Tricky Words: Reading Irregularly Spelled Words

Section 1

Why Are Some Words So Tricky?

Have you ever tried to sound out a word, but it just didn't work? Maybe you tried to read "said" and it came out like "say-d." That's because some English words are tricky! They don't sound the way you'd think from looking at the letters.

English is a language that has been growing and changing for a very, very long time. Words came from many different places. That is why some words have funny spellings. Let's look at how that happened!

Long, Long Ago

People in England spoke a language called Old English. Words like "the" and "was" come from this old language!

About 900 Years Ago

People from France came to England. They brought French words like "people" into the English language.

About 500 Years Ago

The way people said words changed, but the spelling stayed the same. That's why "know" has a silent K!

Today

We still use these tricky words every day. Good readers learn to recognize them by sight!

So here's the big question: if you can't just sound these words out, how do you read them? That's what this lesson is all about! You will learn what irregularly spelled words are and how to read them like a pro.

Section 2

Big Ideas About Tricky Words

Before we start learning tricky words, let's understand some big ideas. These ideas will help you know what to look for when you read.

What Is a Regular Word?

A regular word follows the rules. You can sound it out. For example, "cat" — the C says /k/, the A says /ă/, and the T says /t/. It works!

What Is an Irregular Word?

An irregular word has a part that does NOT follow the rules. In "said," the A-I-D part does not say what you'd expect. It says /sĕd/.

Some Parts ARE Regular

Even in tricky words, some letters still follow the rules! In "said," the S says /s/ and the D says /d/. Only the middle is tricky.

You Learn Them by Sight

The best way to learn tricky words is to see them many times. When you practice, your brain remembers the whole word. We call these sight words.

✦ KEY TAKEAWAY

Think of tricky words like people's names. You can't sound out the name "Juan" if you've never heard it. But once someone tells you, you remember it. Tricky words are just like that — once you learn them, you know them forever!

Section 3

See It: Regular vs. Tricky Words

Let's look at a picture that shows the difference between regular words and tricky words. In regular words, every letter does what you expect. In tricky words, one part is surprising!

Regular words follow the rules. Tricky words have a surprising part (shown with dashed lines).

Look at the picture above. The word "cat" is on the left. Every letter makes the sound you'd expect. Easy! Now look at "said" on the right. The S and D are fine, but the "ai" in the middle makes a weird sound. That's the tricky part! When you see "said," you have to just remember how it sounds.

Section 4

How to Read Tricky Words

Here is a simple plan you can use every time you find a tricky word. Follow these steps!

Four steps to reading any tricky word!

Step 1: When you see a new word, try to sound it out. Use the letter sounds you already know. Even if the whole word is tricky, some parts might still follow the rules!

Step 2: If it doesn't sound right, look for the tricky part. Which letters are making a surprising sound? In the word "does," the O-E-S part is tricky because it says /ŭz/, not /ōz/.

Step 3: Ask a grown-up, listen to the word, or look it up. Learn the right way to say it.

Step 4: Read the word over and over. Write it. Spell it. The more you see it, the faster you'll read it next time!

Section 5

Groups of Tricky Words

Let's look at some of the most common tricky words for second graders. We put them in groups to help you learn them.

GROUP	TRICKY WORDS	WHAT'S TRICKY?
Silent Letters	know, write, could, would, should, two, island	Some letters are there but you don't say them!
Surprise Vowels	said, says, again, been, many, does, gone	The vowel makes a different sound than you'd expect.
Odd Endings	are, were, come, some, have, give, live	The silent E at the end doesn't make the vowel long.
Tiny Power Words	the, of, to, do, you, was, is, what, who	These short words are used all the time, but many don't follow rules.
People Words	people, friend, because, once, only, very	These longer words have surprising spellings in the middle.

Here are some of these tricky words you'll see a lot. Try reading each one!

ℹ Tricky Word Wall

said · the · was · does · could · know · friend · people · once · again · two · write · were · have · come · give · many · only · who · what

✦ KEY TAKEAWAY

These tricky words are like your favorite songs. At first you don't know all the words. But after hearing the song many times, you sing it perfectly! Read tricky words again and again until they're easy.

Section 6

Worked Example: Reading "friend"

Let's use our four steps with the word "friend."

Reading "friend"

Step 1 — Try to Sound It OutYou see the word: f-r-i-e-n-d. You might try: "fry-end"? That doesn't sound like a word you know!

Step 2 — Find the Tricky PartLet's break it down. The f-r part says /fr/ — that follows the rules! The n-d at the end says /nd/ — that's normal too! But the i-e in the middle? That's the tricky part. It says /ĕ/ instead of /ī/ or /ē/.

Step 3 — Learn the Right SoundA teacher tells you the word says /frĕnd/. The "ie" says /ĕ/ — like the short E sound. That's surprising!

Step 4 — Practice!Now read it a few times: friend, friend, friend. Use it in a sentence: "My friend likes to play." Great job! Now your brain knows it.

What Did We Learn?The word "friend" has a tricky "ie" in the middle. The parts that DO follow the rules are the "fr" at the start and the "nd" at the end. You just need to remember that the "ie" says /ĕ/.

Section 7

Tips That Help & Traps to Avoid

Here are some things that help when learning tricky words, and some mistakes to watch out for.

✅ HELPFUL TIPS	❌ TRAPS TO AVOID
Read the word many times every day.	Don't try to sound out every letter — it won't always work.
Look at the word's shape. "People" is a tall word!	Don't skip tricky words when reading. Stop and learn them.
Write the word in fun colors or with finger paint.	Don't get upset. Everyone finds tricky words hard at first!
Use the word in a sentence you make up.	Don't mix up look-alike words: "was" and "saw" are not the same!
Find the parts that DO follow the rules. That helps!	Don't think tricky words are broken. They're just special.

✦ KEY TAKEAWAY

Think of tricky words like learning to ride a bike. At first it's hard and wobbly. But you keep trying, and one day it's easy! The more you read tricky words, the smoother your reading gets.

Section 8

What's Next? Growing Your Word Power

Right now, you are learning second-grade tricky words. But as you grow, you will learn even more! Here's what's coming.

NOW (2ND GRADE)	LATER (3RD GRADE & UP)
You learn words like said, does, friend	You'll learn words like through, caught, laugh
You practice words one at a time.	You'll start to see patterns in tricky words.
You use four steps to learn each word.	You'll learn where words came from (word origins!).
You can read simple books with tricky words.	You'll read chapter books full of all kinds of words!

The amazing thing is this: the tricky words you learn now will help you for the rest of your life. Words like "the," "said," and "was" show up on almost every page of every book. Once you know them, reading gets much faster and more fun!

Section 9

Practice Time! 🌟

Try these problems all by yourself. Click "Show Answer" when you're ready to check!

PROBLEM 1 — WHAT DO YOU KNOW?

What is an irregularly spelled word? Can you explain it in your own words?

PROBLEM 2 — FIND THE TRICKY WORD

Look at these three words: cat, does, run. Which word is the tricky (irregular) word?

PROBLEM 3 — SPOT THE TRICKY PART

In the word "know," which letter is the tricky part? Why is it tricky?

PROBLEM 4 — USE IT IN A SENTENCE

Read this sentence: "My friend said she would come to my house." How many tricky (irregular) words are in this sentence? Can you name them all?

PROBLEM 5 — THINK ABOUT IT

Why do you think it is important to learn tricky words? What would happen if you skipped over every tricky word while reading a story?

Summary

Let's Review Everything!

In this lesson, you learned that irregularly spelled words (tricky words) are words that don't follow the normal letter-sound rules. English has these words because our language grew from many other languages over hundreds of years. You discovered that even tricky words often have some parts that DO follow the rules — the tricky part is usually only in one spot. You learned the four steps to reading tricky words: try to sound it out, find the tricky part, learn the right sound, and practice. You also saw groups of tricky words, including words with silent letters (like "know"), surprise vowels (like "said"), odd endings (like "come"), and tiny power words (like "the" and "was").

The most important thing to remember is this: practice makes perfect. The more you read tricky words, the faster your brain recognizes them. Soon you won't even think about them — you'll just read! Keep reading books, keep practicing, and keep being curious about words. You are doing an awesome job! 🌟