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Unit 9: Adding suffixes: the spelling rules

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Unit 9: Suffixes: why we need to double letters, change them or drop 'e'

Unit StartCourse Test: Vowel and consonant suffixes. Spelling testPage 2: Vowel and consonant suffixes. Spelling testPage 3: Vowel and consonant suffixes. Spelling testCourse Test: The doubling rule, part 1. Spelling testPage 5: The doubling rule, part 1. Spelling testCourse Test: The doubling rule, part 2. Spelling testPage 7: The doubling rule, part 2. Spelling testCourse Test: The doubling rule, part 3. Spelling testPage 9: The doubling rule, part 3. Spelling testCourse Test: When to drop the letter e. Spelling testPage 11: When to drop the letter e. Spelling testCourse Test: The 'Change y' rule, part 1. Spelling testPage 13: The 'Change y' rule, part 1. Spelling testCourse Test: The 'Change y' rule, part 2. Spelling testPage 15: Rules and rule breakersCourse Test: Changing -f to -ves. Spelling testPage 17: Changing -f to -ves. Spelling testCourse Test: A final Spelling test on all the suffix rulesPage 19: A final Spelling test on all the suffix rulesUnit End

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The Spelling Rules for Adding Suffixes

Teaching point - learning to spell A suffix is a letter or group of letters added to the end of a root word to change its meaning.

Look at these examples:

English spelling English spelling
help + s = helps help + ing = helping help + ed = helped
help + er = helper help + ful = helpful help + less = helpless
helpful + ness = helpfulness helpful + ly = helpfully
English spelling English spelling

Learn the Words
Learn the Words: Examples of suffixes

In the above examples, you do not need to change the root word when you add a suffix.

In this unit, we will look at when you do need to change the root word.

Suffixes can be broken up into:
Vowel suffixes – the suffix begins with a vowel.
Consonant suffixes – the suffix begins with a consonant.

For example:

English spelling English spelling
Vowel suffixes

ing es ed er
en est ish y*
able ible al ous
English spelling English spelling

English spelling English spelling
Consonant suffixes

s less ful ness
ment ly ty
English spelling English spelling

*At the end of a word, y is pronounced with an ee sound.

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