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These free 5th grade spelling words come in 5 weekly lists of 10 words, covering five patterns for grade 5: word endings, Greek and Latin roots, commonly confused words, adjective suffixes and science words. Each list has its own practice packet with rainbow writing, ABC order, missing letters, word scrambles, word shapes, sentences, word pyramids and a practice test, with an answer key. Choose a list and print the PDF.
5th grade spelling words to print (PDF)
These four pages show what the generator prints for the 5th grade spelling words. Click a picture for the PDF, or use the generator above to choose another list or type your own words.
Practice packet-tion and -sion.PDFABC orderGreek and Latin roots.PDFWord scrambleCommonly confused words.PDFPractice testScience words.PDF
The 5 lists of 5th grade spelling words
Each list has ten words built around one spelling pattern, so children learn the pattern and not just the words. This 5th grade spelling list shows all 50 of the 5th grade spelling words:
The ending -tion is far more common than -sion in English: seven of these ten words use -tion, counting the special case question. A helpful rule is that -sion makes a “zh” sound, as in vision, while -tion makes a “sh” sound. If you can hear “zh”, as in television and decision, use -sion. Otherwise, use -tion. The rule has a few exceptions, such as mansion and tension, where -sion sounds like “shun”.
Model sentences: The nation watched the television for a decision. Our vacation had one question: what is the next station?
List 2 of the 5th grade spelling words: Greek and Latin roots
Word
Root parts
Meaning of the parts
telephone
tele + phone
far (Greek) + sound (Greek)
microscope
micro + scope
small (Greek) + to look (Greek)
autograph
auto + graph
self (Greek) + write (Greek)
biology
bio + logy
life (Greek) + study of (Greek)
geography
geo + graph
earth (Greek) + write (Greek)
thermometer
thermo + meter
heat (Greek) + measure (Greek)
transport
trans + port
across (Latin) + carry (Latin)
portable
port + able
carry (Latin) + can be done (Latin)
spectator
spect + ator
look, watch (Latin) + one who does (Latin)
dictionary
dict + ionary
say (Latin) + place for (Latin)
Most of the long words that children meet in science and social studies are made from Greek and Latin roots. Once a student knows that graph means “write”, they can read autograph, geography and paragraph. The roots also help with spelling, because they never change: the root port in transport is the same as in portable, import and export. Studying ten words gives children the tools to read hundreds of others.
Model sentences: Under the microscope, a spectator took the autograph. The biology book had a portablethermometer.
List 3 of the 5th grade spelling words: commonly confused words
Word
Meaning
Memory trick
accept
to receive or agree to
Accept starts with a, like agree
except
to leave out
Except starts with ex, like exit and exclude
affect
to change or influence (a verb)
Affect is an action
effect
a result (a noun)
Effect is the end result
weather
rain, sun, wind and snow
Weather has “ea”, like heat
whether
if
Whether has “he”, as in “he or she”, a choice
principal
the head of a school, or main
The principal is your pal
principle
a rule or belief
Principle and rule both end in le
desert
a dry, sandy place
Desert has one s, as in sand
dessert
a sweet food after a meal
Dessert has two s’s, because you want seconds
These word pairs look alike and are different in meaning, so a spelling checker cannot find the mistake, because both words are real. Fifth graders need to learn the meaning of each, and memory tricks help. In sentences, the word affect is almost always a verb and effect a noun, as in “the weather will affect the game, and the effect will be a delay”.
Model sentences: I accept all the cookies except the dessert. Whether the weather will affect the desert is a question for the principal.
List 4 of the 5th grade spelling words: -ous and -ive: suffixes that make adjectives
Suffix
Meaning
Base word → new word
-ous
full of
fame → famous, nerve → nervous, danger → dangerous (drop the e in fame and nerve)
-ous
full of
curious and generous: the base word is not a word you can see, so learn the whole word
massive and positive: the base word is not a word you can see, so learn the whole word
Both suffixes make adjectives, and both are pronounced with a weak vowel, so the spelling must be learned. Children often write -us for -ous because the ending is said “us”. A good rule is that the -ous ending has the letter o, as in oh, over, famous. When a base word ends in silent e, the e is usually dropped before the suffix, as in fame to famous and create to creative.
Model sentences: The famous inventor was creative and generous. A nervous child found the massive, expensive toy.
List 5 of the 5th grade spelling words: science words
Word
What it means
Fact
energy
the ability to do work or cause change
It cannot be created or destroyed, only changed from one form to another
gravity
the force that pulls objects toward each other
It makes objects fall at about 9.8 meters per second every second on Earth
habitat
the place where a plant or animal lives
A pond, a forest and a desert are all habitats
liquid
a substance that flows and takes the shape of its container
Water is a liquid between 0 and 100 degrees Celsius
mineral
a solid substance found in nature
Quartz and salt are minerals
orbit
the path of one object around another
Earth takes about 365 days to orbit the Sun
planet
a large body that orbits a star
There are eight planets in our solar system
predict
to say what will happen
Scientists make a prediction before an experiment
solid
a substance with a fixed shape
Ice is solid water
vapor
a substance in the form of a gas
Water vapor forms when water evaporates
Science vocabulary is one of the best reasons to study spelling in grade 5, because the words are needed in every unit of the year, and children can use them at once. Ask students to find each word in their science book and to write a sentence with a fact from the lesson. The spelling of vapor and mineral is regular, while gravity and habitat repay careful attention to the vowels in the middle.
Model sentences:Gravity keeps each planet in its orbit. Water vapor is a gas, and ice is a solid.
5th grade spelling worksheets: what is in each packet
The practice packet for one list of the 5th grade spelling words has nine activities. It prints 11 pages, and 5 more pages with the answer keys. Each activity trains a different part of spelling:
Activity
What the child does
Skill it builds
Rainbow write
Write each word in three colors, one on top of another
Letter formation and the look of the word
Look, say, cover, write, check
Look at the word, say it, cover it, write it from memory and check
Visual memory
ABC order
Put the words in alphabetical order
Alphabet skills and attention to first letters
Missing letters
Fill in the letters that are left out of each word
Attention to every letter
Word scramble
Unscramble the letters to make each word, with a word bank
Letter order
Word shape boxes
Write each word in the boxes that match its shape: tall, short and tail letters
Word shape and letter height
Write sentences
Write a sentence with each word
Meaning and use
Practice test
Listen and write the words, or copy them from a list the child reads
Recall under test conditions
Word pyramids
Build each word one letter at a time, from one letter to the whole word
Letter order and spelling aloud
You can print the whole packet, or just one activity, such as the practice test for a Friday quiz on the 5th grade spelling words. The answer keys cover the ABC order, missing letters, scramble, word shape and test pages.
Spelling practice 5th grade: a week with one list
Short daily sessions work better than a single long one. This plan for the 5th grade spelling words uses two pages a day and takes about ten minutes:
Day
Worksheets
Time
Monday
Rainbow write and ABC order
10 minutes
Tuesday
Look, say, cover, write, check, and word shape boxes
10 minutes
Wednesday
Missing letters and word scramble
10 minutes
Thursday
Write sentences and word pyramids
10 to 15 minutes
Friday
Practice test, then check with the answer key
10 minutes
If you want to learn more about how spelling is taught, Wikipedia’s English orthography article describes why English spelling has so many patterns and exceptions.
Weekly spelling words: how many and how fast?
Ten words a week is a common number for 5th grade spelling words, and it works well when the words share a pattern, because the child learns the pattern once and uses it ten times. If your school gives five or eight words, choose the first words of a list, or type your own list into the generator. Move on to the next list when the child scores 8 out of 10 or better on the practice test. This is how to read the test score:
Words right out of 10
Score
What to do next
10
100%
Move on to the next list
9
90%
Practice the missed word, then move on
8
80%
Many teachers count this as mastery; review the 2 words
7
70%
Repeat two of the activities with the whole list
6 or fewer
60% or less
Repeat the packet over another week
The Common Core asks fifth graders to spell grade-appropriate words correctly, consulting references as needed (L.5.2.E). The five lists teach the patterns that carry most academic vocabulary: word endings, Greek and Latin roots, commonly confused words, adjective suffixes and science terms.
How to use the 5th grade spelling worksheets
Introduce the pattern first. Read the list of 5th grade spelling words aloud with the child, and ask what the words have in common.
Do the activities in order. The packet moves from copying to remembering, and then to using the words.
Use real words. Ask the child to find the 5th grade spelling words in a book, and to use two of them in a story.
Test on Friday. Read the words aloud, one at a time, and use each in a sentence. Check with the key.
Keep the missed words. Add them to next week’s practice.
Printing tip
Print at 100% or “Actual size” and turn off “Fit to page”, so every measurement on the sheet is exact. Choose Letter or A4 paper in the generator before you download the PDF.
Try two pages a day: Monday rainbow writing and ABC order, Tuesday look-say-cover-write-check, Wednesday missing letters and scrambles, Thursday sentences and pyramids, Friday the practice test.
Can I use our school spelling list instead?
Yes. Open the generator, type your own words and print the same activities. You can use up to 20 words.
How many spelling words should a 5th grade student learn each week?
Most classes use five to ten words a week. These lists have ten, and you can type a shorter list of your own.
Do the packets have answer keys?
Yes. The packet has answer key pages for the ABC order, missing letters, word scramble, word shape and test pages.
Are these 5th grade spelling words free?
Yes. They are free to print for home and classroom use, with no sign-up.
