Adding -s
We add -s to words for two reasons:
- to make plural nouns (boy, boys)
- to form the 3rd person singular of the present simple tense (I work, you work, he works)
Spelling Rule
Just add -s to the end of the word, for example:
- dog, dogs
- learn, learns
- demand, demands
Exceptions
(note: C=consonant)
| If the word ends in | do this | and add | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
|
ch s sh x z |
nothing | es |
church, churches mass, masses brush, brushes fax, faxes box, boxes chintz, chintzes |
| f fe |
remove f or fe | ves |
wife, wives calf, calves except beliefs, cliffs, chiefs, dwarfs, griefs, gulfs, proofs, roofs |
| C + y | remove y | ies |
spy, spies baby, babies |
| Note: words that end in -o normally just add -s, except: buffalo, buffaloes; cargo, cargoes (or cargos); domino, dominoes; echo, echoes; go, goes; grotto, grottoes; halo, haloes; hero, heroes; mango, mangoes; mosquito, mosquitoes; motto, mottoes (or mottos); potato, potatoes; tomato, tomatoes; tornado, tornadoes; torpedo, torpedoes; veto, vetoes; volcano, volcanoes | |||
Test yourself with this adding -s spelling quiz