Years 3-4 Statutory Words Set 7

ALTHOUGH, THOUGHT and THROUGH all contain the same four letters — OUGH — and all three say something different. It is the most notorious spelling pattern in English, and this small final set asks children to meet it head on.

This is the seventh and last set of Years 3-4 statutory words from the DfE, a shorter group of eleven that completes the lower Key Stage 2 list. Its centrepiece is the OUGH family — three words that share a spelling but split on sound — alongside a few standalone challenges like WEIGHT and WOMEN. Finishing this puzzle means a child has now met every word the National Curriculum considers essential through Year 4 — a real milestone worth marking.

STRANGE · STRENGTH · SUPPOSE · SURPRISE · THEREFORE · ALTHOUGH · THOUGHT · THROUGH · VARIOUS · WEIGHT · WOMEN

The four letters that say everything

There is a reason OUGH is the spelling pattern most often held up as proof that English makes no sense. In this set alone, the same four letters take three different paths: ALTHOUGH (rhymes with GO — the OUGH says “oh”), THOUGHT (rhymes with FOUGHT — the OUGH says “ort”), THROUGH (rhymes with TOO — the OUGH says “oo”). Three pronunciations, one spelling — and there is no rule. The OUGH must simply be learned word by word. (Beyond this set, OUGH also says “uff” in ENOUGH from B11, “ow” in PLOUGH, and “off” in COUGH. Six pronunciations in total, for the same four letters. English wins.)

The honest thing to tell children is that this is the pattern adults still trip over, and that everyone alive has had to learn it the same way: one word at a time, with friendly repetition. The good news is the set is small — maybe twenty common OUGH words in all of English, and many already learned (THOUGH, BOUGHT, BROUGHT, FOUGHT, ENOUGH, ROUGH, TOUGH, COUGH, PLOUGH, BOROUGH, DOUGH, THOROUGH). Once seen as a closed set rather than an unpredictable rule, it becomes manageable.

Five to consider as they search

1. ALTHOUGH, THOUGHT and THROUGH all spell OUGH. Find all three and circle the OUGH in each. Then read them aloud: oh, ort, oo. Same spelling, three different sounds. The shared visual is the clue — the sounds are individual.
2. WEIGHT belongs to the EIGH family (B10). Same silent GH as EIGHT. Different starter sound — W instead of E — but the pattern matches. Find it and connect it to EIGHT from set 2.
3. WOMEN is the plural of WOMAN. Spelled with O but said with I — “wim-en”. The pronunciation shifted centuries ago; the spelling kept the older form. A small irregular plural, like MICE and TEETH from S37.
4. STRENGTH is the longest one-syllable word in this puzzle. Eight letters, one syllable, packed with consonants. Have your child count its consonants (six — S, T, R, N, G, T, H). Only two vowel sounds, one of which (the E) does all the audible work. Words like this are why a clear mouth matters.
5. SURPRISE has a silent R most adults can’t hear. Say it slowly: sur-PRISE, with the first R said clearly. Most people drop it. Tell your child: it is there in the spelling, even when it is missing in the speech. Same trap as FEBRUARY’s first R in B11.

A fitting way to close the list

As an OUGH listening sort. Three columns on the board: “OUGH says oh”, “OUGH says ort”, “OUGH says oo”. Call out OUGH words from the whole list children have met (ALTHOUGH, THOUGHT, THROUGH, ENOUGH, TOUGH, ROUGH, BOUGHT, BROUGHT, COUGH, PLOUGH) and the class sorts them by sound. By the end the truth is visible: OUGH is not a rule, it is a small collection — and a collection can be learned.

As a milestone-marking pair task. Pairs go back through the seven Years 3-4 sets and pick their five hardest words (the ones they still slip on). Then they make a tiny “stubborn five” list for their notebook. Self-identified weak spots, copied into one place, glanced at once a day. The deepest learning comes from looking honestly at what isn’t yet known.

One-to-one at home. For homeschooling families, this is the closing of the Years 3-4 list. Sit with your child and read through every word from B09 to B15 — about a hundred words — and let them mark the ones they know on sight with a tick. The ones without ticks become the focus list for the next few weeks. The achievement is the journey: seven sets, a hundred essential UK words, the bridge between early-reading vocabulary and proper KS2 reading in place. A small celebration is in order. STRAIGHT to dessert.

What comes next

• Years 5-6 Statutory Words Set 1 — into the upper Key Stage 2 list and the most demanding primary spellings
• Years 3-4 Statutory Words Set 6 — the previous set
• All spelling word searches — the full Series A, B and C collection

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