A suffix is a group of letters you add to the end of a word to create a new meaning.
Think about these words:
hot, hotter, and hottest
'er', and 'est' are suffixes. 😺 They change what hot means.
Nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs all have different suffixes!
Verbs are the parts of speech that describe action.
'-ed' added to a verb makes it past tense.
Stop | Stopped
When adding a suffix to a word ending with a vowel-consonant, double the consonant.
'-ing' added to a verb makes it what's called a "present participle". It becomes about the act of doing that verb.
add | adding
swim | swimming
Remember to double the consonant there, too. 👆
'-en' added to a verb means to become that verb.
fast | fasten
length | lengthen
strength | strenghthen
Adverbs are the parts of speech that describe verbs.
For example, in the sentence, "He quickly ran." quickly is an adverb.
'-ly' added to an adjective turns it into an adverb that explains how something was done.
successful | successfully
careful | carefully
Adjectives are the parts of speech that describe nouns.
'-er' added to an adjective turns it into a comparison.
fast | faster
'-est' added to an adjective turns it into a "superlative". It means something is done in the highest way.
fast | fastest
big | biggest
Did you notice how we doubled the consonant on biggest?
Nouns are the parts of speech that describe people, places, and things.
'-er' added to an verb turns it noun that does that action.
teach | teacher
sing | singer
'-s' and '-es' make a noun plural
ant | ants
wish | wishes
Great job learning about suffixes!
Can you spell words with the suffixes you just learned? Try the practice to see.
Remember: When adding a suffix (like -ing, or -ed) to a word ending with a vowel-consonant, double the consonant.
dig | digging