Citizenship Test Vocabulary: Both Official Lists for 2026

The citizenship test vocabulary is two lists, not one. USCIS publishes a reading list and a writing list, they share a good number of words, and they are not the same.

Treating them as a single pile is the mistake USCIS specifically warns against. Its own guidance asks you to keep the lists separate while you practice, because the shared words hide the parts that differ.

The citizenship test vocabulary comes in two official lists. The reading list carries the six question words. The writing list carries the months, the colours and the numbers. Both share the civics terms and the holidays. Every sentence in the English portion is built from one list or the other.

What’s New in 2026 for Citizenship Test Vocabulary

Neither list changed when the civics test did.

USCIS is implementing the 2025 naturalization civics test to align with Executive Order 14161. That change replaced the 100-question civics list with a bank of 128, for anyone who filed Form N-400 on or after October 20, 2025.

The English portion sits outside it. One reading list and one writing list still cover every applicant, whichever civics version applies.

So a page telling you the vocabulary changed in 2025 has confused the civics half of the test with the English half.

The Reading Vocabulary List

Every word that can appear in a sentence you are asked to read aloud.

• People: Abraham Lincoln, George Washington
• Civics: American flag, Bill of Rights, capital, citizen, city, Congress, country, Father of Our Country, government, President, right, Senators, state, states, White House
• Places: America, United States
• Holidays: Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Thanksgiving
• Question words: How, What, When, Where, Who, Why
• Verbs: can, come, do, does, elects, have, has, is, are, was, be, lives, lived, meet, name, pay, vote, want
• Other function words: a, for, here, in, of, on, the, to, we
• Other content words: colors, dollar bill, first, largest, many, most, north, one, people, second, south

USCIS publishes this as word strips, document M-1178, and inside the pocket study guide M-1122.

The Writing Vocabulary List

Every word that can appear in a sentence dictated to you.

• People: Adams, Lincoln, Washington
• Civics: American Indians, capital, citizens, Civil War, Congress, Father of Our Country, flag, free, freedom of speech, President, right, Senators, state, states, White House
• Places: Alaska, California, Canada, Delaware, Mexico, New York City, United States, Washington, Washington D.C.
• Months: February, May, June, July, September, October, November
• Holidays: Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Thanksgiving
• Verbs: can, come, elect, have, has, is, was, be, lives, lived, meets, pay, vote, want
• Other function words: and, during, for, here, in, of, on, the, to, we
• Other content words: blue, dollar bill, fifty, 50, first, largest, most, north, one, one hundred, 100, people, red, second, south, taxes, white

USCIS publishes this as flash cards, document M-715, and inside the same pocket study guide.

What the Two Lists Share

The overlap is the cheap part of your study. Learn it once, use it twice.

Both lists carry capital, Congress, Father of Our Country, President, right, Senators, state, states, White House, United States. The same goes for dollar bill, first, largest, most, north, one, people, second, south.

All seven holidays sit on both: Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Thanksgiving.

The function words match too: for, here, in, of, on, the, to, we. So do the common verbs: can, come, have, has, is, was, be, lives, lived, pay, vote, want.

That is more than half of each list. Spend your first session there and both tests get easier at once.

Where the Two Lists Differ

The differences are short and they tell you what each test looks like.

Only on the reading list. The six question words: how, what, when, where, who, why. Also American flag, Bill of Rights, citizen, city, country, government, America, colors, many, elects, meet, name, do, does, are, plus the article “a”.

Only on the writing list. All seven months: February, May, June, July, September, October and November. The colours blue, red, white. The numbers fifty, 50, one hundred and 100. The place names Alaska, California, Canada, Delaware, Mexico, New York City and Washington D.C. Also American Indians, Civil War, freedom of speech, taxes, free, flag, during, plus the word “and”.

Read those two paragraphs again and the shape of each test appears. Reading sentences are often questions, which is why the question words live there. Written sentences are plain statements about dates, places, numbers. That is why the months and the colours live on the other list.

How the Vocabulary Is Actually Tested

Two short exercises, near the end of the interview.

For reading, the officer shows you a sentence and asks you to read it aloud. You must read one out of three sentences correctly to demonstrate an ability to read in English.

For writing, the officer dictates a sentence and you write it by hand. You must write one out of three sentences correctly.

Speaking is not a separate exam. A USCIS officer judges your ability to speak and understand English during the eligibility interview on your Form N-400, which is the longest part of the appointment.

USCIS publishes the vocabulary rather than the sentences. Nobody outside the agency has the test sentences, and nobody needs them, because the word lists bound the whole exercise.

A Two-Week Plan for Both Vocabulary Lists

Four short sessions, split by list, exactly as USCIS advises.

Session 1: the shared words. Read them aloud and write them by hand in the same sitting. This covers over half of both lists.

Session 2: reading only. Read the whole reading list aloud, then read twelve practice sentences aloud. Say the question words at the start of each one clearly.

Session 3: writing only. Write the whole writing list by hand. Then have someone dictate three sentences and write those without seeing them.

Session 4: mixed dictation and reading. Three dictated sentences and six read aloud, in one sitting, the way they arrive at the interview.

Ten minutes a session. Repeat sessions 3 and 4 until three dictated sentences out of three come back spelled correctly.

The Words That Cost People Marks

Spelling misses cluster in the same few places.

• February. The first R disappears in speech and then in writing.
• September, October, November. All three end the same way, which is what slips under pressure.
• Independence Day. Three Ns and an E where people write an A.
• Presidents’ Day. The apostrophe sits after the S.
• Thanksgiving. One word, no hyphen.
• Congress. Two S letters at the end.
• citizens. A Z, plus the plural S.
• freedom of speech. Three words, and the entry people shorten.

Write those eight by hand five times each. Ten minutes, and most of the risk in the writing test disappears.

For reading, the trouble is different. The long names are easy to recognise and awkward to say: Independence, Washington, Congress, Thanksgiving. Say each one aloud until it comes out cleanly.

Practice Sentences From Each List

USCIS publishes the vocabulary rather than the sentences, so these are built from the official words.

Reading sentences tend to be questions, because the question words live on that list.

• Who was the first President
• What is the capital of the United States
• When do we vote for President
• Where is the White House
• Why do people come to America
• How many states are in the United States

Writing sentences tend to be plain statements about dates, places or numbers.

• Citizens vote in November
• Alaska is the largest state
• Memorial Day is in May
• Adams was the second President
• The United States has fifty states
• We pay taxes

Read the first six aloud. Have someone dictate the second six while you write them by hand. That is one ten-minute session covering both halves of the English test.

Where the Vocabulary Fits in the Interview

Both exercises arrive near the end of a longer appointment.

An officer calls your name and places you under oath. They review your Form N-400 with you, which takes up most of the time and doubles as your speaking test. The civics questions come next.

Then the English portion: one sentence to read aloud out of three, and one dictated sentence to write out of three.

By that point you have been talking for twenty minutes. The vocabulary is not the hard part. Doing something unfamiliar while slightly tense is, which is the whole argument for rehearsing both exercises until they are automatic.

If you do not pass a portion, USCIS generally schedules a second opportunity within 60 to 90 days and retests you only on the part you missed. Your case is marked continued on Form N-652 rather than denied.

FAQ

How many words are on the citizenship test vocabulary lists?

Each list runs to roughly 70 entries, and they overlap by more than half. Together they fit on two pages, which makes the English portion the most bounded part of the naturalization test.

Are the reading and writing vocabulary lists the same?

No. They share the civics terms, the holidays and most function words. The reading list adds the six question words. The writing list adds the months, the colours, the numbers and more place names.

Where can I download the official vocabulary lists?

From the USCIS Citizenship Resource Center. The reading list is published as word strips in document M-1178, the writing list as flash cards in M-715, and both appear inside pocket study guide M-1122.

Are the test sentences published anywhere?

No. USCIS publishes the vocabulary rather than the sentences. Practice sentences built from the official words cover the same ground, since no other words can appear.

Did the vocabulary change with the 2025 civics test?

No. The 2025 change affected the civics questions only. Both English vocabulary lists are the same for applicants on either version of the civics test.

Verdict: Learning the Citizenship Test Vocabulary

The citizenship test vocabulary is two short lists that overlap by more than half. Learn the shared words once, then treat the differences as two separate jobs, exactly as USCIS recommends.

Read the reading list aloud. Write the writing list by hand. Drill the months and the holidays, because that is where the spelling misses cluster, and say the long names out loud until they stop catching.

Two pages of ordinary words, four ten-minute sessions, and half the naturalization test stops being a source of worry.