English — Spelling of -ing and -ed forms
When you add -ing or -ed to a verb, the spelling of the base sometimes changes. Four regular patterns cover almost every case: dropping a silent e, doubling a final consonant, changing y to i, and the special -ie → -ying rule.
How it works
Drop a silent final -e before -ing or -ed: make → making, use → used. Double a single final consonant after a single stressed vowel: stop → stopping, stopped; plan → planning, planned. Change final consonant + y to i before -ed (but keep y before -ing): study → studied but studying. In verbs ending in -ie, change -ie to -y before -ing: die → dying, lie → lying.
Examples
| Base → -ing / -ed | Rule |
|---|---|
| make → making, made | Drop the silent final -e |
| use → using, used | Drop the silent final -e |
| stop → stopping, stopped | Double the final consonant (stressed vowel + one consonant) |
| plan → planning, planned | Double the final consonant (stressed vowel + one consonant) |
| study → studying, studied | Consonant + y: keep y for -ing, change y to i for -ed |
| die → dying, died | -ie changes to -y before -ing |
| lie → lying, lied | -ie changes to -y before -ing |
Good to know
Don't double the consonant when the final syllable is unstressed: open → opening, opened (not oppening). A vowel + y keeps the y before -ed: play → played, enjoy → enjoyed (not plaied). In British English, a final -l is doubled even when unstressed: travel → travelling, travelled.