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The 100 most common English words

The 100 most frequent words in English, ranked in order. Each with translation, IPA, and an example sentence — the real backbone of the language.

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This is the literal frequency ranking: the 100 words you meet most often in real English, function words and all. Learn them in order and you cover the largest possible share of everyday English for the effort. Prefer to skip the articles and pronouns and go straight to content vocabulary? See the "essential English words" list below. Either way — save the top 50 free and start practicing today. — Joao

  1. 001
    youpron. /juː/
    the person being addressed I hope you have a great day.
  2. 002
    ipron. /aɪ/
    the speaker or writer I love reading books in my free time.
  3. 003
    thedet. /ðə/
    used to specify something particular The cat is sleeping on the couch.
  4. 004
    toprep. /tuː/
    indicates direction or purpose She went to the store for groceries.
  5. 005
    adet. /ə/
    used before a singular noun I saw a bird in the garden.
  6. 006
    'spart. /ɪz/
    indicates possession or contraction That's Sarah's book on the table.
  7. 007
    itpron. /ɪt/
    refers to a thing previously mentioned It was a beautiful day outside.
  8. 008
    andconj. /ænd/
    used to connect words or phrases I like coffee and tea in the morning.
  9. 009
    thatdet. /ðæt/
    used to specify or identify something I want that dress for the party.
  10. 010
    'tpart. /nt/
    contraction for 'not'
  11. 011
    ofprep. /ʌv/
    indicates belonging or origin The cover of the book is blue.
  12. 012
    isv. /ɪz/
    third person singular form of 'be' She is going to the store now.
  13. 013
    inprep. /ɪn/
    inside or within something The cat is in the box.
  14. 014
    whatpron. /wɒt/
    used to ask for information What are you doing this weekend?
  15. 015
    wepron. /wiː/
    first person plural pronoun We are going to the park today.
  16. 016
    mepron. /miː/
    first person singular pronoun Can you help me with this?
  17. 017
    thisdet. /ðɪs/
    referring to a specific thing This is my favorite book.
  18. 018
    hepron. /hiː/
    third person singular masculine pronoun He is my best friend.
  19. 019
    forprep. /fɔːr/
    indicates purpose or benefit This gift is for you.
  20. 020
    mydet. /maɪ/
    first person singular possessive My car is parked outside.
  21. 021
    onprep. /ɒn/
    In a position above and touching. The book is on the table.
  22. 022
    havev. /hæv/
    To possess or own something. I have a new car.
  23. 023
    yourdet. /jɔːr/
    Belonging to the person addressed. Is this your jacket?
  24. 024
    dov. /duː/
    To perform an action or task. I need to do my homework.
  25. 025
    wasv. /wɒz/
    Past tense of 'be'. She was at the party last night.
  26. 026
    'mpart. /əm/
    Contraction of 'am'.
  27. 027
    noadv. /nəʊ/
    Not any; negative response. There are no cookies left.
  28. 028
    notpart. /nɒt/
    Used to make a word negative. I do not like spinach.
  29. 029
    bev. /bi/
    To exist or live. I want to be happy.
  30. 030
    arev. /ɑːr/
    Present tense of 'be' for plural. They are my friends.
  31. 031
    donv. /dɒn/
    put on clothing He will don his jacket before leaving.
  32. 032
    'repart. /ɑːr/
    (contraction of 'are')
  33. 033
    knowv. /nəʊ/
    be aware of information I know the answer to your question.
  34. 034
    canaux. /kæn/
    be able to do something I can help you with that task.
  35. 035
    withprep. /wɪð/
    accompanied by or using She went to the store with her friend.
  36. 036
    butconj. /bʌt/
    used to introduce a contrast I wanted to go, but I was tired.
  37. 037
    alldet. /ɔːl/
    the whole amount or every one All the cookies were eaten at the party.
  38. 038
    soadv. /səʊ/
    to a great extent It was so hot outside today.
  39. 039
    justadv. /dʒʌst/
    only or simply I just finished my homework.
  40. 040
    thereadv. /ðɛər/
    in that place The book is over there on the shelf.
  41. 041
    hereadv. /hɪər/
    in this place or location Please sit down right here next to me.
  42. 042
    theypron. /ðeɪ/
    referring to a group of people They are going to the concert tonight.
  43. 043
    likev. /laɪk/
    to enjoy or prefer something I like to read books in my free time.
  44. 044
    'llpart. /əl/
    (contraction of 'will')
  45. 045
    getv. /ɡɛt/
    to obtain or receive something I need to get some groceries after work.
  46. 046
    shepron. /ʃiː/
    referring to a female person She loves to paint in her spare time.
  47. 047
    gov. /ɡoʊ/
    to move from one place to another Let's go to the park this weekend.
  48. 048
    ifconj. /ɪf/
    introducing a conditional clause I'll call you if I finish early.
  49. 049
    rightadj. /raɪt/
    correct or true; opposite of wrong You were right about the meeting time.
  50. 050
    outadv. /aʊt/
    away from the inside or center She went out to enjoy the sunny weather.

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  51. 051
    aboutprep. /əˈbaʊt/
    concerning; on the subject of We talked about our weekend plans.
  52. 052
    upadv. /ʌp/
    toward a higher position She climbed up the steep hill.
  53. 053
    atprep. /æt/
    in or near a specific place I will meet you at the park.
  54. 054
    himpron. /hɪm/
    (pronoun) referring to a male
  55. 055
    nowadv. /naʊ/
    at the present time I need to leave now for my appointment.
  56. 056
    ohinterj. /oʊ/
    (interjection) expressing surprise or realization
  57. 057
    onenum. /wʌn/
    the number after zero I have one apple in my bag.
  58. 058
    comev. /kʌm/
    to move toward someone or something Please come to my birthday party.
  59. 059
    welladv. /wɛl/
    in a good or satisfactory manner She sings very well in the choir.
  60. 060
    herpron. /hɜːr/
    (pronoun) referring to a female
  61. 061
    howadv. /haʊ/
    In what way or manner. How do you make this dish?
  62. 062
    yeahinterj. /jɛə/
    Informal affirmation or agreement. Yeah, I would love to join you.
  63. 063
    'vepart. /hæv/
    (participle) contraction of have.
  64. 064
    willaux. /wɪl/
    Expressing future intention or promise. I will call you tomorrow.
  65. 065
    gotv. /ɡɒt/
    Past tense of get; received. I got a new job last week.
  66. 066
    wantv. /wɒnt/
    Desire or wish for something. I want to go to the beach.
  67. 067
    thinkv. /θɪŋk/
    To have a belief or opinion. I think this movie is great.
  68. 068
    asconj. /æz/
    In the role or function of. She works as a teacher.
  69. 069
    seev. /siː/
    To perceive with the eyes. I see the mountains in the distance.
  70. 070
    didv. /dɪd/
    Past tense of do; performed. I did my homework last night.
  71. 071
    goodadj. /ɡʊd/
    of high quality or standard She did a good job on the project.
  72. 072
    whopron. /huː/
    used to ask about a person Who is coming to the party tonight?
  73. 073
    whyadv. /waɪ/
    used to ask for a reason Why did you choose that restaurant?
  74. 074
    fromprep. /frɒm/
    indicating the starting point I received a letter from my friend.
  75. 075
    letv. /lɛt/
    to allow or permit Please let me know your decision.
  76. 076
    hisdet. /hɪz/
    belonging to him That is his favorite book.
  77. 077
    yesinterj. /jɛs/
    used to express agreement Yes, I would love to join you.
  78. 078
    whenadv. /wɛn/
    at what time When are we meeting for lunch?
  79. 079
    goingv. /ˈɡoʊɪŋ/
    moving or traveling to a place I am going to the store now.
  80. 080
    timen. /taɪm/
    a measured period or duration What time does the movie start?
  81. 081
    andet. /æn/
    indefinite article for singular nouns I saw an elephant at the zoo.
  82. 082
    okayinterj. /oʊˈkeɪ/
    expressing agreement or acceptance It's okay to ask for help.
  83. 083
    backadv. /bæk/
    in the opposite direction Please come back to the party.
  84. 084
    lookv. /lʊk/
    to direct one's gaze Look at the beautiful sunset.
  85. 085
    uspron. /ʌs/
    pronoun for the speaker and others They invited us to the concert.
  86. 086
    wouldaux. /wʊd/
    indicates a conditional action I would go if I had time.
  87. 087
    thempron. /ðɛm/
    pronoun for multiple people or things I saw them at the park.
  88. 088
    whereadv. /wɛər/
    in or at what place Where did you put my keys?
  89. 089
    werev. /wɜːr/
    past tense of 'be' for plural They were happy to see us.
  90. 090
    takev. /teɪk/
    to grasp or capture something Please take this gift home.
  91. 091
    thenadv. /ðɛn/
    at that time; next We went to dinner, then watched a movie.
  92. 092
    hadv. /hæd/
    possessed or experienced in the past She had a great time at the party.
  93. 093
    orconj. /ɔːr/
    used to indicate choices Would you like tea or coffee?
  94. 094
    beenv. /bɪn/
    past participle of be I have been to that restaurant before.
  95. 095
    ourdet. /aʊər/
    belonging to us This is our favorite place to relax.
  96. 096
    gonnav. /ˈɡɒnə/
    going to (informal) I'm gonna finish my homework tonight.
  97. 097
    tellv. /tɛl/
    to inform or communicate Please tell me your plans for tomorrow.
  98. 098
    reallyadv. /ˈrɪəli/
    very; genuinely I really enjoyed the concert last night.
  99. 099
    mann. /mæn/
    an adult male human The man at the store was very helpful.
  100. 100
    somedet. /sʌm/
    an unspecified amount or number Can I have some water, please?

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Why these 100 words?

They're the 100 most frequent words in English, ranked by real-world usage from Vocabai's language corpus. High-frequency words give you the most comprehension per word learned, so studying them in order is the fastest route to understanding everyday English.

Does this include articles and function words?

Yes — this is the literal most-common ranking, so the highest-frequency function words (articles, pronouns, prepositions) are included. If you'd rather skip them and focus on content vocabulary, see our "essential English words" list.

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