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Inflectional Endings Worksheets

9 free PDFsUS Letter or A4Answer key includedNo login

Pages for -s, -es, -ed and -ing: an endings chart, add the ending, sorts, the three sounds of -ed, find the base word, sentences and a story.

Download the inflectional endings worksheets

Word endings chart

-s and -es

-ed and -ing

Base words and endings in reading

Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.

About these inflectional endings worksheets

Inflectional endings are the small endings we add to a base word to change its meaning a little: -s and -es for more than one (cats, boxes), and -s, -ed and -ing for verbs (jumps, jumped, jumping). Spotting the base word inside a longer word is one of the first steps from reading short words to reading longer ones.

These worksheets start with an endings chart. Children then add -s or -es to make plurals, sort -s and -es words, add -ing and -ed to base words, sort -ed words by their three sounds (jumped, played, landed), find the base word and ending, choose the right form of a word in sentences and find words with endings in a short story.

The pages use base words that don't change when an ending is added, the 1st grade step. Doubling (running) and dropping e (making) come in 2nd grade. All pages print in black and white on US Letter or A4 with answer keys on page 2.

Standards

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.1.3.FRead words with inflectional endings.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.4.CIdentify frequently occurring root words (e.g., look) and their inflectional forms (e.g., looks, looked, looking).
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.1.CUse singular and plural nouns with matching verbs in basic sentences (e.g., He hops; We hop).
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.1.EUse verbs to convey a sense of past, present, and future (e.g., Yesterday I walked home; Today I walk home; Tomorrow I will walk home).
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.2.DUse conventional spelling for words with common spelling patterns and for frequently occurring irregular words.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RF.1.4.CUse context to confirm or self-correct word recognition and understanding, rereading as necessary.

How to use them

  1. Start with the chart. Cover the ending with a finger and read the base word, then uncover it and read the whole word.
  2. Teach -s and -es with the add-s-or-es page and its sort. The rule: add -es after s, x, sh and ch.
  3. Teach -ing and -ed next, then the three sounds of -ed. Read each word out loud before sorting it.
  4. Use the sentences and story last. Children choose between jumps, jumped and jumping, which takes reading the whole sentence.

Teaching tips

  • -ed is always spelled -ed, even when it sounds like t (jumped) or d (played). Children often write jumpt; praise the sound and show the spelling.
  • -ed says id after t or d: landed, painted, wanted, needed.
  • Use time words to help with -ed: yesterday I played, today I play, now I am playing.

Questions teachers and parents ask

What are inflectional endings?

Inflectional endings are endings added to a base word that change its number or tense without making a new kind of word: -s and -es (cats, boxes), -ed (jumped) and -ing (jumping).

When do you add -s and when do you add -es?

Add -es after s, x, sh and ch (buses, boxes, wishes, lunches), because you can hear an extra beat. Add -s to most other words (cats, kites).

Why does -ed sound different in different words?

-ed says t after sounds like p, k, sh and ch (jumped, looked), d after most other sounds (played, rained) and id after t and d (landed, painted). It is always spelled -ed.

Do 1st graders learn doubling and dropping e?

Not usually. In 1st grade children add endings to base words that don't change. Doubling (run, running) and dropping e (make, making) are 2nd grade skills.

Are there answer keys?

Yes, on page 2 of every page with right answers.