Many of the students have confusion in when to use s or es or ies while working with verbs.

Here are some simple rules by which you can remove your confusion.

 

When to use es?

es is used in two cases.

When the word ends with vowel ‘o’.
Ex:

  • Do: does
  • Go: goes

When the word ends with ch, sh, ss, zz, x
Ex:

  • Assess: Assesses
  • Teach: Teaches
  • Buzz: Buzzes
  • Wash: Washes
  • Fix: Fixes

 

When to use ies?

When the word ends with consonant + y then replace y with ies.
Ex:

  • Fly: Flies (here l is consonant and the word ends with l + y)
  • Apply: Applies (consonant l + y)
  • Copy: Copies (consonant p + y)
  • Carry: Carries (consonant r + y)

But there is an exception in this case.

If the word ends with vowel + y then simply s is added to the word.
Ex:

  • Boy: Boys (here o is vowel and the word ends with o + y)
  • Play: Plays (vowel a + y)
  • Enjoy: Enjoys (vowel o + y)

 

When to use s?

For all the cases other than above shown, we use s after the word.
Ex:

  • Rain: Rains
  • Eat: Eats
  • Start: Starts.
  • Etc etc etc……

 

Rules of Subject - Verb Agreement