee·z·e	1	Lesson 85
squashed	s·qu·a·sh·ed	1	Lesson 94
squeezed	s·qu·ee·z·ed	1	Lesson 85
squat	s·qu·a·t	1	Lesson 94
squid	s·qu·i·d	1	Lesson 32
squads	s·qu·a·d·s	1	Lesson 94
squall	s·qu·a·ll	1	Lesson 43
squats	s·qu·a·t·s	1	Lesson 94
squawk	s·qu·aw·k	1	Lesson 93
squeak	s·qu·ea·k	1	Lesson 85
squeal	s·qu·ea·l	1	Lesson 85
squint	s·qu·i·n·t	1	Lesson 32
squire	s·qu·i_e·r	1	Lesson 55
squirm	s·qu·ir·m	1	Lesson 81
squirt	s·qu·ir·t	1	Lesson 81
squalls	s·qu·a·ll·s	1	Lesson 43
squawks	s·qu·aw·k·s	1	Lesson 93
squeaks	s·qu·ea·k·s	1	Lesson 85
squeals	s·qu·ea·l·s	1	Lesson 85
squelch	s·qu·e·l·ch	1	Lesson 48
squirms	s·qu·ir·m·s	1	Lesson 81
squirts	s·qu·ir·t·s	1	Lesson 81
squeaked	s·qu·ea·k·ed	1	Lesson 85
squelched	s·qu·e·l·ch·ed	1	Lesson 64

Two syllables

14 words, most common first.

Two syllables
Word	Spelling units	Syllables	Readable after
squaring	s·qu·a·r·i·ng	2	Lesson 112
squeezes	s·qu·ee·z·e·s	2	Lesson 85
squashing	s·qu·a·sh·i·ng	2	Lesson 94
squeezing	s·qu·ee·z·i·ng	2	Lesson 109
squeaky	s·qu·ea·k·y	2	Lesson 85
squarely	s·qu·are·l·y	2	Lesson 112
squirted	s·qu·ir·t·ed	2	Lesson 81
squawking	s·qu·aw·k·i·ng	2	Lesson 93
squeaking	s·qu·ea·k·i·ng	2	Lesson 85
squealing	s·qu·ea·l·i·ng	2	Lesson 85
squinting	s·qu·i·n·t·i·ng	2	Lesson 65
squirming	s·qu·ir·m·i·ng	2	Lesson 81
squirting	s·qu·ir·t·i·ng	2	Lesson 81
squelching	s·qu·e·l·ch·i·ng	2	Lesson 65

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 32	2
Lesson 43	2
Lesson 65	2
Lesson 81	7
Lesson 85	11
Lesson 93	3
Lesson 94	7
Lesson 112	5

How do you teach squ words?

Build on qu: "You know qu says /kw/. Add /s/ in front: /skw/." Practice squid, squint, squad. Most squ words have vowel patterns that come later (square, squeeze, squirrel), so this page is useful for older students too.

What mistake do students make with squ words?

Students write skw or sq without u. Remind them that q always brings u.

Where do squ words come in the sequence?

Squ is taught with the other three-letter blends, after qu. In the sequence we use, the pattern is taught in Lesson 35c.

Exceptions worth knowing

In squad and squash, the vowel after squ sounds like short o, a common change after w sounds. Squirrel has an r-controlled vowel.

Decodable sentences

Every word in these sentences can be read at Lesson 35c or earlier, or is a heart word taught by then.

The squid is in the pond.
Squint at the sun.
The squid can swim.

Questions people ask

What are 5 squ words?

Square, squad, squash, squared, squares. Those are the five most common of the 43 words that start with the squ blend in our checked list.

What sound does squ make?

Three sounds: /s/, /k/ and /w/, as in squid.

Why does squash have an o sound?

After a /w/ sound, a often sounds like short o: squash, squat, swan, wash.

When can a student read squ words?

Squ words are taught at Lesson 35c in the lesson sequence we use. 2 of the 43 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.