📖 Dolch 1st Grade

Is "been" a Sight Word?

Yes — "been" is a First Grade sight word. It's pronounced with a short "i" sound in many English dialects ("bin"), not the long "e" the double "e" spelling would suggest.

First Grade Level
1 Syllable
been
been

Example Sentence

Have you ever been to the beach?

Why "been" Is a Sight Word

"Been" is the past participle of "be" and appears in nearly every conversation about past experiences ("I have been", "she has been"). Its pronunciation varies by region, but in most of North America it doesn't match its "ee" spelling closely enough for reliable phonics decoding, so it's taught as a sight word.

Teaching Tip

Practice "been" inside common phrases like "I have been" and "has it been" rather than in isolation — it's rarely used alone in real speech.

Practice

Learn "been" in Word Wizard

Word Wizard teaches "been" with Flash Cards, Listen & Pick, Spell It, and Write It — four game modes that turn repetition into play.

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Flash Cards

See "been" with its picture, syllables, and example sentence — with native audio.

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Listen & Pick

Hear "been" spoken aloud and pick it out from similar-looking words.

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Spell It

Build "been" letter by letter from shuffled tiles.

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