Articles on: Readable Data

What is the Spache Words List?

The Spache readability formula uses a set of familiar words. The text is then scored against this, with unfamiliar words decreasing readability.


Spache scores are most useful for children up to grade four. Above this, the New Dale Chall formula is best for older children.


The Spache word list is as follows:


  • a
  • able
  • about
  • above
  • across
  • act
  • add
  • afraid
  • after
  • afternoon
  • again
  • against
  • ago
  • air
  • airplane
  • alarm
  • all
  • almost
  • alone
  • along
  • already
  • also
  • always
  • am
  • among
  • an
  • and
  • angry
  • animal
  • another
  • answer
  • any
  • anyone
  • appear
  • apple
  • are
  • arm
  • around
  • arrow
  • as
  • ask
  • asleep
  • at
  • ate
  • attention
  • aunt
  • awake
  • away
  • b
  • baby
  • back
  • bad
  • bag
  • ball
  • balloon
  • bang
  • bank
  • bark
  • barn
  • basket
  • be
  • bean
  • bear
  • beat
  • beautiful
  • became
  • because
  • become
  • bed
  • bee
  • been
  • before
  • began
  • begin
  • behind
  • believe
  • bell
  • belong
  • bend
  • bent
  • beside
  • best
  • better
  • between
  • big
  • bird
  • birthday
  • bit
  • bite
  • black
  • blanket
  • blew
  • block
  • blow
  • blue
  • board
  • boat
  • book
  • boot
  • born
  • borrow
  • both
  • bother
  • bottle
  • bottom
  • bought
  • bow
  • box
  • boy
  • branch
  • brave
  • bread
  • break
  • breakfast
  • breath
  • brick
  • bridge
  • bright
  • bring
  • broke
  • broken
  • brother
  • brought
  • brown
  • brush
  • build
  • bump
  • burn
  • bus
  • busy
  • but
  • butter
  • button
  • buy
  • by
  • c
  • cabin
  • cage
  • cake
  • call
  • came
  • camp
  • can
  • candle
  • candy
  • can't
  • cap
  • captain
  • car
  • card
  • care
  • careful
  • carrot
  • carry
  • case
  • castle
  • cat
  • catch
  • cattle
  • caught
  • cause
  • cent
  • certain
  • chair
  • chance
  • change
  • chase
  • chicken
  • chief
  • child
  • children
  • church
  • circle
  • circus
  • city
  • clap
  • clean
  • clever
  • cliff
  • climb
  • clock
  • close
  • cloth
  • clothes
  • clown
  • coat
  • cold
  • color
  • come
  • comfortable
  • company
  • contest
  • continue
  • cook
  • cool
  • corner
  • could
  • count
  • country
  • course
  • cover
  • cow
  • crawl
  • cream
  • cry
  • cup
  • curtain
  • cut
  • d
  • dad
  • dance
  • danger
  • dangerous
  • dark
  • dash
  • daughter
  • day
  • dear
  • decide
  • deep
  • desk
  • did
  • didn't
  • die
  • different
  • dig
  • dinner
  • direction
  • disappear
  • disappoint
  • discover
  • distance
  • do
  • doctor
  • does
  • dog
  • dollar
  • done
  • don't
  • door
  • down
  • dragon
  • dream
  • dress
  • drink
  • drive
  • drop
  • drove
  • dry
  • duck
  • during
  • dust
  • e
  • each
  • eager
  • ear
  • early
  • earn
  • earth
  • easy
  • eat
  • edge
  • egg
  • eight
  • eighteen
  • either
  • elephant
  • else
  • empty
  • end
  • enemy
  • enough
  • enter
  • even
  • ever
  • every
  • everything
  • exact
  • except
  • excite
  • exclaim
  • explain
  • eye
  • face
  • fact
  • fair
  • fall
  • family
  • far
  • farm
  • farmer
  • farther
  • fast
  • fat
  • father
  • feather
  • feed
  • feel
  • feet
  • fell
  • fellow
  • felt
  • fence
  • few
  • field
  • fierce
  • fight
  • figure
  • fill
  • final
  • find
  • fine
  • finger
  • finish
  • fire
  • first
  • fish
  • five
  • flag
  • flash
  • flat
  • flew
  • floor
  • flower
  • fly
  • follow
  • food
  • for
  • forest
  • forget
  • forth
  • found
  • four
  • fourth
  • fox
  • fresh
  • friend
  • frighten
  • frog
  • from
  • front
  • fruit
  • full
  • fun
  • funny
  • fur
  • g
  • game
  • garden
  • gasp
  • gate
  • gave
  • get
  • giant
  • gift
  • girl
  • give
  • glad
  • glass
  • go
  • goat
  • gone
  • good
  • got
  • grandfather
  • grandmother
  • grass
  • gray
  • great
  • green
  • grew
  • grin
  • ground
  • group
  • grow
  • growl
  • guess
  • gun
  • h
  • had
  • hair
  • half
  • hall
  • hand
  • handle
  • hang
  • happen
  • happiness
  • happy
  • hard
  • harm
  • has
  • hat
  • hate
  • have
  • he
  • head
  • hear
  • heard
  • heavy
  • held
  • hello
  • help
  • hen
  • her
  • here
  • herself
  • he's
  • hid
  • hide
  • high
  • hill
  • him
  • himself
  • his
  • hit
  • hold
  • hole
  • holiday
  • home
  • honey
  • hop
  • horn
  • horse
  • hot
  • hour
  • house
  • how
  • howl
  • hum
  • hundred
  • hung
  • hungry
  • hunt
  • hurry
  • hurt
  • husband
  • i
  • ice
  • idea
  • if
  • i'll
  • i'm
  • imagine
  • important
  • in
  • inch
  • indeed
  • inside
  • instead
  • into
  • invite
  • is
  • it
  • it's
  • its
  • j
  • jacket
  • jar
  • jet
  • job
  • join
  • joke
  • joy
  • jump
  • just
  • k
  • keep
  • kept
  • key
  • kick
  • kill
  • kind
  • king
  • kitchen
  • kitten
  • knee
  • knew
  • knock
  • know
  • l
  • ladder
  • lady
  • laid
  • lake
  • land
  • large
  • last
  • late
  • laugh
  • lay
  • lazy
  • lead
  • leap
  • learn
  • least
  • leave
  • left
  • leg
  • less
  • let
  • let's
  • letter
  • lick
  • lift
  • light
  • like
  • line
  • lion
  • list
  • listen
  • little
  • live
  • load
  • long
  • look
  • lost
  • lot
  • loud
  • love
  • low
  • luck
  • lump
  • lunch
  • m
  • machine
  • made
  • magic
  • mail
  • make
  • man
  • many
  • march
  • mark
  • market
  • master
  • matter
  • may
  • maybe
  • me
  • mean
  • meant
  • meat
  • meet
  • melt
  • men
  • merry
  • met
  • middle
  • might
  • mile
  • milk
  • milkman
  • mind
  • mine
  • minute
  • miss
  • mistake
  • moment
  • money
  • monkey
  • month
  • more
  • morning
  • most
  • mother
  • mountain
  • mouse
  • mouth
  • move
  • much
  • mud
  • music
  • must
  • my
  • n
  • name
  • near
  • neck
  • need
  • needle
  • neighbor
  • neighborhood
  • nest
  • never
  • new
  • next
  • nibble
  • nice
  • night
  • nine
  • no
  • nod
  • noise
  • none
  • north
  • nose
  • not
  • note
  • nothing
  • notice
  • now
  • number
  • o
  • ocean
  • of
  • off
  • offer
  • often
  • oh
  • old
  • on
  • once
  • one
  • only
  • open
  • or
  • orange
  • order
  • other
  • our
  • out
  • outside
  • over
  • owl
  • own
  • p
  • pack
  • paid
  • pail
  • paint
  • pair
  • palace
  • pan
  • paper
  • parade
  • parent
  • park
  • part
  • party
  • pass
  • past
  • pasture
  • path
  • paw
  • pay
  • peanut
  • peek
  • pen
  • penny
  • people
  • perfect
  • perhaps
  • person
  • pet
  • pick
  • picnic
  • picture
  • pie
  • piece
  • pig
  • pile
  • pin
  • place
  • plan
  • plant
  • play
  • pleasant
  • please
  • plenty
  • plow
  • picket
  • point
  • poke
  • pole
  • policeman
  • pond
  • poor
  • pop
  • postman
  • pot
  • potato
  • pound
  • pour
  • practice
  • prepare
  • present
  • pretend
  • pretty
  • princess
  • prize
  • probably
  • problem
  • promise
  • protect
  • proud
  • puff
  • pull
  • puppy
  • push
  • put
  • q
  • queen
  • queer
  • quick
  • quiet
  • quite
  • r
  • rabbit
  • raccoon
  • race
  • radio
  • rag
  • rain
  • raise
  • ran
  • ranch
  • rang
  • reach
  • read
  • ready
  • real
  • red
  • refuse
  • remember
  • reply
  • rest
  • return
  • reward
  • rich
  • ride
  • right
  • ring
  • river
  • road
  • roar
  • rock
  • rode
  • roll
  • roof
  • room
  • rope
  • round
  • row
  • rub
  • rule
  • run
  • rush
  • s
  • sad
  • safe
  • said
  • sail
  • sale
  • salt
  • same
  • sand
  • sang
  • sat
  • save
  • saw
  • say
  • scare
  • school
  • scold
  • scratch
  • scream
  • sea
  • seat
  • second
  • secret
  • see
  • seed
  • seem
  • seen
  • sell
  • send
  • sent
  • seven
  • several
  • sew
  • shadow
  • shake
  • shall
  • shape
  • she
  • sheep
  • shell
  • shine
  • ship
  • shoe
  • shone
  • shook
  • shoot
  • shop
  • shore
  • short
  • shot
  • should
  • show
  • sick
  • side
  • sight
  • sign
  • signal
  • silent
  • silly
  • silver
  • since
  • sing
  • sister
  • sit
  • six
  • size
  • skip
  • sky
  • sled
  • sleep
  • slid
  • slide
  • slow
  • small
  • smart
  • smell
  • smile
  • smoke
  • snap
  • sniff
  • snow
  • so
  • soft
  • sold
  • some
  • something
  • sometimes
  • son
  • song
  • soon
  • sorry
  • sound
  • speak
  • special
  • spend
  • spill
  • splash
  • spoke
  • spot
  • spread
  • spring
  • squirrel
  • stand
  • star
  • start
  • station
  • stay
  • step
  • stick
  • still
  • stone
  • stood
  • stop
  • store
  • story
  • straight
  • strange
  • street
  • stretch
  • strike
  • strong
  • such
  • sudden
  • sugar
  • suit
  • summer
  • sun
  • supper
  • suppose
  • sure
  • surprise
  • swallow
  • sweet
  • swim
  • swing
  • t
  • table
  • tail
  • take
  • talk
  • tall
  • tap
  • taste
  • teach
  • teacher
  • team
  • tear
  • teeth
  • telephone
  • tell
  • ten
  • tent
  • than
  • thank
  • that
  • that's
  • the
  • their
  • them
  • then
  • there
  • these
  • they
  • thick
  • thin
  • thing
  • think
  • third
  • this
  • those
  • though
  • thought
  • three
  • threw
  • through
  • throw
  • tie
  • tiger
  • tight
  • time
  • tiny
  • tip
  • tire
  • to
  • today
  • toe
  • together
  • told
  • tomorrow
  • too
  • took
  • tooth
  • top
  • touch
  • toward
  • tower
  • town
  • toy
  • track
  • traffic
  • train
  • trap
  • tree
  • trick
  • trip
  • trot
  • truck
  • true
  • trunk
  • try
  • turkey
  • turn
  • turtle
  • twelve
  • twin
  • two
  • u
  • ugly
  • uncle
  • under
  • unhappy
  • until
  • up
  • upon
  • upstairs
  • us
  • use
  • usual
  • v
  • valley
  • vegetable
  • very
  • village
  • visit
  • voice
  • w
  • wag
  • wagon
  • wait
  • wake
  • walk
  • want
  • war
  • warm
  • was
  • wash
  • waste
  • watch
  • water
  • wave
  • way
  • we
  • wear
  • weather
  • week
  • well
  • went
  • were
  • wet
  • what
  • wheel
  • when
  • where
  • which
  • while
  • whisper
  • whistle
  • white
  • who
  • whole
  • whose
  • why
  • wide
  • wife
  • will
  • win
  • wind
  • window
  • wing
  • wink
  • winter
  • wire
  • wise
  • wish
  • with
  • without
  • woke
  • wolf
  • woman
  • women
  • wonder
  • won't
  • wood
  • word
  • wore
  • work
  • world
  • worm
  • worry
  • worth
  • would
  • wrong
  • x
  • y
  • yard
  • year
  • yell
  • yellow
  • yes
  • yet
  • you
  • young
  • your
  • z
  • zoo"

Updated on: 11/11/2020

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