Dolch primer · Kindergarten

The Sight Word "have"

A tricky one. Hear it, read it in a sentence, then play it.

Play "have"
have

I have a pet fish.

How to teach "have"

  1. Say it. Read the sentence together, then say have on its own.
  2. Find the tricky part. The e is silent, and the a stays short. Draw a little heart over those letters: that's the part to learn by heart.
  3. Spell it. It has 4 letters. Say them aloud while tracing them on the table with a finger.
  4. Find it. Hunt for have in a book you're reading. Then play a round of the game below.

Words it gets mixed up with

Early readers often confuse have with words that look like it: gave, head, hand, has. The game uses these on purpose, so children learn to look at every letter.

Play "have"

"have" shows up in every question

Free to play · no signup · works on phones, tablets and computers

Open the game full screen

Quick quiz: which word do you hear?

Print and practice

PrintFlash cards with "have"This word and its look-alikes. PrintRead, trace, writeTrace it, then write it from memory.

More words

←goodAll primer words→he

Questions

Is "have" a sight word?

Yes. It's on the Dolch primer list, usually taught around Kindergarten.

What's a good sentence for "have"?

Try this one: I have a pet fish.