Classzone: The Language of Literature, Grade 8

Name _______________________________________

Lesson 9 Final y words and suffixes

sway sways swayed swaying

convey conveys conveyed conveying

defray defrays defrayed defraying

dismay dismays dismayed dismaying

employ employs employed employing

subway subways

medley medleys

attorney attorneys

pulley pulleys

decoy decoys

apply applies applied applying

defy defies defied defying

envy envies envied envying

tally tallies tallied tallying

modify modifies modified modifying

celebrity celebrities

century centuries

penalty penalties

gallery galleries

agency agencies


1.	How many of the words in the first column have a vowel before the final y? ________ What happens to the y in these words when a suffix is added? ____________________________________________________________________

2.	When the letter before the final y is a consonant, what happens to the final y when the suffix es or ed is added? ____________________________________________________________________

3.	When ing is added to any final y word, what happens to the y? ____________________________________________________________________

Lesson Generalization

If the letter before a final y is a vowel, do not change the y when you add a suffix.

If the letter before a final y is a consonant, change the y to i before you add any suffix except ing. The y never changes before ing.