Alphabet coloring pages

Free printable alphabet coloring pages pair each letter with a picture that starts with it.

These free printable alphabet coloring pages set a big letter beside a picture that begins with it, for the letters A, B, I, S and Z. Toddlers get one fat letter and one smiling friend. Kids get busy scenes built around the letter. Teens and adults get mandalas, stained glass and ornate initials, and seniors get bold letters with calm pictures. There is also the story of the word alphabet itself, from Etymonline, and tips for making each letter stand out.

The easiest pages are one letter and one friend.

Easy alphabet coloring pages for toddlers put one big letter beside one friend.

The A is for Apple gives the A a face and a smiling apple at its foot. The B is for Bear sits a teddy bear against a thick B. The I is for Ice Cream stands a tall I next to a cone with a cherry on top.

The S is for Sun lets a little sun peek over the top curve of the S. The Z is for Zebra puts a baby zebra beside a sharp, zigzag Z. Say the letter and the picture out loud together while coloring. After one letter and one friend, kids are ready for a whole scene.

Alphabet coloring pages for kids build a busy scene around each letter.

The Zoo Train Letter Z pulls a giraffe, an elephant, a zebra, a lion and a monkey past a big Z. The Floral Letter S winds flowers and vines along the curves of the S. Pages like these hide extra things to name, so a coloring break turns into a word hunt.

Each letter has its own page with many more scenes. Our letter A coloring pages are the natural place to start, and our letter Z coloring pages finish the set. Older colorers can treat the letters as art.

Alphabet coloring pages for adults turn letters into mandalas, stained glass and initials.

The Patterned Letter A Mandala rings an A with tiny apples, ants and anchors. The Iguana Portrait with I Zentangle sets a patterned iguana against an I, with irises, igloos and ice cream cones around them. The Victorian Initial Z wraps its Z in scrolls and flowers, like the first letter of an old storybook.

Seniors can choose bolder pages. The Stained Glass Letter B fills an arched window with large, clear panes. The Alpaca Portrait with A stands a fluffy alpaca beside a flowered A. The Seahorse Letter S fills the S with seahorses and seaweed, and the Z is for Zen pairs a Z with stacked stones and bamboo. Every one of these letters belongs to a word with its own history: alphabet.

Why is it called the alphabet?

The word alphabet comes from the first two letters of the Greek alphabet, alpha and beta. Etymonline, the Online Etymology Dictionary, dates it in English to the 1570s. Before that, Old English speakers called it stæfræw, which Etymonline translates as "row of letters" in its entry.

ABC works the same way, since it is simply the first three letters said as one word. Etymonline traces that use back to the late 1200s. So a child who colors A and B has, in a small way, colored the start of the word alphabet. Knowing the letters is one step, and making them stand out on the page is the next.

How do you color alphabet coloring pages so the letters stand out?

Give the letter one strong color and keep the picture in softer ones. A red A beside a pale green apple reads clearly from across a room. Go over the letter's outline once more in a darker shade to make its shape pop.

On a classroom wall, color the letters in rainbow order, so each one gets the next color along. On stained glass pages, give neighboring panes different colors and leave the lead lines dark. Ornate initials look richest with a touch of gold or yellow on the scrolls.

From an apple beside a smiling A to a Victorian Z, these free printable alphabet coloring pages give each letter a picture to love. Pick a letter, name its picture out loud, and make the letter the brightest thing on the page.