Class 1 · English · 2026-27

Class 1 English Word Families Worksheet (With Answers) with Answers

Once a child can blend, word families let her read faster by recognising a whole ending at once instead of sounding out every letter. This worksheet checks five common families - -at, -an, -ig, -op and -un - one at a time so you can see exactly which one still needs work.

73 questions · 30 minutes · full answer key · free printable PDF · no sign-up

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Class 1 English Word Families Worksheet (With Answers)

Class 1 English · Word families: -at, -an, -ig, -op · 73 questions with answers

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Once a child can blend, word families let her read faster by recognising a whole ending at once instead of sounding out every letter. This worksheet checks five common families - -at, -an, -ig, -op and -un - one at a time so you can see exactly which one still needs work.

Builds a real word by adding a beginning sound to a word family ending
Reads five common Class 1 word families: -at, -an, -ig, -op, -un
Recognises that words sharing an ending often sound alike

Exercise 1 of 8 · 12 questions

Add the beginning sound to '-at' to make a real word.

Fill in the blank

Here’s one done for you

c + at → add the sound 'c' to the family 'at': c...at → cat

1)c + at
2)h + at
3)m + at
4)s + at
5)r + at
6)f + at
7)b + at
8)p + at
9)th + at
10)ch + at
11)fl + at
12)wh + at

Answers

1) cat
2) hat
3) mat
4) sat
5) rat
6) fat
7) bat
8) pat
9) that
10) chat
11) flat
12) what

Exercise 2 of 8 · 10 questions

Add the beginning sound to '-an' to make a real word.

Fill in the blank

Here’s one done for you

c + an → add the sound 'c' to the family 'an': c...an → can

1)c + an
2)m + an
3)p + an
4)r + an
5)f + an
6)v + an
7)t + an
8)pl + an
9)cl + an
10)sp + an

Answers

1) can
2) man
3) pan
4) ran
5) fan
6) van
7) tan
8) plan
9) clan
10) span

Exercise 3 of 8 · 7 questions

Add the beginning sound to '-ig' to make a real word.

Fill in the blank

Here’s one done for you

p + ig → add the sound 'p' to the family 'ig': p...ig → pig

1)p + ig
2)b + ig
3)d + ig
4)w + ig
5)f + ig
6)j + ig
7)tw + ig

Answers

1) pig
2) big
3) dig
4) wig
5) fig
6) jig
7) twig

Exercise 4 of 8 · 10 questions

Add the beginning sound to '-op' to make a real word.

Fill in the blank

Here’s one done for you

h + op → add the sound 'h' to the family 'op': h...op → hop

1)h + op
2)m + op
3)t + op
4)p + op
5)dr + op
6)st + op
7)sh + op
8)cr + op
9)fl + op
10)ch + op

Answers

1) hop
2) mop
3) top
4) pop
5) drop
6) stop
7) shop
8) crop
9) flop
10) chop

Exercise 5 of 8 · 4 questions

Add the beginning sound to '-un' to make a real word.

Fill in the blank

Here’s one done for you

b + un → add the sound 'b' to the family 'un': b...un → bun

1)b + un
2)r + un
3)s + un
4)f + un

Answers

1) bun
2) run
3) sun
4) fun

Exercise 6 of 8 · 10 questions

Circle the word that does NOT belong to the same family as the others.

Circle the answer

Here’s one done for you

cat, hat, sat, sun → cat, hat and sat all belong to the -at family; sun belongs to a different family → sun

1)cat, hat, sat, sun
2)man, can, fan, pig
3)big, dig, wig, top
4)hop, mop, top, cat
5)bun, run, fun, hat
6)pan, van, tan, dig
7)fig, pig, jig, sun
8)shop, chop, crop, man
9)rat, bat, mat, fun
10)sun, bun, fun, cat

Answers

1) sun
2) pig
3) top
4) cat
5) hat
6) dig
7) sun
8) man
9) fun
10) cat

Exercise 7 of 8 · 10 questions

Match each word to a word that rhymes with it.

Match the pairs

Here’s one done for you

cat → find a word that ends the same way as cat: c-at, h-at → hat

1)cat
2)man
3)pig
4)top
5)bun
6)rat
7)van
8)wig
9)mop
10)fan

Answers

1) hat
2) can
3) dig
4) hop
5) fun
6) mat
7) tan
8) big
9) pop
10) pan

Exercise 8 of 8 · 10 questions

Fill in the blank with a word from the box that completes the sentence: cat, hop, bun, mop, fan, dig, top, run, wig, shop.

Fill in the blank

Here’s one done for you

Please clean the floor with the ___. → look at the box: cat, hop, bun, mop, fan, dig, top, run, wig, shop → only 'mop' is used for cleaning a floor → mop

1)I like to eat a soft ___ for breakfast.
2)Please clean the floor with the ___.
3)The rabbit likes to ___ across the grass.
4)It is hot, so please turn on the ___.
5)The dog will ___ a hole in the garden.
6)She wore a funny curly ___ for the play.
7)We went to the ___ to buy some bread.
8)The ___ sat on the warm mat.
9)He can ___ very fast in the race.
10)Put the lid on ___ of the box.

Answers

1) bun
2) mop
3) hop
4) fan
5) dig
6) wig
7) shop
8) cat
9) run
10) top

While your child works

Read the family out loud first - 'at, at, at' - so your child hears the pattern before building words from it.
If one family (say -ig) is much harder than the others, spend a few extra minutes on just that one rather than repeating the whole sheet.

Before you print it

What is on this worksheet

8 exercises, 73 questions, about 30 minutes. Every exercise has an answer key, printed on its own page so it can be kept back. 8 exercises start with a question already worked out, so you can check the method before helping.

Exercise	What the child does	Questions	Worked example
1	Fill in the blanks	12	Yes
2	Fill in the blanks	10	Yes
3	Fill in the blanks	7	Yes
4	Fill in the blanks	10	Yes
5	Fill in the blanks	4	Yes
6	Circle the answer	10	Yes
7	Matching	10	Yes
8	Fill in the blanks	10	Yes

More Class 1 English worksheets

Each one is a complete sheet with its own answer key, free to print.

Questions parents ask

About this worksheet

Why teach word families instead of just more blending?

Blending sounds out a word one letter at a time; word families let a child recognise a whole chunk (-at, -op) instantly once she has seen it a few times, which is what makes reading feel faster and less effortful.

The last two -op items (drop, stop) have four letters - is that a mistake?

No. Once a family is familiar, it is worth showing it inside a slightly longer word too, so your child learns to spot the family rather than only ever seeing it in the shortest form.

My child gets the family right but spells the beginning sound wrong - what does that mean?

It usually means the ending pattern has stuck but the individual letter sound has not. Go back to the letter sounds worksheet for that specific letter rather than repeating the whole family list.

Does this Class 1 English worksheet come with answers?

Yes. Every exercise has a full answer key, and it prints on its own page at the end rather than beside the questions - so you can hand your child the sheet and keep the answers back. Some exercises also show one question already worked out, with the method rather than just the result, which is the part most answer keys leave out.

Is there a free printable PDF?

Yes, and there is no sign-up, no email and no account. The download button at the top of the sheet gives you the whole thing - all 73 questions across 8 exercises, plus the answer key - laid out to print on A4.

How long does this worksheet take?

About 30 minutes for 73 questions, though that is a guide rather than a target. It is designed to be split: the exercises are ordered so stopping halfway still leaves a complete piece of work, which matters more than finishing at this age.

Can I use it if my child is in a different class?

Often, yes - these topics are taught across several years and schools vary in when they arrive. Judge by the questions rather than the class on the label. If the first exercise is a struggle the level below is the better start, and the same topic at other levels is linked further up this page.

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