TypingThe most common English words
A small number of short words do most of the work in English. Words such as the, of, and, to, in, is, that and it appear in nearly every sentence. If your fingers can type these without thought, a large part of any passage is already fast.
Type words, not letters
A beginner types t, then h, then e. A trained typist types the as one movement, the three fingers already moving while the first key goes down. You cannot force this. It comes from typing the same word correctly many times, so that the fingers learn its shape.
This is why the drill below repeats words. It looks dull. It is the most useful ten minutes in the whole course.
How to practise this lesson
- Type the first line slowly, with every word correct.
- Type it again a little faster, keeping an even beat.
- If you make a mistake, do not rush on. Type that word three times correctly, then continue.
- Move to the next line only when the current one feels smooth.
Drill
the the and and that that with with have have
this this from from they they will will your your
of to in is it be as at so we he by or on do if
for not are but had his was one our out day get
which their there would about could other these
the man and the boy; that is for you and me
they will have this from us; what did she say
it was not his day, but he had one more to go
there are more of these than you would think
we could not tell which of them was their own
Letter pairs that repeat
Inside common words the same pairs of letters come up again and again: th, he, in, er, an, re, on, at, en, nd. Notice how many of the drill words contain th. When th becomes one quick roll of two fingers on two hands, hundreds of words speed up together.
Pairs typed by two different hands, such as th and en, are naturally fast, because one hand gets ready while the other types. Pairs typed by the same finger, such as ed (both middle finger, left hand) or un (both right index), are naturally slow, because the finger must jump. Do not fight this. Give same-finger pairs a steady pace and let the two-hand pairs flow.
Keep accuracy above speed
If you finish this drill in the practice tool with accuracy below about 95 per cent, you are typing faster than your fingers know. Slow down until the mistakes disappear, then build up again. Speed built on mistakes is not speed at all, because every wrong word has to be found and corrected later, and correcting takes longer than typing it right once.
Come back to this lesson often. Even experienced typists warm up with common words.
This is an independent practice site. It is not connected with any examination body, keyboard maker or software company. A typing speed measured here is for your own practice. It is not a certificate, and an examination may measure speed in its own way.