2.2.9: Spelling Rules for Verbs in the Present and Past Tenses (and Nouns)
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Spelling Rules for Nouns
When a singular noun ends in a consonant letter and a y, change the y to i and add es to make it plural.
baby babies fly flies library libraries party parties
army armies lady ladies country countries family families
When a singular noun ends in a vowel letter and a y, add an s to make it plural.
day days key keys boy boys toy toys
monkey monkeys way ways tray trays play plays
When a singular noun ends in an s, sh, ch, x, or z, add es to the end of the noun to make it plural.
dish dishes rash rashes kiss kisses fox foxes waltz waltzes
brush brushes watch watches bus buses tax taxes patch patches
Sometimes, when a noun ends in an f or an fe, we change the f to V and add es. There are many exceptions to this “rule.”
life lives wife wives knife knives loaf loaves
shelf shelves leaf leaves thief thieves wolf wolves
Exceptions to this “rule”:
roof roofs chief chiefs chef chefs cliff cliffs
puff puffs cuff cuffs gaffe gaffes whiff whiffs
There are also many irregular plural nouns in English or nouns with no singular form.
man men woman women child children foot feet tooth teeth
mouse mice deer deer sheep sheep louse lice ox oxen
person persons/people ----- police ------ clothes ------ pants fish fish(es)
Forming the plural with nouns ending in “O” (Good Luck!)
1. When nouns end in “o” preceded by a vowel, add “s” only.
Examples:
studio studios radio radios rodeo rodeos patio patios
bio bios ratio ratios kangaroo kangaroos zoo zoos
2. Musical terms ending in “o” also end in “s.” These are exceptions to rule # 1.
piano pianos alto altos solo solos cello cellos
3. Some nouns ending in an “o” preceded by a consonant, however, also add “s”only; others add an “es.” (This is an awful rule.)
Examples:
(“S” only) kimono kimonos zero zeros two twos ratio ratios
silo silos solo solos tango tangos
(“ES”) potato potatoes hero heroes Negro Negroes
mango mangoes
4. Some nouns ending in “o” can form the plural by add an “s” or an “es.” Both are correct. (This is also an awful rule.)
Examples:
halo halos haloes cargo cargos cargoes motto mottos mottoes
lasso lassos lassoes
Basically, when a noun ends in an “o” and you want to know how to make it plural, look up the spelling of the word in a dictionary … because that is what I had to do.
Exercise 9: Fill in the blanks with the plural form of the nouns, please.
1. coat _______________ 2. woman _______________
3. baby _______________ 4. day _______________
5. hour _______________ 6. hero _______________
7. dress _______________ 8. city _______________
9. knife _______________ 10. foot _______________
11. punch _______________ 12. patio _______________
13. caress _______________ 14. sandwich _______________
15. lady _______________ 16. toy _______________
17. tooth _______________ 18. penny _______________
19. rash _______________ 20. fax _______________
21. snake _______________ 22. patch _______________
23. wish _______________ 24. tax _______________
25. waltz _______________ 26. wheeze _______________
27. bus _______________ 28. shelf _______________
29. watch _______________ 30. radio _______________
31. person _______________ 32. fish _______________
33. nanny _______________ 34. nickel _______________
35. clock _______________ 36. piano ______________
37. window _______________ 38. box _______________
39. thief _______________ 40. attorney _______________
Spelling Rules for Verbs in the Present and Past Tenses (and Nouns)
The “ES” Rule
In the third person (he, she, it) in the present tense, when a verb ends in an s, sh, ch, x, or z, add es to the verb. (The same is true for nouns ending in s, sh, ch, x, and z.)
Push pushes, reach reaches, wash washes, fix fixes, buzz buzzes, kiss kisses, miss misses, tax taxes, fizz fizzes, pitch pitches, box boxes, bless blesses, crash crashes
The “Y” Rules
1. When a verb ends in a consonant plus y, change the y to i and add es or ed.
Study studies studied, hurry hurries hurried, copy copies copied, try tries tried,
party parties partied, marry marries married, bury buries buried, worry worries worried
2. When a verb ends in a vowel plus y, simply add an s or ed.
Play plays played, enjoy enjoys enjoyed, stay stays stayed, buy buys …..,
The Double Consonant Rule
When a verb ends in one vowel and one consonant, double the consonant and add ing or ed.
Plan planning planned, stop stopping stopped, run running ….., hit hitting …..,
win winning ….., begin beginning ….., swim swimming ….., rob robbing, robbed
Never double the following letters in English:
ww, xx, and yy. These letters are NEVER doubled in English. Also, en at the end of a word is almost never doubled. Examples: flowing, fixing, staying, listening, showing, taxing, playing, happening
The Final “E” Rule
When a verb ends in a final e, drop the e and add ing or just add a d to form the past tense. If a verb ends in a double e (ee), don’t drop the e. Examples: seeing, freeing, fleeing, peeing
Live living lived, type typing typed, smoke smoking smoked, bake baking baked
Exceptions:
The verbs “do, go, and have” are exceptions to the rules. They have irregular “S” forms (does, goes, has).
Exercise 10: Please give the S Form and the ING Form for each of the following verbs.
Base Form S Form ING Form
1. move
2. listen
3. watch
4. study
5. use
6. finish
7. put
8. begin
9. waltz
10. explain
11. chop
12. argue
13. sort
14. mix
15. get
16. work
17. borrow
18. lengthen
19. hurt
Base Form S Form Present Participle
20. buy
21. mend
22. enjoy
23. trip
24. play
25. have
26. punch
27. spy
28. halt
29. party
30. spin
31. burst
32. employ
33. estimate
34. go
35. show
36. do
37. plug
38. complete
39. flex
40. flip
41. pass