6th Grade Spelling Words

Most sixth grade classes assign about 15–20 spelling words a week, often grouped around a suffix rule or a set of roots. Students prepping for a spelling bee usually add a separate set of longer challenge words on top.

By the end of sixth grade, students are typically expected to spell high-frequency Fry words, academic vocabulary (responsible, surveillance, ambiguous), Greek and Latin root words, and to apply the -able/-ible and -ance/-ence suffix rules. The lists on this page cover all of these.

School and regional bees pull from longer, root-heavy words like conscientious, millennium, lieutenant, supersede, and Caribbean. The most reliable prep is learning words by their roots with a memory hook for each, and practicing them out loud — since bee words are called aloud, not shown. The spelling-bee challenge group on this page is a good starting set.

The Dolch sight word lists stop at third grade. By sixth grade those words are long mastered, so high-frequency practice continues with the Fry list (the Sixth Hundred is on this page) and the real focus moves to academic vocabulary, word roots, and suffix rules.

Short, daily sessions beat cramming. The most effective method is hearing a word and spelling it from memory, then re-drilling only the misses. For long words, lean on roots and memory hooks. Apps like StudySpell read each word aloud so your child can practice by ear — the same way a spelling bee works.

Yes. You can try StudySpell free with no signup — enter any of the words above and the app will read them aloud for your child to spell. Pro ($7/mo) unlocks unlimited lists and progress tracking across multiple kids.