Vowel Sounds Chart (Free PDF)

Every English vowel sound on three pages, each mapped to the spellings that make it — the reference that explains why "feet", "beach" and "key" all say the same thing.

What’s inside

• Page 1 — the short vowels: Short A (bat, cap, fan, ham…), Short E (e and ea: bed, head, bread), Short I (i and y: bit, gym, myth), Short O, Short U.
• Page 2 — the long vowels and their spellings, e.g. Long E: ee, ea, e-e, ie, ei, ey (seed, beach, these, chief, key, he).
• Page 3 — r-controlled and gliding sounds: ER/IR/UR (fern, shirt, turn, learn, word), plus ow, oi and more.

Every word in this PDF (92)

Handy for checking the list fits your child before printing, or for making your own games.

bat, cap, fan, ham, lap, map, pan, sat, bet, get, hen, jet, pen, red, head, bread, bit, dip, fig, hip, kit, gym, myth, cot, dog, fox, got, want, wash, bug, fun, hug, come, love, blood, lake, rain, veil, they, steak, seed, beach, these, chief, key, kite, night, pie, find, fly, home, boat, snow, toe, mule, blue, flew, human, bar, farm, hard, jar, park, star, fort, more, board, floor, fern, shirt, turn, learn, ear, near, beer, here, fierce, air, share, hair, bear, there, right, sky, shout, cow, down, brown, oil, boil, joy, boy

How to use it

1. Use it as a reference, not a worksheet — keep it by the reading spot.
2. When your child meets a new spelling of a known sound, find its row together.
3. Pick one row a week and hunt for its spellings in a real book.
4. Point out which spellings your child has learned (checked) and which come later.

Who it’s for

Parents, teachers and readers aged 6+. Most of it goes beyond the 44 core letter sounds — it maps where reading goes next.

Where it fits: Stage 5 — Vowel Teams & Tricky Words

Goes well with

• 20 Vowel Sounds Chart (Free PDF) with Examples
• Long Vowels vs Short Vowels: List, Rules & Examples
• Y as a Vowel: When Y Says /i/, /ī/, or /ē/
• Vowel sounds Write & Read — all 18 sounds