Pre A1 Starters preparation
The Cambridge Pre A1 Starters Word List: Where to Get It and How to Use It
Starters is the first of the three Cambridge Young Learners (YLE) levels, at CEFR Pre A1, for children who are just starting English. The first thing to get hold of is Cambridge's own word list, which is free, so you should not have to buy it from anyone. The two links below go straight to the files on Cambridge's site. After that, this page explains what level Starters is, what the list looks like, its 20 topic groups, the rules Cambridge states precisely for letters, numbers and names, and the free official sample papers.
Both files are on cambridgeenglish.org, linked from Cambridge's Pre A1 Starters preparation page, and were confirmed downloadable on 6 October 2026. The first covers Starters, Movers and Flyers; the second is a picture book for learning words from images.
What level is Starters?
Starters sits at Pre A1 on the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), the starting stage before A1. The introduction to Cambridge's word lists says Starters, Movers and Flyers are designed for young learners aged 6 to 12. yle.tw, one of the Cambridge exam centres in Taiwan, gives these suggestions for the three levels on its registration page:
| Level | CEFR | Suggested study time | Words | Suggested for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starters | Pre A1 | 150+ hours (about 1 year) | about 500 | age 7+, lower primary |
| Movers | A1 | 250+ hours (about 2 years) | about 900 | age 8 to 10+, lower and middle primary |
| Flyers | A2 | 350+ hours (about 3 years) | about 1,400 | age 9 to 12+, middle and upper primary and junior high |
Study hours, word counts and ages are yle.tw's suggestions (read on 6 October 2026), not Cambridge rules. yle.tw's registration page labels Starters "Before A1"; Cambridge's name for the same level is Pre A1.
Starters has three papers: Listening, Reading and Writing, and Speaking, with Speaking done one-on-one with an examiner. There is no pass or fail; each paper earns 1 to 5 shields. Cambridge's guidance is that 4 or 5 shields in each skill means a child can start preparing for the next Cambridge English Qualification, which after Starters is Movers. For many children Starters is their first real English exam, and leaving it with the feeling that exams are not scary matters more than one shield either way. For reading the shields, see how YLE shields work; for the whole ladder, see Cambridge English levels.
What the list actually looks like
The Starters list is a single alphabetical list, each word followed by a grammar label. Cambridge uses 12 labels: n noun, v verb, adj adjective, adv adverb, prep preposition, conj conjunction, det determiner, pron pronoun, poss possessive, int interrogative, excl exclamation, and dis discourse marker (words like oh, well and please). It starts like this:
| Word | Grammar label |
|---|---|
| a | det |
| about | prep |
| add | v |
| afternoon | n |
| again | adv |
| Alex | n |
| Alice | n |
| alien | n |
| alphabet | n |
| an | det |
| and | conj |
| angry | adj |
Those are the first 12 entries of the Starters list, in Cambridge's order; names such as Alex and Alice are part of the list. For the list itself, download the official PDF above. We do not republish Cambridge's wordlist here.
Starters words by topic: 19 of the 20 groups
The same PDF contains a thematic list that sorts the vocabulary of all three levels into 20 groups, each split into Starters, Movers and Flyers columns. For learning, the thematic list beats the alphabetical one: alphabetical order puts apple next to arm, thematic order puts apple next to banana, and it is the second that sticks. A tick marks the groups that contain Starters words:
| Animals | ✓ | Numbers | ✓ |
| The body and the face | ✓ | Places & directions | ✓ |
| Clothes | ✓ | School | ✓ |
| Colours | ✓ | Sports & leisure | ✓ |
| Family & friends | ✓ | Time | ✓ |
| Food & drink | ✓ | Toys | ✓ |
| Health | none | Transport | ✓ |
| The home | ✓ | Weather | ✓ |
| Materials | ✓ | Work | ✓ |
| Names | ✓ | The world around us | ✓ |
Nineteen of the 20 groups have Starters words; only Health waits until Movers. Many Starters words are things a young child can see and touch: school, home, food, animals, toys.
Group names exactly as Cambridge prints them. Ticks follow the Starters column of Cambridge's thematic list (read on 6 October 2026).
Letters, numbers and names: the parts you can actually finish
Most of a word list has no clear finishing line. These parts do, and Cambridge states them precisely, so they are worth clearing first:
- Letters and numbers: Starters candidates are expected to understand and write the letters of the alphabet and numbers 1 to 20. For comparison, Movers is 21 to 100 plus ordinals 1st to 20th, and Flyers is 101 to 1,000 plus ordinals 21st to 31st.
- Names: Cambridge lists the 20 names candidates are expected to "recognise and write": Alex, Alice, Ann/Anna, Ben, Bill, Dan, Eva, Grace, Hugo, Jill, Kim, Lucy, Mark, Matt, May, Nick, Pat, Sam, Sue, Tom. Make sure your child can hear and spell each one.
These are small and have a finishing line, and clearing them removes a real source of dropped marks in Listening and Writing.
Free official sample papers
Cambridge's Starters preparation page links two free volumes of official sample papers, covering Starters, Movers and Flyers: sample papers volume 1 and volume 2 (both PDFs). Letting your child see what the questions look like before the day makes walking into the exam room much less daunting.
A way to work through it at this age
- Start with the alphabet and 1 to 20. They have a finishing line; done is done.
- Then the picture book. Cambridge's Starters wordlist picture book is arranged by scene, such as my body, at the zoo, at the clothes shop, my friend's birthday, my favourite food and at home, which suits looking and talking together.
- One or two topic groups a week. Follow the Starters column of the thematic list, one group at a time, and match it to what your child is doing at school that week.
- Say every word out loud at least once. Starters has a Speaking paper; a word your child only recognises on paper will not arrive on the day.
- Every fourth week, go back over earlier groups with a game. Children take to a quiz far better that way.
- Spend the last month on the official sample papers, getting used to how questions are asked, with no new words.
Not sure which level your child should sit? Starters, Movers or Flyers walks through it. The next list up is on our Movers word list page, and the top level on the Flyers word list page. Dates, deadlines and fees are on Cambridge exam dates.
Parents often ask
What level is Cambridge Pre A1 Starters?
Starters is CEFR Pre A1, the first of the three Cambridge Young Learners levels, for children who are just starting English. yle.tw, one of the Cambridge exam centres in Taiwan, suggests 150+ hours of study and about 500 words, for children aged 7 and up in lower primary. Those are yle.tw's suggestions, not Cambridge rules.
Where can I download the Starters word list, and is it free?
It is free. Cambridge publishes the Starters, Movers and Flyers word lists in one PDF that anyone can download, plus a free Pre A1 Starters wordlist picture book. The two links at the top of this page go straight to the files on Cambridge's site, so there is no need to buy a "complete word list" from anyone.
How many words does my child need for Starters?
We did not find a word count anywhere in Cambridge's wordlist PDF, so we do not give an exact figure. yle.tw gives about 500 words as the vocabulary for Starters; that is yle.tw's figure, not a count of Cambridge's Starters list, so treat it as a rough guide. At this age, what matters more than the number is that every word has been heard, said out loud and pointed to in a picture.
How old should my child be for Starters?
The introduction to Cambridge's word lists says Starters, Movers and Flyers are designed for young learners aged 6 to 12; yle.tw suggests Starters from age 7, in lower primary. Exam centres set their own eligibility (LTTC's Cambridge Young Learners tests, for example, are limited to primary-school children, about 6 to 12), so check the centre's rules before registering.
Are there official Starters sample papers?
Yes, and they are free. Cambridge's preparation pages offer two volumes of official sample papers covering Starters, Movers and Flyers; the links are in the "Free official sample papers" section of this page.
After the words comes the speaking
PLI's Cambridge YLE classes hold four students at most, so every child is called on many times a lesson, and the words on the list get used rather than looked at. In KET, PET and FCE, the Cambridge exams that do have a pass mark, every PLI student has passed to date. The free 45-minute trial doubles as an assessment and will tell you which level your child should start at.
Book a Free 45-Minute Trial Lesson
One message on LINE is all it takes. Tell us your child's age and goals, and Teacher Matt will reply personally, usually the same day. The free trial doubles as a full level assessment. No lock-in contracts, and places are limited.