English Spelling Rules Checker
Free tool · no sign-up · runs in your browser
Type a word and get its plural, -s, -ing, -ed, comparative or a/an form, together with the spelling rule that was used.
Try:
Plural
cities
Rule: Consonant + y: change y to -ies (city → cities).
The ending sounds: /z/ · How to pronounce -s
The checker follows the usual rules and a short list of exceptions. For a rare word, confirm in a dictionary.
Plural: examples by rule
Most nouns just add -s (cat → cats).
- cat → cats
- dog → dogs
- book → books
- house → houses
- table → tables
- apple → apples
- teacher → teachers
- phone → phones
- car → cars
- pen → pens
After s, x, z, ch or sh add -es (box → boxes).
- bus → buses
- class → classes
- box → boxes
- church → churches
- dish → dishes
- watch → watches
- glass → glasses
- fox → foxes
- brush → brushes
- quiz → quizzes
Consonant + y: change y to -ies (city → cities).
- city → cities
- baby → babies
- country → countries
- family → families
- story → stories
- party → parties
- lady → ladies
- body → bodies
- hobby → hobbies
- fly → flies
Vowel + y: just add -s (day → days).
- day → days
- boy → boys
- key → keys
- toy → toys
- monkey → monkeys
- holiday → holidays
- play → plays
- guy → guys
- way → ways
- valley → valleys
These words change f or fe to -ves (knife → knives).
- leaf → leaves
- knife → knives
- wife → wives
- life → lives
- shelf → shelves
- wolf → wolves
- thief → thieves
- half → halves
- loaf → loaves
- calf → calves
Most words in -f or -fe just add -s (roof → roofs). Only a short list changes to -ves.
- roof → roofs
- chef → chefs
- belief → beliefs
- cliff → cliffs
- safe → safes
- proof → proofs
- reef → reefs
- giraffe → giraffes
- chief → chiefs
- staff → staffs
A few words in -o take -es (potato → potatoes).
- potato → potatoes
- tomato → tomatoes
- hero → heroes
- echo → echoes
- veto → vetoes
Most words in -o just add -s (photo → photos, radio → radios).
- photo → photos
- piano → pianos
- radio → radios
- zoo → zoos
- video → videos
- kilo → kilos
- memo → memos
- logo → logos
- bamboo → bamboos
- studio → studios
Irregular plural: learn it as a pair (man → men).
- man → men
- woman → women
- child → children
- person → people
- mouse → mice
- foot → feet
- tooth → teeth
- goose → geese
- cactus → cacti
- analysis → analyses
The plural is the same as the singular (sheep → sheep).
- sheep → sheep
- fish → fish
- deer → deer
- series → series
- species → species
-ing: examples by rule
No change to the spelling: add -ing (play → playing).
- play → playing
- work → working
- eat → eating
- rain → raining
- help → helping
- fix → fixing
- snow → snowing
- stay → staying
- wash → washing
- watch → watching
Drop the silent e, then add -ing (make → making).
- make → making
- write → writing
- come → coming
- have → having
- take → taking
- dance → dancing
- use → using
- smile → smiling
- live → living
- give → giving
Keep the e when the word ends in -ee, -ye or -oe, and in “be” (see → seeing).
- be → being
- see → seeing
- agree → agreeing
- flee → fleeing
- dye → dyeing
-ie changes to -ying (lie → lying).
- lie → lying
- die → dying
- tie → tying
Consonant–vowel–consonant, stressed last syllable: double the last letter (stop → stopping, begin → beginning).
- run → running
- sit → sitting
- stop → stopping
- swim → swimming
- get → getting
- plan → planning
- put → putting
- begin → beginning
- forget → forgetting
- prefer → preferring
The stress is on the first syllable, so the last letter does not double (visit → visiting).
- visit → visiting
- listen → listening
- open → opening
- offer → offering
- enter → entering
- happen → happening
- develop → developing
- limit → limiting
- answer → answering
- edit → editing
A final l after one vowel: British English doubles it (travelling), American English does not (traveling).
- travel → traveling / travelling
- cancel → canceling / cancelling
- label → labeling / labelling
- model → modeling / modelling
Words in -c add k before -ing or -ed (picnic → picnicking).
- picnic → picnicking
- panic → panicking
- mimic → mimicking
-ed: examples by rule
No change to the spelling: add -ed (work → worked).
- work → worked
- help → helped
- want → wanted
- need → needed
- listen → listened
- visit → visited
- open → opened
- start → started
- wash → washed
- watch → watched
The word ends in e: add only -d (like → liked).
- like → liked
- live → lived
- dance → danced
- love → loved
- use → used
- move → moved
- smile → smiled
- arrive → arrived
- close → closed
- hope → hoped
Consonant + y: change y to -ied (study → studied).
- study → studied
- carry → carried
- try → tried
- cry → cried
- worry → worried
- copy → copied
- marry → married
- hurry → hurried
Vowel + y: just add -ed (play → played).
- play → played
- stay → stayed
- enjoy → enjoyed
- obey → obeyed
- delay → delayed
Consonant–vowel–consonant, stressed last syllable: double the last letter (stop → stopping, begin → beginning).
- stop → stopped
- plan → planned
- shop → shopped
- chat → chatted
- skip → skipped
- admit → admitted
- prefer → preferred
- occur → occurred
- drop → dropped
- hug → hugged
Irregular verb: the past is not made with -ed. Learn the forms.
- go → went / gone
- have → had
- do → did / done
- see → saw / seen
- eat → ate / eaten
- take → took / taken
- buy → bought
- write → wrote / written
- run → ran / run
- come → came / come
Comparison: examples by rule
One syllable: add -er and -est (tall → taller → tallest).
- tall → taller / tallest
- small → smaller / smallest
- fast → faster / fastest
- cheap → cheaper / cheapest
- old → older / oldest
- short → shorter / shortest
- long → longer / longest
- young → younger / youngest
- cold → colder / coldest
- strong → stronger / strongest
The word ends in e: add -r and -st (nice → nicer → nicest).
- nice → nicer / nicest
- large → larger / largest
- wide → wider / widest
- safe → safer / safest
- late → later / latest
- close → closer / closest
- brave → braver / bravest
- simple → simpler / simplest
Consonant + y: change y to -ier and -iest (happy → happier → happiest).
- happy → happier / happiest
- easy → easier / easiest
- busy → busier / busiest
- heavy → heavier / heaviest
- funny → funnier / funniest
- dry → drier / driest
- angry → angrier / angriest
- lucky → luckier / luckiest
Short word ending consonant–vowel–consonant: double the last letter (big → bigger → biggest).
- big → bigger / biggest
- hot → hotter / hottest
- thin → thinner / thinnest
- fat → fatter / fattest
- sad → sadder / saddest
- wet → wetter / wettest
Three or more syllables: use more and most (beautiful → more beautiful → most beautiful).
- beautiful → more beautiful / most beautiful
- expensive → more expensive / most expensive
- interesting → more interesting / most interesting
- difficult → more difficult / most difficult
- important → more important / most important
- comfortable → more comfortable / most comfortable
Irregular: learn the forms (good → better → best).
- good → better / best
- bad → worse / worst
- far → farther / further / farthest / furthest
- little → less / least
- many → more / most
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Spelling rules for English word endings
Most English spelling problems happen at the end of a word, when you add -s, -ing, -ed or -er. The rules are regular, but each one has exceptions that make learners hesitate. Is it “boxs” or “boxes”? “Runing” or “running”? “Studyed” or “studied”? This checker gives the correct form and, more importantly, says which rule applies, so you learn the pattern instead of memorising the word.
Plurals and the third person -s
Add -s to most nouns and verbs. After s, x, z, ch and sh add -es: box, boxes; watch, watches. When a word ends in a consonant plus y, change the y to -ies: city, cities; he studies. After a vowel plus y, only add -s: day, days.
A few nouns ending in f or fe change to -ves (knife, knives) but many do not (roof, roofs). A few nouns ending in -o take -es (potato, tomato, hero) while most take -s (photo, piano). Irregular plurals such as man, men and child, children must be learned one by one, and some nouns do not change at all: sheep, fish.
-ing and -ed
To add -ing, drop a silent e (make, making), keep it after -ee, -ye and -oe (see, seeing) and change -ie to -ying (lie, lying). If a short word ends in consonant, vowel, consonant, double the last letter: run, running; stop, stopped. With longer words, double the letter only when the stress falls on the last syllable: begin, beginning, but visit, visiting.
For -ed, a final y after a consonant becomes -ied (study, studied) and an irregular verb has its own past form (go, went). British English doubles a final l (travelling); American English does not (traveling).
Comparatives, and when to be careful
Short adjectives take -er and -est (tall, taller, tallest), with the same doubling and y rules (big, bigger; happy, happier). Long adjectives take more and most. Two-syllable adjectives are the grey area, and some take either form: quiet, quieter or more quiet.
Stress and syllable count are what make doubling hard, and a checker that only knows the rules can get an unusual word wrong. When the rule alone cannot be sure, this tool says so, and you should confirm the word in a dictionary.
Frequently asked questions
What is the rule for doubling the last letter?
Double it when a word ends in one vowel plus one consonant and the stress falls on the last syllable: stop, stopping; begin, beginning; prefer, preferred. Do not double a final w, x or y (snow, snowing), or when the stress is on an earlier syllable (visit, visiting).
Why does the checker say it is not sure?
Doubling depends on which syllable is stressed, and the rules cannot see stress in a word they do not know. In those cases the tool shows the form the rule gives and asks you to check a dictionary.
Are there words with two correct spellings?
Yes. Travelling and traveling, cancelled and canceled, quieter and more quiet are all correct. The tool shows both when both are used.
Is the word I type sent anywhere?
No. The checker runs in your browser and nothing is sent or stored.