Learning Worksheets Sight Words Sight word “by”
Free printable PDF · Dolch first grade · ages 6–7
Free Sight Word “by” Worksheet for Kids
“By” can mean next to (sit by me) or tell us who did something (a book by my favourite author). It looks short but says its long i sound.
The “by” page at a glance
Children trace “by”, write it from memory, hunt for it among my, be, boy, buy and bay, and finish by tracing “Sit by me.”.
Helping your child learn “by”
By rhymes with my, fly and why, so teach them as a family: the y at the end says “eye”. Write by, my and fly in a column and read down the list. Then play a game of “sit by”: ask your child to sit by the door, stand by the window, hop by the sofa.
Play Stand by
Call out instructions using by: stand by a chair, sit by a toy, put your hand by your ear. Your child follows them as fast as they can. Then they give you instructions.
Example sentences
- Sit by me.
- We walked by the river.
- This book is by my aunt.
- The cat sleeps by the fire.
On the Dolch first grade list, “by” sits at number 7 of 41. Children often learn it between ages 6–7, building on the primer words.
Where to go next
After this one, move on to “fly” and “buy” (they share the same long i sound at the end).
Parents ask about “by”
Why does the y in by say i?
At the end of short words, y often says the long i sound, as in by, my, fly and why. It works like a vowel.
Are by, buy and bye the same?
They sound the same but have different meanings and spellings. By is the most common, so learn it first. Buy is on the second grade list.
Still curious? Read the sight words FAQ.
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