Verbs ending in o preceded by a vowel add only s to form the third-person singular. Verbs ending in y preceded by a consonant change the y to i , and add es to form the third-person singular. Some verbs ending in o preceded by a consonant add es to form the third-person singular. When a word ending in e is preceded by a consonant, the e dropped when a suffix beginning with a vowel follows. When a suffix beginning with a consonant joins a word, keep the e .
Some exceptions are abridg ment , acknowledg ment , and judg ment .
These spellings are every bit as correct as abridgement, acknowledgement, and judgement. Words ending in y preceded by a vowel retain the y before a suffix. Most words ending in y preceded by a consonant change the y to i before a suffix. If the suffix begins with i , the final y remains. Proper nouns keep the final y when s is added.