Cursive L

How to write uppercase L and lowercase l in cursive, one stroke at a time.

Cursive l is the model for every tall loop letter. It is one continuous stroke: up in a wide undercurve to the top line, over in a loop, and straight back down through the loop to the baseline. Practise l until the loop is even, and b, f, h and k come almost for free. The capital L is a loop that finishes with a curved foot along the baseline.

Stroke family: Undercurve letters
Height: l is a tall letter — it reaches up to the top line. l and the other tall letters
Joins the next letter: Lowercase: yes, from the baseline. Capital: yes. The baseline join l uses
Often confused with: cursive b, cursive h, cursive t

Print the L practice sheet Stroke by stroke

Cursive L and l: the pen path, drawn in order

How to write a lowercase l in cursive

Start at the baseline; finish at the baseline, with an exit tail. One continuous stroke.

Start on the baseline with an undercurve that rises all the way to the top line.
Loop over to the left at the top.
Slant straight down, crossing your rising stroke about at the midline, to the baseline.
Finish with an undercurve to the midline.

Lowercase cursive l — numbers mark where each part of the stroke begins

Capital cursive L — numbers mark where each part of the stroke begins

How to write a capital L in cursive

Start at just below the top line; finish at the baseline, with an exit stroke to the right. Capital L ends with an exit stroke, so it joins the lowercase letter that follows without lifting the pen. L beside the other capitals that join

Start just below the top line with a small loop, then rise to the top line and loop over to the left.
Slant down to the baseline.
At the baseline make a small loop to the left, then swing out to the right along the baseline in a shallow curve and end with a short tail.

How to write cursive L: the pen path for uppercase L and lowercase l on ruled paper, with numbered steps on both letters — Cursive L pen path — numbers on both letters mark where each part begins; arrows show the direction.

Cursive L: uppercase L and lowercase l on ruled paper — Cursive L and l — blue top line, dashed midline, red baseline.

Common mistakes with cursive L

Retracing instead of looping — a pinched l is easily read as a t.
Crossing the loop too high or too low; the crossing should sit near the midline so the loop has room.
Leaning the loop the wrong way; it should lean to the right with the slant of the word.

Tips that help

Write "lll" in a row and check that the three loops are the same width and height.
The exit stroke of l is the same undercurve that begins i, so "li" and "lu" are natural practice pairs.

Practice words with l

Once the letter is comfortable on its own, write it inside words — that is where the joins happen. Watch how the exit tail of l rises to meet the next letter.

lake

lion

little

lemon

lullaby

Want different words? Type a spelling list into the generator and print your own l sheet (letters A–Z and numbers, up to 24 lines of any length, US Letter or A4), or copy more words that use l from the word lists.

Free cursive L worksheet

Capital L and lowercase l: a model to copy, grey letters to write over, dotted letters to trace, two practice words, and blank rows to finish on your own. Prints on one US Letter page.

Prints on one US Letterpage. Choose “Save as PDF” in the print dialog to download.

Cursive L practice sheet

Uppercase L · lowercase l · lake · lion

Name ______________________ Date __________

Capital L

Lowercase l

Together

Words

On your own

cursivealphabet.pro — free cursive practice sheets

l and its stroke family

Undercurve letters begin with a stroke that swings up from the baseline: i, u, w, t, j, p, r, s, e, l, b, h, k and f. Learn i and u first — every other letter in the group is built on that same entry stroke.

Families are also the order to learn in, rather than A to Z: the beginner’s guide covers when l is usually taught and the four strokes every letter is built from.

← Cursive K Cursive M →L in the whole alphabet

Cursive L questions

How do you write a lowercase l in cursive?

Undercurve from the baseline to the top line, loop over to the left, slant straight down through the loop to the baseline, and exit with a tail. It is the basic tall loop that b, f, h and k all start with.

How do you write a capital L in cursive?

Start with a small loop near the top, rise and loop over, slant down to the baseline, make a small loop at the bottom, and finish with a curved foot running to the right. Capital L connects to the next letter.

What is the difference between cursive l and cursive t?

l loops at the top and reaches the top line; t retraces and stops short of the top line, then gets a crossbar. A loop means l, a retrace with a bar means t.

What are some good words to practise cursive l with?

Good practice words for cursive l are lake, lion, little, lemon and lullaby. The join is what to watch: the undercurve out of l has to reach the baseline before the next letter starts, or the two run together. Watch the loop too: l should reach the top line and come back down on the same slant as the rest of the word. The practice sheet on this page rules the first two, lake and lion; the worksheet generator will rule the rest.