The 'y' rule 

In a nutshell

The 'y' rule is used when adding suffixes to a root word that ends in 'y'. In this summary, you will learn this rule and how to put it to use.

The 'y' rule

If the word ends in a 'y', you will change the 'y' to an 'i' before adding the suffix.

Example

Suffixes -est, -er, -ed

When adding the suffixes -est, -er and -ed, you have to first change the 'y' to 'i'. 

Example

Exceptions

There are two main exceptions to the 'y' rule.

If the 'y' is proceeded by a vowel

If a word ends in a 'y', but the letter right before the 'y' is a vowel, you must keep the 'y'. 

Example

Suffix -ing

If a word ends in a 'y' and you want to the suffix -ing, you must keep the 'y' and not change it to an 'i'.

Example

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