Spelling
🔒 Log in to track-able / -ible, -ance / -ence, -ant / -ent
🔒 Log in to trackThree suffix pairs cause most ending mistakes: -able / -ible, -ance / -ence and -ant / -ent. No rule is perfect, but two tests work well. Ask if the stem is a complete word. Then think of the matching noun or adjective. Learn the word families in the tables as units.
-able or -ible
Use the whole-word test. Remove the ending and look at what is left.
- Complete word: usually -able (accept-able, comfort-able, depend-able, remark-able, avail-able).
- Not a word: usually -ible (poss-ible, horr-ible, vis-ible, cred-ible, aud-ible, feas-ible).
Some complete stems still take -ible: accessible, flexible, digestible, contemptible, collapsible. Learn them as a short list.
Watch: Indispensable is a common trap. The stem dispense is a whole word, so it takes -able.
A related noun in -ssion or -sion often signals -ible: permission, permissible; division, divisible; comprehension, comprehensible.
-ance or -ence, -ant or -ent
The noun and its adjective share the same vowel. Learn one form and you have both.
| Adjective | Noun |
|---|---|
| relevant | relevance |
| significant | significance |
| tolerant | tolerance |
| brilliant | brilliance |
| permanent | permanence |
| confident | confidence |
| obedient | obedience |
| coincident | coincidence |
Some words take -ance without a matching adjective: surveillance, perseverance, maintenance, grievance, appearance, resistance, allegiance, nuisance, hindrance, assistance.
Tip: Words from fer take -ence: reference, preference, difference, inference.
When stuck, think of the adjective. Relevent is wrong because the adjective is relevant.
Keep or drop the final e
- Drop the e before a vowel suffix: write, writing; desire, desirable; use, usable; hope, hoping.
- Keep the e before a consonant suffix: hope, hopeful; manage, management; care, careful.
- Keep the e after soft c or g before a or o: notice, noticeable; change, changeable; courage, courageous; outrage, outrageous.
Exceptions that drop the e: argument, truly, ninth, wholly.
The -y ending
After a consonant, change y to i: happy, happiness; busy, business; carry, carried. After a vowel, keep the y: enjoy, enjoyment; pay, payable. Before -ing, keep the y: carrying, studying.
The -cient family
Sufficient, efficient, proficient and ancient all end in -cient. Science and conscience end in -ence: conscience is con + science.
How to use this in the exam
- Find where the options differ. It is usually the last four or five letters.
- Run one test: whole word? matching adjective? soft c or g?
- If no test applies, use the word families above.
Two words to remember: the noun from maintain is maintenance, and the word for 'able to be heard' is audible.
Question types you will see
Each type: how to recognise it, the method step by step, and one question to try.
-ance or -ence
The options differ only in -ance/-ence (perseverance, coincidence, surveillance).
Think of the matching adjective or verb: coincident gives coincidence.
Match the vowel: -ant goes with -ance, -ent with -ence.
If there is no matching form, use the families you know (surveillance, perseverance).
A noun and its adjective share the same vowel.
Coincidence / Coincidance / Coinsidence / Coincedence
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The adjective is coincident.
So the noun ends in -ence.
Coinsidence changes a consonant.
Coincidence
-able or -ible
The options differ in -able/-ible (responsible, indispensable, accessible).
Remove the ending. Is the stem a complete word?
Complete word: choose -able. Not a word: choose -ible.
Check the -sion clue: permission, permissible.
-able was added to complete English words. -ible came with Latin stems.
Responsible / Responsable / Resposible / Responsibel
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Remove the ending: 'respons' is not a whole word.
So the ending is -ible.
Responsible
Keep or drop the final e
The base ends in e (write, advantage, notice) and the options differ in whether the e stays.
Does the suffix start with a vowel? Drop the e (writing, desirable).
Is there a soft c or g before a or o? Keep the e (advantageous).
Consonant suffix? Keep the e (management), except truly, argument, ninth.
The e is dropped only when it has no job to do.
Advantageous / Advantagous / Advantageus / Advantagious
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The base is advantage, with a soft g.
The e keeps the g soft before -ous.
Advantageous
-ant or -ent adjective
The options differ in -ant/-ent (relevant, permanent, brilliant), often with a vowel swap earlier in the word.
Think of the matching noun: relevance gives relevant.
Check the letters before the ending too (re-LE-vant, per-MA-nent).
Remove any option that fails either check.
The noun keeps the same vowel as the adjective.
Relevant / Relevent / Revelant / Relavant
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The noun is relevance, so the adjective ends in -ant.
Revelant swaps two letters.
Relavant changes a vowel.
Relevant
-cient family
The word means enough, skilled or very old and ends in -cient (sufficient, efficient, proficient, ancient).
Spot the 'shent' sound at the end.
Choose -cient.
Reject -cent, -ciant and -ceint.
All the words in this family share one ending.
Sufficient / Sufficent / Sufficiant / Suficient
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The ending sounds 'shent', so it is -cient.
The word also has a double f.
Sufficient
-y ending changes
The base ends in y (happy, busy, carry, enjoy) and takes a suffix.
Look at the letter before y.
After a consonant, change y to i (happiness, carried).
After a vowel, keep y (enjoyment, payable).
The y changes only when a consonant comes before it.
Happiness / Happyness / Hapiness / Happines
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Happy ends in consonant + y.
So y becomes i.
The ending -ness adds a double s.
Happiness
Shortcuts that save time
Strip the suffix and look at the root. Exist gives existence. Maintain gives maintenance. Resist gives resistance. Persist gives persistence. The root's own spelling helps decide the ending.
Nouns from fer take -ence: reference, preference, difference, inference. The verb doubles by stress: refer, referring.
Sufficient, efficient and ancient all end in -cient. Science is sci + ence, and conscience is con + science.
Which is correct: efficent, efficiant or efficient?
Show solutionHide solution
The word belongs to the -cient family.
So the ending is -cient.
efficient
Mistakes to avoid
Where most students lose marks on this subtopic.
Writing independant or persistant by sound.
Match the adjective: independent, persistent, dependent.
Writing resistence or maintainance.
Resistance takes -ance. The noun from maintain is maintenance.
Writing noticable or changable.
Keep the e after a soft c or g: noticeable, changeable.
Writing responsable or indispensible.
Use the whole-word test: responsible has a non-word stem, so -ible. Indispensable has a whole-word stem, so -able.
Writing sufficent or efficiant.
These end in -cient: sufficient, efficient, ancient.
Writing arguement or truely.
Argue and true lose the e: argument, truly.
Quick revision
Read this the night before the exam.
Complete-word stem gives -able (acceptable, indispensable). Non-word stem gives -ible (possible, visible, audible).
A -ssion or -sion noun often signals -ible: permissible, divisible, comprehensible. Accessible and flexible are exceptions to learn.
-ant goes with -ance, and -ent goes with -ence: relevant, relevance; permanent, permanence.
Drop the e before a vowel suffix (writing, desirable). Keep it after soft c or g (noticeable, advantageous).
Maintenance, not maintainance. Truly, argument and ninth drop the e.
Sufficient, efficient, ancient end in -cient.
Practice: 12 questions
Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Every answer has a step-by-step explanation.
Topic test · 12 questions
Suggested time 7 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.