Cursive Q

How to write uppercase Q and lowercase q in cursive, one stroke at a time.

Cursive q is the mirror of g below the line. The oval on top is the same one used by a and g; the difference is that q's lower loop swings to the right before returning to the baseline. The capital Q is an oval with a small loop at the bottom and a foot that runs out along the baseline.

Stroke family: Downcurve (oval) letters
Height: q is a descender letter — part of it drops below the baseline. q and the other descender letters
Joins the next letter: Lowercase: yes, from the baseline. Capital: yes. The baseline join q uses
Often confused with: cursive g, cursive y, cursive a

Print the Q practice sheet Stroke by stroke

Cursive Q and q: the pen path, drawn in order

How to write a lowercase q in cursive

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

Start at the midline. Curve counter-clockwise down to the baseline and round back up to close the oval, as for a.
Retrace down the right side of the oval and continue past the baseline into the descender space.
At the bottom, loop to the right and come back up, crossing the stem at the baseline.
Finish with an undercurve to the midline.

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

Capital cursive Q

How to write a capital Q in cursive

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

Start at the top line. Curve to the left and sweep down (counter-clockwise) to the baseline.
Round along the bottom and rise on the right side, then come back down to the baseline in a small loop.
Swing out to the right along the baseline in a shallow curve and end with a short tail.

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

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

Common mistakes with cursive Q

Looping to the left, which produces a g.
Leaving the top oval open so the letter looks like a y turned around.
Forgetting that q is almost always followed by u — the exit tail needs to rise to the midline to meet it.

Tips that help

Practise "qu" as a single unit; in English you will rarely write q any other way.
The q loop is exactly the g loop flipped — write "gq" side by side to see it.

Practice words with q

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

quiz

quiet

queen

quick

quilt

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

q is among the least common letters in English, so it rarely comes up by chance. A pangram puts q into every line you write, which is the quickest way to keep it in practice.

Free cursive Q worksheet

Capital Q and lowercase q: 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 Q practice sheet

Uppercase Q · lowercase q · quiz · quiet

Name ______________________ Date __________

Capital Q

Lowercase q

Together

Words

On your own

cursivealphabet.pro — free cursive practice sheets

q and its stroke family

Downcurve (oval) letters begin at the midline with a counter-clockwise curve that rounds down and back up: a, d, g, o and q close the oval, c leaves it open. Master that curve once and you have six letters.

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

← Cursive P Cursive R →Q in the whole alphabet

Cursive Q questions

How do you write a lowercase q in cursive?

Make the oval of an a, retrace down the right side past the baseline, loop to the right and come back up through the baseline, then exit with a tail. It is a g whose lower loop goes the other way.

How do you write a capital Q in cursive?

Draw a large oval from the top line counter-clockwise to the baseline, finish the oval with a small loop at the bottom, and run a curved foot out to the right along the baseline. It looks like an O with a tail and connects to the next letter.

Which way does the loop of cursive q go?

To the right. g, j, y and z loop to the left; q and f loop to the right. That one rule keeps g and q apart.

What are some good words to practise cursive q with?

Good practice words for cursive q are quiz, quiet, queen, quick and quilt. Close the oval of q each time before you move on; an oval left open at speed is the usual way it stops reading as q. Watch the tail too: q should drop a full space below the baseline and come back up without cutting into the next letter. The practice sheet on this page rules the first two, quiz and quiet; the worksheet generator will rule the rest.