Comprehensive ‘Y Word’ Lists & Activities for Speech Therapy

Many young children struggle to pronounce y words, saying ‘yellow’ as ‘lellow.’ However, they have usually mastered this tricky sound by their fourth birthday. 

If your child is still struggling, don’t be too concerned. The y sound can be challenging to master because it depends on specific tongue positioning, and it’s made inside the mouth, so it’s harder for them to see and copy. 

In this article, we’ll focus on this specific sound to improve articulation, boost confidence and social skills, improve academic performance, and help them thrive. 

We share y words list for kids, divided into whether the sound appears at the beginning or middle of the word and by syllables alongside short phrases, sentences, games, and books to help your child improve their pronunciation skills.

Word list: /Y/ Word List

Here’s our list of ‘y words’ with the sound in the initial and middle positions. 

Note: ‘y words’ with the sound in the final position are very rare in English, so we have not included them here. 

Work through these lists with your child, starting with the easier words and progressing to the more complex ones as their articulation skills improve. 

Initial /y/ Words (at the beginning of the word)	Medial /y/ Words(in the middle of the word)
yellow	onion
use	kayak
yet	lawyer
yell	loyal
yard	New Year
yawn	reunion
yawned	reuse
you	musician
your	royal
yours	menu
used	radio
yak	video
youthfulness	audio
yardkeeper	junior
yam	genius
youth	champion
year	opinion
yesterday	behavior
younger	curious
yolk	serious
yummy	mysterious
yacht	brilliant
yield	obedient
yip	stadium
yodel	tornado
yearn	rebellion
yikes	mosquito
yeti	chameleon
yahoo	alien
yardstick	reptilian
yule	amphibian
yuppie	museum
yonder	medium
yankee	theater
yoga	audience
yippee	delicious
yack	glorious
yarn	spacious
yearbook	anxious
yowl	convenient
yaw	euphoria
youthful	studio
yodeler	portfolio
yogurt	comedian
yapper	accordion
yeast	billion
yucky	brilliantly
yawning	olympian
yodeled	civilian
yardwork	comedian
yanking	companion
yearly	familiar
yelping	illusion
yawing	librarian
yellowish	magician
yonderly	mansion
	minion

Y Word Lists by Syllables

When it comes to speech therapy, it’s helpful to use y words with different syllables because it helps to develop their phonemic awareness, improves their pronunciation, and helps expand their vocabulary. 

As a result, their speech clarity, language skills, and confidence will also improve. 

Here are our y-word lists, separated into ‘initial y’ and ‘medial y sound’ and then divided into syllables. 

Initial y by syllables (at the beginning of the word)

One syllable	Two syllables	Three syllables	Four syllables	Five Syllables
yes	yellow	yesterday	youthfully	university
yell	yummy	unicorn	ukulele	utilization
yard	yearbook	unison	uniformity
yawn	youthful	united	unicycle
you	yogurt	universe	unanimous
your	yankee	usable	universal
yours	yodel	yellowish	utilities
used	yonder	yodeler
yak	yearly	youthfully
yam	yippee	utensil
yacht	yucky	usual
yield	yawned
yip	yelping
yearn	yawning
yikes	yonderly
yule	yardstick
yuck	youthful
yap
yarn
yaw
yelp

Medial y by syllables (in the middle of the word)

One syllable	Two syllables	Three syllables	Four syllables	Five Syllables
	kayak	video	employer	utilization
	lawyer	audio	conveyor	justification
	loyal	chameleon	librarian	identification
	reuse	alien	teriyaki	unavailability
	reused	stadium		personification
	royal	champion
	canyon	opinion
	onion	medium
	hire	audience
	mire	minion
	flyer	magician
	liar	companion
	fire	familiar
	wire	transpire
	buyer	illusion
	crier	require
	dryer	yellowish
	trier	retire
	fryer	desire
	higher	aspire
	tire	expire
	dire	perspire
	pliers	inspire
	prior	admire
	spyer	conspire
	styer	entire
	choir	rewire
		unwire
		dehire
		refire

Further /Y/ Word Practice: Short Phrases and Sentences

By this point, your child should have mastered those single y words and feel confident enough to pronounce y words with varying syllable counts. 

If you believe they are ready for the next level, work through the following y-word lists of short phrases and sentences for extra articulation practice. 

You can use these lists with the scientifically proven Forbrain headset, starting from single words, moving on to carrier phrases, and then short phrases and sentences for the y sound words. 

Carrier phrases 

We love carrier phrases at Forbrain because they help your child practice those y words in real-life contexts without feeling overwhelmed. Simply choose one of the phrases, insert the y word of their choice, and repeat.

Here are some of our favorite carrier phrases: 

• “I see a…”
• “I found a…”
• “I want a…”
• “He found a…”
• “She found a…”
• “I have a…”
• “He has a…”
• “She has a…”
• “I like to…”
• “He likes to…”

For example, you could create phrases like these:

• “I want YOGURT”
• “I like ALIENS”
• “She has a KAYAK”
• “I see a MENU”
• “I found a LAWYER” 
• “He has YAMS”

Short Phrases with Y Word

Here’s our list of short phrases with y words, divided into initial and medial positions. 

Initial y word phrases	Medial y word phrases
white unicorn	dangerous coyote
yellow balloon	flour tortilla
orange yam	wild hyena
big yard	green yo-yo
used shoes	Hawaiian girl
yarn basket	dirty junkyard
young athlete	red kayak
yellow jacket	good lawyer
yogurt parfait	loyal dog
big yawn	new lumberyard
new year	previous winner
angry yell	fresh papaya
cheerful youth	happy reunion
yummy snack	glad to reunite
yes please	tasty teriyaki
playful yak	brilliant idea
fancy yacht	curious student
egg yolk	serious injury
beautiful you	genius invention
green yo-yo	mysterious voyage
enjoy your day	valuable opinion
yard work	glorious sunrise
yoga mat	spacious backyard
yawning puppy	radiant jewel
yearly celebration	obedient boy
youth club	continuous effort
your choice	familiar face
yodeling singer	hilarious joke
yield sign	magnificent canyon
your friend	adventurous journey
young child	special guest
yawning cat
yellow tulip

Short sentences with y words

The next step is practicing those y words in short sentences. Use the following short sentences with y words to help them gain even more confidence, boost fluency, and master the tricky /j/ sound. 

Initial y word sentences	Medial y word sentences
The yellow bird flew high.	A coyote can be dangerous.
I will use my crayons today.	That girl is Hawaiian.
You are my best friend.	They took family pictures at the reunion.
Please don’t yell in class.	She was so glad to reunite with her son.
I see a yak in the zoo.	I made teriyaki chicken for dinner.
There are yummy cookies on the table.	They gained thirty yards on the play.
He yawned because he was tired.	Will you use a corn or flour tortilla?
We ate a yam with dinner.	Let me show you a trick with my yo-yo.
We are having a yard sale tomorrow.	The hyena is looking for food.
I feel so happy when I’m around you.	They took our car to the junkyard.
The young boy was excited to play outside.	He liked to kayak on the river.
She always says “yes” to every adventure.	The lawyer has a lot of books.
Yesterday, we went to the beach.	Dogs are loyal friends.
The yogurt tastes so good.	Pick up our wood at the lumberyard.
She used her ballet shoes a lot.	He cut the papaya in half.
Yikes! That’s a big bug!	She made a delicious onion soup for dinner.
The yard is full of flowers.	The restaurant has a great menu full of tasty options.
The yacht sailed smoothly across the sea.	The radio was playing our favorite songs.
You have a great sense of humor.	His video was exciting.
Yoga helps me to calm down.	She loves listening to audiobooks.
The princess rode a unicorn.	The junior player scored the winning goal.
	The scientist was a genius in the field of physics.
	Let’s reuse these boxes instead of throwing them in the trash.

Y Word Reading Practice

The Mysterious Yellow Kayak

One sunny morning, a young boy named Jack found a yellow kayak by the river. “Yikes!” he said, looking at the mysterious boat. He was curious but a little anxious. “I wonder who left this here,” he thought.

Jack decided to use the kayak, hoping for an exciting adventure. 

As he paddled, he saw a yeti on the shore! “Yippee!” Jack yelled, paddling faster. The yeti waved and pointed to a yarn floating on the water. Jack, feeling brave, grabbed it.

He soon reached a small island where he found a yummy fruit — a giant yam. 

Jack took a bite and sighed. “What a perfect day,” he said. He yawned and decided to go back home, thinking about the wonderful reunion with his family. The next year, he’d come back to explore more!

Timmy, The Curious Junior Explorer

One sunny afternoon, a junior explorer named Timmy packed his bag with snacks, a map, and his favorite radio. He was headed to the museum to learn about dinosaurs and aliens. Timmy was always curious about everything, especially the mysterious things in the world.

At the museum, Timmy noticed a brilliant exhibit on reptilian creatures. As he wandered through the spacious halls, he spotted a chameleon in a glass case. “Wow, you look just like the trees!” Timmy said, amazed.

Later, he found an interactive video about tornadoes and learned how they can be serious storms. “I wonder if I could be a genius scientist someday,” Timmy thought. He could already imagine himself discovering new things, like the magician at the theater who made everything disappear.

After a long day of learning, Timmy headed home, his mind full of ideas. 

He decided to reuse his medium-sized backpack for his next adventure. The day had been full of surprises, and Timmy felt euphoric. He couldn’t wait to return to the museum again.

“Next time,” Timmy said, “I’ll bring my companion along!”

Games & Activities with Y Words 

Make learning y words fun by incorporating games and activities into your home speech therapy. By doing so, you’ll give them plenty of opportunities to practice and improve their articulation skills, boost their confidence, and enjoy using these words. 

‘Y Word Sound’ Scavenger Hunt

• Select 10-20 words from the y-word list we shared earlier that match objects you have in your home. 

• Hide these objects around the house.

• Give the child the list of words, then encourage them to hunt down the objects. 

• Offer them a reward and give plenty of praise for each y-word object they find. 

‘Y Word Sound Jumping Game

• Create flashcards using the y-word list we shared earlier. We recommend you choose around 10 cards. 

• Spread these cards across the floor, spaced slightly apart.

• Tell your child these cards are stepping stones, and they need to jump from one y-sound word card to another to cross to the other side of the river. 

• Celebrate together when they reach the other side. 

Y Word Sound Bingo

• Create bingo cards with y words in each square. Use the word lists for help. 

• Tell your child that you will call out each word, and they need to repeat it, then mark it off on their bingo card. 

• When their card is full, they win! 

• Give plenty of praise and consider offering a small reward when they finish.

Read books

Studies show that reading with your child is one of the most effective ways to boost literacy, imagination, and bond with your child. Here’s a list of five fantastic books that are entertaining and include the y-word sound.

• “Yoko” by Rosemary Wells

• “Yes Day!” by Amy Krouse Rosenthal

• “Yummy Yucky” by Leslie Patricelli

• “Extra Yarn” by Mac Barnett

• “Yawn” by Nick Sharratt & Sally Symes

What is a /Y/ Word?

A ‘y word’ is a word that contains the same sound we find at the start of words like ‘yes,’ ‘yellow,’ and ‘young.’ In the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), it is written as /j/. 

However, this can be a challenging sound for children learning to read as it can also appear in the middle of the word and be written in various ways. Here are some examples with the y word sound underlined. 

• User

• Onion

• Eulogy

• Anyon

• Magician

By working through the word lists, phrases, and sentences we’ve provided here, your child can gain exposure to this sound in a variety of content and gently improve their skills step by step. 

How to Pronounce the ‘Y Word’ Sound

The ‘y word’ sound is a voiced palatal approximant. 

This means that when you pronounce this sound, you use your vocal cords (voiced), your tongue is placed close to your hard palate (palatal), and your speech organs come close together (approximant). 

To pronounce it, start by placing the tip of your tongue behind your lower teeth and raising the middle of your tongue towards the roof of your mouth. Keep your lips relaxed and allow your vocal cords to vibrate as you release air from your lungs. 

Watch this child-friendly video from Speech Therapy Mom for more detailed guidance on pronouncing ‘y word’ sounds and /j/. 

Pronouncing the ‘y word’ sound

Let’s put it into practice so you can help your child with home speech therapy. 

Choose a word from the above ‘y word’ list, such as ‘yes’ or ‘yellow,’ and say it aloud a few times, noticing the position of your lips, tongue, and whether you use your vocal cords. 

Repeat as many times as desired. 

How to help your child produce the ‘y word’ sound correctly

Here’s our easy step-by-step guide on how to help your child articulate this tricky sound. 

1. Sit with your child in front of a mirror and ask them to watch you as you say the y word, ‘yes.’
   
2. Encourage your child to copy your lip position and copy you, looking in the mirror as they do so.
   
3. If your child is struggling, explain the position of their tongue and lips. Also, ask them to place their hand on their throat and check for vibration. This ensures they are using their vocal cords. 

Practice as many times as needed, repeating the simpler one-syllable y words before moving on to the more complex. 

Using Forbrain to Practice Y Words

When it comes to skills like articulating the y word sound, practice makes perfect. For that reason, we recommend you make these word lists, games, and activities a regular part of your day. 

Accelerate their learning by using our scientifically-proven Forbrain headset. Used for just 10 minutes per day, it will teach your child how to identify the challenging ‘y word’ sound, provide instant, non-judgmental feedback, and boost their language skills and confidence. 

Using cutting-edge technology, the comfortable headset retrains the brain’s auditory feedback loops, helping parents and speech therapists support children with speech difficulties and see progress faster. 

Learn more about Forbrain for speech therapy here and buy yours today. 

Final Words

Mastering the tricky /y/ word sound can be a challenge for young children. However, by using the y word lists, phrases, sentences, and activities we’ve shared here, you can help improve your child’s articulation in a fun way. 

Used alongside the patented Forbrain headset, your child will soon pronounce y words with confidence. 

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