• 2-minute read
• 30th October 2012

Spelling Tips: When to Drop the Letter ‘E’

One of the most common spelling mistakes concerns the letter ‘e’. When a word ends with an ‘e’, we sometimes drop it when adding a suffix (e.g. ‘-ing’). This article will explain when it is necessary to drop the letter ‘e’ and when to keep it.

When to Drop the Final ‘E’ in a Word

When a suffix that begins with a vowel (e.g. -ous, -able, -ing) is added to a word that ends with the letter ‘e’, we usually drop the final letter. For example:

fame → famous

quote → quotable

shave → shaving

However, when a word ends with -oe, -ye or -ee, the final ‘e’ is not left out:

agree → agreeing

canoe → canoeist

And for this rule, ‘y’ counts as a vowel suffix (e.g. Ice → Icy or Laze → Lazy).

There are also some words where the ‘e’ is optional when it comes before the suffixes ‘-age’ or ‘-able’. For example:

move → mov(e)able

like → lik(e)able

However, even when two spellings are accepted, one may be more common. For example, ‘likeable’ occurs much more in British English than in American English.

As such, you may want to check which spelling is more common in the dialect you are using when writing for a specific audience.

When to Keep the Final ‘e’:

The letter ‘e’ is not usually dropped when it comes before a suffix that begins with a consonant. For example:

definite → definitely

tune → tuneful

close → closeness

There is an exception to this rule, which is when a word ends with ‘ue’. For example:

argue → argument

Nor do we drop the ‘e’ when adding a suffix that begins with an ‘o’ or an ‘a’ in words that end in ‘ce’ or ‘ge’. For example:

courage → courageous

manage → manageable

We hope that you have found this article useful. However, if you struggle to remember these rules, you should get your essay proofread by the experts.