Vowel Suffixes
English: Year 3 & 4 National Curriculum, topic 1.3.1
Suffixes Beginning with Vowels
Some common suffixes begin with vowels. We will look at how we add these suffixes to words later. But for now, let's look at some common suffixes.
-ing
- Floating.
- Crying.
- Swimming.
-ed
- Jumped.
- Leaned.
- Walked.
-est
- Fastest.
- Strongest.
- Weakest
-er
- Swimmer.
- Teacher.
- Walker.
Adding Suffixes Beginning with Vowels
We can add suffixes beginning with vowels to words to change their meanings. Let's look at some examples...
Garden
- Garden → gardener (someone who works in gardens).
- Garden → gardening (the activity of working in a garden).
- Garden → gardened (the past tense of 'garden').
Limit
- Limit → limiting (stopping something from having a lot of choice).
- Limit → limited (the past tense of 'limit').
Doubling the Final Consonant
When a word ends in a short vowel sound and a consonant, you need to double the final consonant before adding a suffix that starts with a vowel. That might sound confusing, so let's walk through some examples...
Hop
- Hop → hopping.
- Hop → hopped.
Forget and forgot
- Forget → forgetting.
- Forgot → forgotten.
Shop
- Shop → shopping.
- Shop → shopped.
Chat
- Chat → chatting.
- Chat → chatted.
Begin
- Begin → beginner.
- Begin → beginning.
Test yourself on Vowel Suffixes
What are common suffixes that begin with vowels?
Which words contains a common suffix that begins with a vowel?
I walked 3 miles today.What is NOT a common suffix beginning with a vowel?
Which word contains a common suffix beginning with a vowel?
Which of these are the correct forms of the word 'garden'?