Halloween Words That Start With J
nine Halloween words start with the letter J: Jack-o-lantern, Jump, Jumpy, Jitters, Jinx, Jar, Jelly Worms, Jelly Beans and Jacket. Halloween falls on October 31, and these are the words a preschooler actually meets on the night. Each one below has a short meaning, how many syllables it has, how to say it and a sentence to use it in, plus two free printables.
All nine Halloween words that start with J
Spooky J words
- Jack-o-lantern
- Jump
- Jumpy
- Jitters
- Jinx
Other J words you will hear at Halloween
These are not spooky words, but a child hears every one of them on Halloween night.
- Jar
- Jelly Worms
- Jelly Beans
- Jacket
| Word | What it means | Syllables | Say it like |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jack-o-lantern | A pumpkin with a face cut into it and a light inside. | 4 | JAK-oh-lan-tern |
| Jump | To push off the ground with both feet. | 1 | jump |
| Jumpy | Easily startled. | 2 | JUM-pee |
| Jitters | A shaky nervous feeling. | 2 | JIT-erz |
| Jinx | Something said to bring bad luck. | 1 | jinks |
| Jar | A glass container with a wide opening. | 1 | jar |
| Jelly Worms | Soft chewy candy shaped like worms. | 3 | JEL-ee wurmz |
| Jelly Beans | Small bean-shaped candies. | 3 | JEL-ee beenz |
| Jacket | A short coat. | 2 | JAK-it |
What each word means
Jack-o-lantern
It has a person's name inside it, Jack, which is why it is written with those little dashes. In a sentence: “Our jack-o-lantern had a crooked smile.”
Jump
Also what you do when startled, which is the meaning this page is really about. In a sentence: “I jumped when the door slammed.”
Jumpy
A gentle way for a child to say they are nervous without having to say scared. In a sentence: “I felt jumpy walking home in the dark.”
Jitters
Names the feeling in the stomach before something exciting, which is not the same as fear. In a sentence: “She had the jitters before the parade.”
Jinx
Ends in an x that sounds like ks, which is worth pointing out when it is written down. In a sentence: “He said the black cat was a jinx.”
Jar
A jar with a light in it and a paper face is a jack-o-lantern that never goes soft. In a sentence: “We put a candle inside a glass jar.”
Jelly Worms
The same sweet as gummy worms, called something different depending on where you live. In a sentence: “The bowl was full of jelly worms.”
Jelly Beans
Sorting them by color is a counting game that happens naturally after trick or treating. In a sentence: “He sorted his jelly beans into colors.”
Jacket
The thing that has to go over the costume on a cold night, which children rarely accept quietly. In a sentence: “Wear a jacket over your costume, it is cold.”
Which J words are hardest for a preschooler to say?
Jump, Jumpy, Jitters, Jinx, Jar, Jelly Worms, Jelly Beans and Jacket each start with a single /j/ sound, so a three year old can usually copy them straight back. If your child is at the copying-back stage, start with Jump.
Jack-o-lantern is hard for a different reason. There is no blend to trip over: at four syllables it is simply a mouthful, and most children shorten it long before they say it in full.
How to use these J words with preschoolers
Say it, then find it
Say the word out loud and stretch the first sound: jump. Then ask your child to find something in the room that starts the same way. Hearing the sound and then finding it on something real ties the letter to something your child can already picture.
Sort the scary from the silly
Read the list together and let your child put each word in one of two piles: silly or spooky. There is no right answer, and the sorting is what makes them think about what the word actually means. It also gives you a gentle way to talk about being a little bit scared on purpose.
Trace it, then draw it
Use the tracing sheet below to write the five spooky words, then ask your child to draw one of them on the back. Writing the word and picturing it at the same time is what makes it stick.
Free printables: the Halloween J word list and tracing sheet
Two pages, A4, free to print with no sign-up. The word list has all nine words in large type with a tick box beside each one, so a child can mark off the words they can read. The tracing sheet has the five spooky words, Jack-o-lantern, Jump, Jumpy, Jitters and Jinx, on handwriting rules to write over.
Word list
Tracing sheet
More on the letter J
This page is one letter of Halloween words A to Z. For letter formation and tracing practice, see letter J activities for preschoolers. For animal names beginning with the same letter, see animals that start with J, and for the winter equivalent see Christmas words that start with J.
Halloween words A to Z: A · B · C · D · E · F · G · H · I · J · K · L · M · N · O · P · Q · R · S · T · U · V · W · X · Y · Z
← Halloween words that start with I | Halloween words that start with K →
Frequently asked questions
What Halloween words start with J?
Jack-o-lantern, Jump, Jumpy, Jitters, Jinx, Jar, Jelly Worms, Jelly Beans and Jacket. All nine are listed above with a short meaning for each.
Which Halloween J word is easiest for a preschooler?
Jump. It is one syllable, the first sound is easy to stretch out, and most children have already seen one, which fixes the word far faster than a definition does.
How many syllables are in these J words?
They run from one to four. Jump, Jinx and Jar are single syllables, which is where to start.
How do I teach Halloween words without frightening my child?
Start with the silly ones and leave the spooky ones until they ask. A costume, a pumpkin and a bucket of candy are Halloween to a four year old. If a word does worry them, let them draw it and give it a friendly face, which takes the fear out of it faster than telling them not to worry.
What age are these words for?
Three to six. Younger children will recognize the words when you say them long before they can read them, which is the point of tracing rather than copying.
