The Present Participle Form (ing-form) of Verbs

Here are some spelling rules for forming the present participle form of verbs.

1. For most verbs ending in a consonant plus e, drop the e and add ing.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   hope	hoping
   make	making
   refuse	refusing
   strive	striving

   Exceptions:

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   singe	singeing
   tinge	tingeing

2. For verbs ending in ee, add ing.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   agree	agreeing
   flee	fleeing
   see	seeing

3. For one-syllable verbs ending in a vowel plus a consonant other than w, x, or y, double the last consonant and add ing.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   hop	hopping
   pat	patting
   swim	swimming

4. For verbs ending in a vowel plus w, x or y, add ing.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   flow	flowing
   relax	relaxing
   stay	staying

5. For two-syllable verbs ending in a vowel plus a consonant, double the last consonant and add ing when the stress is on the last syllable.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   admit	admitting
   control	controlling
   refer	referring

   The last consonant is not doubled when the stress is on the first syllable.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   cancel	canceling
   gallop	galloping
   loiter	loitering

   Please note that in British English, the consonant l is doubled, even though the stress is on the first syllable.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   cancel	cancelling
   level	levelling
   marvel	marvelling
   ravel	ravelling
   revel	revelling
   travel	travelling

6. For verbs ending in two vowels plus a consonant, add ing.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   beep	beeping
   croak	croaking
   eat	eating
   foul	fouling
   toil	toiling

7. For verbs ending in a consonant plus y, add ing.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   fry	frying
   pity	pitying

8. For verbs ending in ie, change the ie to y and add ing.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   die	dying
   lie	lying
   tie	tying

9. For verbs ending in oe or ye, add ing.

   Base Form	Present Participle Form
   shoe	shoeing
   toe	toeing
   dye	dyeing

10. For verbs ending in c, change the c to ck and add ing.

    Base Form	Present Participle Form
    frolic	frolicking
    mimic	mimicking
    panic	panicking
    picnic	picnicking
    traffic	trafficking