CaWO₄ and CaMoO₄ doped with Dy³⁺ nanoparticles are obtained via an ethylene glycol route at temperature as low as 130 °C. The XRD results reveal that all the doped samples are well assigned to the scheelite structure of the CaWO₄ and the CaMoO₄ phase. Upon excitation by ultraviolet radiation, the CaWO₄:Dy³⁺ and CaMoO₄:Dy³⁺ phosphors demonstrate the characteristic ⁴F_9/2–⁶H_13/2–15/2 emission line of Dy³⁺. Photoluminescence examination revealed yellow phosphorescence for CaWO₄:Dy³⁺ and yellowish white for CaMoO₄:Dy³⁺ nanoparticles. The highest emission is observed when doped with 5 at% Dy³⁺ for the CaWO₄ host and 7 at% Dy³⁺ for CaMoO₄ samples. Doping the host with Dy³⁺ tunes the emission wavelength from blue-green to white for CaMoO₄ and blue to yellow for CaWO₄ nanoparticles. This multicolour tuning emission could increase their applicability in fluorescent lamps and display panels.