# Year 4 Spelling Words: 100 Words by Spelling Pattern > Year 4 spelling words grouped by pattern: suffix rules, ough, double letters, homophones, word origins, matched to the Australian Curriculum. Free list. ## Year 4 spelling words, grouped by pattern There is no official Year 4 spelling list in Australia. The Australian Curriculum describes what Year 4 students learn about spelling, and schools choose the words. These 100 words fit the Year 4 patterns: the rules for adding suffixes, the unstressed vowels that make longer words hard to hear, ough in all its forms, double letters, word origins and homophones. Year 4 is a big spelling year. Students are writing longer texts with longer words, and the errors shift from sounds to rules: hopeing instead of hoping, begining instead of beginning, countrys instead of countries. Each group below comes with the rule that fixes it. **[Make a printable Year 4 spelling list →](/tools/spelling-list-maker?year=4)** Tick the patterns you want, add your own words, and print a look, say, cover, write, check sheet with your class name on it. ## Year 4 Spelling Resources by Australian Teachers _(Dynamic listing feed — browse at the page URL for live results.)_ ## What Year 4 Spelling Covers in the Australian Curriculum In the [Australian Curriculum (version 9) for Year 4 English](https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-10-curriculum/learning-areas/english/year-4), spelling sits in the Literacy strand under Phonic and word knowledge. In plain words, Year 4 students learn: - to read and write longer words with more complex letter combinations, including the unstressed vowels in words like builder and animal - the generalisations for adding a suffix: drop the e (hope, hoping), double the consonant (begin, beginning), change y to i (country, countries) - double letters, word families and word origins, like the tri in tricycle, tripod and triangle - high-frequency words including homophones, using the sentence to choose the right spelling The content descriptions behind this page, in plain words (the curriculum link above has the exact wording): - **AC9E4LY09**: multisyllabic words with more complex letter combinations, including a variety of vowel sounds and known prefixes and suffixes - **AC9E4LY10**: double letters, spelling generalisations, word families, prefixes, suffixes and word origins - **AC9E4LY11**: high-frequency words including homophones, using context to choose the spelling The unstressed vowel deserves a word. In doctor, pencil and chocolate, one vowel is said so lightly that it sounds like uh, and students cannot hear which letter to write. A spelling voice helps: say the word slowly as it is spelt (doc-tor, choc-o-late) when practising it. ## 100 Year 4 Spelling Words by Pattern Each group starts with its rule in one line, then the words. Teach the rule first, then practise the words that follow it. ### Unstressed vowels (12 words) The vowel in an unstressed syllable sounds like uh. Say it in a spelling voice: an-i-mal, doc-tor. animal, builder, pencil, doctor, sugar, lemon, travel, garden, chocolate, signal, metal, collar ### ough and augh (10 words) ough has several sounds. Group the words by sound: thought and bought; rough and enough. thought, bought, brought, through, though, enough, rough, caught, daughter, taught ### Double letters (10 words) A short vowel in the first syllable is often followed by a double consonant: car-rot, sum-mer. butter, carrot, letter, summer, dinner, happen, rabbit, mirror, puzzle, coffee ### Rules for adding suffixes (16 words) Drop the silent e (hope, hoping), double after a short stressed vowel (begin, beginning), change y to i (country, countries). In Australian English a final l after one vowel doubles too (travel, travelling). hoping, using, writing, arrived, beginning, forgotten, shopping, planned, travelling, countries, babies, cities, happiest, tried, carried, families ### Prefixes and word origins (12 words) tri means three and bi means two: tricycle, bicycle. Knowing the meaning gives the spelling. triangle, tricycle, tripod, bicycle, binoculars, preview, preheat, unusual, unlucky, rewrite, reappear, nonsense ### Suffixes -ful, -less, -ment, -ness and -est (8 words) Find the base word first, then add the suffix: thought + ful. thoughtful, powerful, fearless, enjoyment, movement, happiness, brightest, smallest ### Homophones (14 words) Use the sentence to choose: we wear hats; where is it? hour, our, where, wear, weather, whether, whole, hole, piece, peace, plain, plane, allowed, aloud ### Tricky words for Year 4 (18 words) Words that are often misspelt in writing. Find the hard part of each and say it as it is spelt. beautiful, believe, interesting, probably, actually, suddenly, library, decided, opposite, quarter, island, minute, answer, certain, special, exercise, question, weight **[Turn these words into a printable list →](/tools/spelling-list-maker?year=4)** ## Prefix and Suffix Activities for Year 4 _(Dynamic listing feed — browse at the page URL for live results.)_ ## How to Run a Weekly Year 4 Spelling List A weekly list works when it is built around one pattern and students practise only the words they need. This is the routine I would use: 1. **Pretest.** Read 15 to 18 words aloud in sentences. Students mark their own and keep the words they got wrong. 2. **Teach the rule with a sort.** Give students a mix of base words and suffixed words (hope, hoping, hop, hopping) and ask them to sort and explain. The suffix rules make sense once students see them side by side. 3. **Practise.** Look, say, cover, write, check for a few minutes a day, plus writing each word in a sentence. Homophones only make sense in a sentence. 4. **Test and transfer.** Test the list plus two or three unseen words that follow the same rule. If students spell those correctly, the rule has stuck. Year 4 is also a good year to start a personal word list: words each student misspells in their own writing, added to their weekly list. The [spelling list maker](/tools/spelling-list-maker?year=4) lets you add your own words to any list, and [spelling activities](/teacher-guides/spelling-activities) has ideas for word sorts and games. ## Spelling Words for Other Year Levels Use the year before for students who need to consolidate, and the year after for students who are ready to move on. - [Foundation spelling words](/teacher-guides/foundation-spelling-words) - [Year 1 spelling words](/teacher-guides/year-1-spelling-words) - [Year 2 spelling words](/teacher-guides/year-2-spelling-words) - [Year 3 spelling words](/teacher-guides/year-3-spelling-words) - [Year 5 spelling words](/teacher-guides/year-5-spelling-words) - [Year 6 spelling words](/teacher-guides/year-6-spelling-words) Or start at the [spelling words by year](/teacher-guides/spelling-words-by-year) guide, which explains how all seven lists fit together. NAPLAN tests spelling again in Year 5, in the conventions of language test ([What is in the tests](https://www.nap.edu.au/naplan/whats-in-the-tests), NAP), and the [Year 5](/teacher-guides/year-5-spelling-words) page explains how. ## Year 4 Spelling Words: Frequently Asked Questions ### Is there an official Year 4 spelling list in Australia? No. The Australian Curriculum describes the spelling knowledge Year 4 students should learn, such as suffix rules, double letters, word origins and homophones, but it does not list words. The 100 words on this page fit those Year 4 patterns and include examples the curriculum itself gives. ### How many spelling words should a Year 4 student learn each week? Many Year 4 teachers use 15 to 18 words a week, built around one pattern, plus a few homophones or words from the class topic. Students who spell most of the list in the pretest can move on to harder words that follow the same rule. ### What are the rules for adding suffixes in Year 4? There are three main ones. Drop the silent e before a suffix that starts with a vowel (hope, hoping). Double the last consonant after a short, stressed vowel (begin, beginning), and in Australian English a final l after one vowel usually doubles too (travel, travelling). Change y to i when a consonant comes before the y (country, countries), except before -ing (trying). A vowel before the y keeps it (play, played). ### Why is ough so hard to spell? Because the same four letters make several different sounds: thought, through, though, rough and bough all sound different. The best approach is to group ough words by sound and learn each group together, rather than trying to work them out from the sound alone. ### How do I make a printable Year 4 spelling list? Open the [free spelling list maker](/tools/spelling-list-maker?year=4), tick the patterns or words you want, add your own words and press Print. You get a look, say, cover, write, check sheet or a plain word list on A4. ### Where can I find free Year 4 spelling resources? Australian teachers share free spelling resources on TeachBuySell. [Browse free spelling resources](/s?keywords=spelling&price=0%2C0) and filter by Year 4. --- Source: https://teachbuysell.com.au/teacher-guides/year-4-spelling-words Marketplace: https://teachbuysell.com.au