How to Write Dad in Cursive

By Maya Chen, lettering designer and type educator · Checked by Jordan Hale · October 2026 · How we review content

"Dad" in Playwrite US Trad, a typeface modelled on traditional school cursive.

Dad has the same letter at both ends and an a in between, which makes it a good symmetry exercise. The a and d are both built on the same oval, so the middle and the last letters look similar, and the tall retraced stem on d is the one thing that separates them. Make that stem count and the word stays readable.

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Letter by letter

Each distinct letter in "Dad" has its own stroke-by-stroke page.

The joins in Dad

Da: Capital D does not connect, so lift after the big belly and start the a close to the right edge. Leave a gap about the width of the a oval so the capital stands apart and the three letters do not crowd together.
da: In lowercase dad the first d leaves along the baseline and rises to the midline, then goes over and back to start the a. Do not drop the exit to the baseline again or the a will look squashed.
ad: The a exits at the baseline and runs straight into the lead-in for the final d. Go over and back at the midline to form the oval, and then draw the tall stem up and retrace it down.

Tricky spots

The d stem: The d stem rises to the top line and is retraced straight down, without a loop. A loop makes it look like a cursive l with an oval beside it, and the word can read as dal.
Closing both ovals: The a and both d letters each begin with an oval that must close at the top. An open oval makes d look like cl, so dad can read as clad.
Matching the two d letters: The first and last d should have the same stem height and slant. If one stem is shorter, the word looks lopsided and the symmetry is lost.

Capitals

Capitalise Dad when it works like a name, as in Love you, Dad, and keep it lowercase after my. The traditional capital D is a slanted stem with a small baseline loop and a large rounded belly that curves back toward the top. It does not join the next letter, so lift and begin the a beside the belly. For a tattoo, many people choose lowercase because all three letters share a rhythm.

Variations and styles

On a Father's Day card, a large looped capital D with a flourish under the word suits the shape of dad. In a signature-style version the final d can end with a long, flat exit stroke instead of a short one. Calligraphy writers add thick downstrokes on both d stems, which emphasises the symmetry. Engraved gifts like cufflinks or keychains usually use lowercase dad because it fits a small, narrow space.

As a tattoo

Dad is short, so you can keep line weight a little heavier than for a long phrase. Leave about 3 mm between the stems of the two d letters so the stems do not blur together. The ovals of a and d are small, so ask the artist to keep the closing stroke open to the bottom of the oval so it does not fill in over time.

Printable practice sheet

Trace the grey letters, then write your own on the empty lines. Prints on one page (Letter or A4).

Cursive practice: Dad

Name: ____________________ coolletteringgenerator.com

Copy-paste versions of Dad

Script 𝒹𝒶𝒹 uses no borrowed letters, which is unusual: d and a are both in the main mathematical script block, giving 𝒹𝒶𝒹. The capital 𝒟𝒶𝒹 also has none, since 𝒟 is a standard character. Bold script 𝓓𝓪𝓭 is also uniform. Because none of the letters are exceptions, dad is among the safest words to copy and paste in script.

Dad in cursive: questions

How do you write dad in cursive?

Write a d by making an oval, rising to the top line and retracing the stem down, then leave along the baseline into an a and finish with another d. The word has no capital unless you use it as a name. For a capital D, draw a slanted stem with a big belly and lift before the a.

Why does my cursive d look like cl?

The oval of the d is not closed at the top. Bring the stroke all the way back to where it started before going up for the stem, and make sure the stem is retraced on top of the upstroke. A closed oval plus a straight stem will not be read as two separate letters.

Should dad be capitalised on a card?

Use Dad with a capital when you are addressing him, as in Thanks, Dad, and dad when it follows a word like my or your. On the front of a card where it stands alone as a title, a capital D is conventional and gives you the chance to add a loop or flourish.

Does Unicode script dad have any odd letters?

No. Script d and a both come from the main mathematical script block, so 𝒹𝒶𝒹 should look uniform in most fonts. Some fonts draw script letters faintly, though, so compare bold script for a stronger look. It is one of the few family words with no Letterlike Symbols exceptions.