Grammar A1: ⚙️ Verbs in Depth: ⏳ Present Simple Tense (Action Verbs) - Lesson 2: Present Simple - Adding '-s' to Verbs (he, she, it: He likes, She plays)

Grammar: Present Simple Spelling

A2 Lesson 18: Adding '-s', '-es', and '-ies'

What you will learn: By the end of this lesson, you will know the spelling rules for correctly adding "-s", "-es", and "-ies" to verbs for 'he', 'she', and 'it'.

The Grammar Rules 📖

When we use the Present Simple with he, she, or it, we add an '-s' to the verb. But the spelling can change! Here are the rules to remember.

How to Add '-s' to Verbs

Rule	Example
Most Verbs Just add -s.	work → works She works in Siem Reap.
Verbs ending in -ch, -sh, -s, -x, -z Add -es to make it easier to say.	watch → watches He watches TV at night.
Verbs ending in [Consonant] + y Change the y to -ies.	study → studies She studies English. Note: For [Vowel] + y, just add -s. (e.g., play → plays)
Irregular Verbs You must remember these special verbs.	go → goes do → does have → has

In Conversation

Let's see how these spelling rules look in a natural conversation about someone's daily routine.

You: Tell me about your sister. What does she do?

Friend: My sister is a student. She studies a lot. Every day, she washes the dishes and she fixes her old bicycle if it's broken.

You: Wow, she's busy!

Friend: Yes, but in the evening, she relaxes. She watches movies and plays games on her phone.

Practice Your Grammar 🎯

Exercise: What is the Correct Form?

Write the correct third-person singular ('he/she/it') form for each verb.

1. She (wash) ________ the dishes.
   → washes
2. He (study) ________ very hard.
   → studies
3. The bus (go) ________ to Phnom Penh.
   → goes
4. My brother (play) ________ football.
   → plays
5. It often (rain) ________ in the wet season.
   → rains

Your Grammar Mission ⭐

Complete the Story

Complete the story about a man in Kampot by writing the correct verb form in each space.

My uncle (live) ___ in a small house by the river. Every morning, he (get) ___ up early and (go) ___ fishing. He (try) ___ to catch big fish. In the afternoon, he (fix) ___ his fishing net and (watch) ___ TV. He is a happy man.

(Answers: lives, gets, goes, tries, fixes, watches)

Key Vocabulary

• Spelling (Noun) | អក្ខរាវិរុទ្ធ
  The correct order of letters in a word.
• Rule (Noun) | វិធាន
  An instruction that says how something must be done.
• Consonant (Noun) | ព្យញ្ជនៈ
  A speech sound like 'b', 't', or 'm'.
• Vowel (Noun) | ស្រៈ
  A speech sound like 'a', 'e', 'i', 'o', 'u'.