Unit 27: Word endings: -able, -ible
Page 8 of 11
The suffixes -able and -ible, change verbs to adjectives:
| Love | Loveable | I love that cat. He is loveable. |
| Digest | Digestible | I digest my food. It is digestible. |
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1. Usually, if the root word ends in e, you can drop the e because -able and -ible provide the vowel: |
| excuse + able = excusable |
| sense + ible = sensible |
2. If -able is added to a word ending -ce or -ge, keep the e otherwise the c and the g take on their hard sounds:
| notice + able = noticeable |
| change + able = changeable |
3. Often, when applying -able, and we can hear a full root word, the root word stays the same:
| depend + able – dependable |
| understand + able = understandable |
| enjoy + able = enjoyable |
4. If the syllable before the suffix is stressed, and you can hear a clear short vowel sound in that syllable, you may need to double the final consonant of the root word:
| forget + able = forgettable |
| admit + ible = admissible |
5. If the root word ends in y, you may have to change it to an i before adding the suffix:
| rely + able = reliable |
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Test yourself on the suffix rules for -able and -ible.
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