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3.09 Final consonants doubled before a suffix
Double the final consonant before y or before a suffix beginning with a vowel in a word of one syllable that ends in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel:
- bed
- bedded
- dip
- dipped
- fat
- fatty
- fit
- fitted
- flit
- flitting
- gum
- gummy
- log
- logged
- mad
- madden
- rot
- rotted
- scrub
- scrubbing
- sit
- sitting
- stop
- stopping
Final consonants doubled before a suffix, Exceptions
Do not double the final consonant in a word of one syllable if the vowel sound is long:
- boat
- boating
- light
- lighten
- stoop
- stooped
- read
- reading
Note that the preferred plural spelling of the noun bus is buses.
The final consonant is doubled in words of more than one syllable ending in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel, if the accent is on the last syllable and the suffix begins with a vowel:
- acquit
- acquittal
- commit
- committal
- occur
- occurrence
- rebel
- rebellion
- regret
- regretted
- transmit
- transmitted
Note that there is no doubling of the consonant in targeted and benefited.
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