CVC WORDS LIST / NONSENSE WORDS
CVC nonsense words: a checked list and how to use it
Nonsense words like vab and zeg look like CVC words but mean nothing, so a child can only read them by their sounds. Here is a checked list and how to use it.
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SAY THE SOUNDS. BLEND THE WORD.
What are CVC nonsense words?
A nonsense word, sometimes called a pseudoword, is a string of letters that follows a real spelling pattern but isn’t a word, like vab, zeg or kug. Because it has no meaning, a child can’t read it by recognizing it or guessing from context. They have to use the letter sounds. That makes nonsense words a clean check of phonics skill.
That is why they appear in reading screeners. The DIBELS 8th Edition administration guide from the University of Oregon includes a Nonsense Word Fluency measure, given from the beginning of kindergarten through the end of third grade. The guide calls it a “pure” measure of the alphabetic principle, “because vocabulary and sight word knowledge cannot play a role in recognizing nonsense words.” It is scored for correct letter sounds and for whole words read correctly (DIBELS 8 administration and scoring guide).
A list of 40 CVC nonsense words
Each made-up word below follows the CVC pattern with a short vowel. We checked every one against English word-frequency data (wordfreq) to make sure it is effectively unused. We also reviewed each by hand for names, slang and words that sound like real words.
| Vowel | Nonsense words |
|---|---|
| Short a | vab, kaf, pab, zad, jaf, kag, baf, zab |
| Short e | zeg, vef, heg, peb, teb, fep, keb, gep |
| Short i | zib, kig, jid, vif, kib, mif, tib, hif |
| Short o | zof, vop, jop, zot, vob, kog, fot, lom |
| Short u | kug, vud, zup, mub, gub, lup, nuf, fup |
How to practice with nonsense words
- Tell the child what they are. Say, “These are made-up words. None of them will sound familiar, and that’s the point.” Otherwise many children turn vab into van.
- Read by sounds, then blend. Saying /v/ /a/ /b/ and then vab is fine. Accuracy matters more than speed.
- Mix real and nonsense words. Sorting words into real and made-up keeps meaning in view as well as sounds. Page 2 of the PDF is a real-or-nonsense sort.
- Keep it short. A few minutes is plenty. The goal is reading real books, so don’t let nonsense practice take over.
- Don’t drill screener items. If your school uses a screener, practicing its exact words makes the result less useful. Use a different set, such as this one.
Real and nonsense CVC words side by side
Each pair below differs by one or two letters. Reading pairs like these shows whether the child is really looking at every letter.
| Real word | Nonsense word | What changed |
|---|---|---|
| van | vab | last letter |
| pig | kig | first letter |
| net | teb | first and last letters |
| mop | vop | first letter |
| cup | zup | first letter |
| fig | vif | first and last letters |
Using nonsense words as a quick check
You can run an informal check at home or in class. It will not give you a benchmark score, but it can show you which sounds need work.
- Pick five real words and five nonsense words with the same vowel.
- Ask the child to read each one. Write down exactly what they say.
- Look for patterns. Is the first sound right but the vowel wrong? Is the last sound dropped? Are real words fine but nonsense words much harder?
- If real words are much easier, the child may be relying on memory. More blending practice usually helps.
For a formal screening result, use the screener your school has adopted, given as its manual describes.
Questions about nonsense words
Why do schools test with nonsense words?
A child cannot know a made-up word from memory. Reading one correctly shows they can link letters to sounds and blend them. The DIBELS 8 guide describes its nonsense word measure as a pure measure of the alphabetic principle for that reason.
My child reads vab as van. Is that wrong?
It is a very common mistake. Children expect words to mean something, so they turn a nonsense word into a real one. Remind them the words are made up, then ask them to read exactly what the letters say.
Should nonsense words replace real words in practice?
No. Use them as a small part of practice or as a check. Most practice should use real words and sentences, because the goal is reading with meaning.