In English, the suffix -ment turns verbs into nouns. 'Develop' (verb — to grow) becomes 'development' (noun — the act of growing or what has grown). 'Manage' (verb — to control) becomes 'management' (noun — the act of managing or the people who manage). 'Move' becomes 'movement'. 'Pay' becomes 'payment'. 'Agree' becomes 'agreement'. 'Treat' becomes 'treatment'. 'Govern' becomes 'government'. The basic rule: verb + ment = noun. Most verbs just add -ment with no spelling change. The -ment noun usually means 'the act of doing' or 'the result of doing'. Once students know the pattern, they have access to many useful nouns. -ment is one of the most productive noun-forming suffixes in English. This lesson is part of the suffix family — covered more broadly in noun suffixes (#15), and pairs with the -ness suffix lesson (#86).
Before you start — think honestly about your own teaching and experience.
Look at the examples. Answer each question before reading the explanation — this is how your students will learn too.
develop (verb) → development (noun): The development of new technology.
manage (verb) → management (noun): Good management is important.
move (verb) → movement (noun): The movement of the trees in the wind.
pay (verb) → payment (noun): I will send the payment tomorrow.
agree (verb) → agreement (noun): We reached an agreement.
treat (verb) → treatment (noun): The doctor's treatment helped me.
govern (verb) → government (noun): The government announced new policies.
employ (verb) → employment (noun): She found employment in the city.
What does the -ment suffix do? Why is it useful?
-ment is one of the most productive suffixes in English for forming nouns from verbs. The basic rule: verb + ment = noun. Develop + ment = development. Manage + ment = management. The -ment noun usually means 'the act of doing the verb' or 'the result of doing it'. Development is the act of developing or what has been developed. Management is the act of managing or the people who manage. Movement is the act of moving. Payment is what is paid. Knowing the pattern gives students access to many nouns from verbs they already know. -ment nouns are common in formal and academic contexts — government, development, treatment, employment all appear constantly in news, reports, and formal writing.
agree → agreement
appoint → appointment
arrange → arrangement
attach → attachment
commit → commitment (note: -t is doubled because 'commit' has stress on the last syllable)
depart → departure (NOT departure-ment — exception)
disappoint → disappointment
encourage → encouragement
govern → government
invest → investment
move → movement
pay → payment
require → requirement
treat → treatment
What patterns do you see?
For most verbs, -ment is simply added to the verb with no spelling change. Agree + ment = agreement. Move + ment = movement. Pay + ment = payment. Treat + ment = treatment. The rule is simple. Some verbs do double the final consonant (commit + ment = commitment with double t — because commit has stress on the last syllable), but this is uncommon. Some verbs do not take -ment at all and use other suffixes instead (depart → departure, not departmentment). Students should learn the most common -ment nouns as a set. Drilling examples builds the pattern recognition. Once they see the pattern, they can recognise -ment nouns in reading and build many themselves.
Development = the act of developing OR what has been developed
The development of new medicines takes years.
The new development on the river is beautiful.
Movement = the act of moving OR a group of people working for change
The movement of the planet around the sun takes a year.
The environmental movement is gaining strength.
Agreement = the act of agreeing OR what has been agreed
The agreement between the two countries was signed.
We reached an agreement after long discussion.
Why do many -ment nouns have multiple meanings?
Many -ment nouns have two related meanings — the action and the result. 'Development' is the act of developing AND what has been developed. 'Movement' is the act of moving AND something that moves (or a group working for change). 'Agreement' is the act of agreeing AND what was agreed. The pattern: action + result. Context tells which meaning is intended. 'The development of medicine' (action). 'A new housing development' (result). 'The movement of the stars' (action). 'The civil rights movement' (group/cause). 'Reaching an agreement' (action). 'Signing an agreement' (the document). Students should know both meanings and use context to choose. -ment nouns are rich because they cover both the doing and the result.
| Pattern | Description | Examples | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verb + MENT | Basic rule — most verbs | agree → agreement, move → movement, pay → payment, treat → treatment, develop → development, employ → employment | Just add -ment. No spelling change. |
| Common -ment nouns | Useful for everyday and formal use | development, management, government, agreement, treatment, employment, movement, payment, appointment, arrangement | All formed by verb + ment. |
| Meaning — the action | -ment for the act of doing | the development of skills (the act of developing) | the movement of the stars (the act of moving) | the agreement between countries (the act of agreeing) | -ment can name the action. |
| Meaning — the result | -ment for what has been done | a new housing development (what was developed) | the civil rights movement (a group working for change) | a written agreement (the document) | -ment can name the result or product. |
| Common errors | Wrong forms students produce | developement ✗ (development — only one e) | governement ✗ (government — only one e in govern) | argreement ✗ (agreement — no extra letter) | Watch for over-spelling. |
| Some verbs do not take -ment | They use other suffixes | depart → departure (NOT departmentment) | succeed → success (NOT successment) | discuss → discussion (NOT discussment) | decide → decision (NOT decidement) | Not every verb takes -ment. Students must learn which verbs do. |
| -ment vs -ness | Different suffixes for different word types | -ment for verbs (develop → development) | -ness for adjectives (kind → kindness) | Verbs take -ment; adjectives take -ness. |
PATTERN 1 — The basic rule: For most verbs, just add -ment to make the noun. Develop + ment = development. Move + ment = movement. Pay + ment = payment. Most verbs follow this pattern with no spelling change.
PATTERN 2 — -ment for verbs, -ness for adjectives: -ment turns verbs into nouns (develop → development). -ness turns adjectives into nouns (kind → kindness). The two suffixes work for different word types. Students should know which suffix goes with which.
PATTERN 3 — The meanings: -ment nouns often have two related meanings. The action (the development of skills) and the result (a new development). Context tells which is meant.
PATTERN 4 — Common useful nouns: Development, management, government, agreement, treatment, employment, movement, payment, appointment, arrangement, requirement. These appear constantly in news, reports, and formal writing.
PATTERN 5 — Not every verb takes -ment: Some verbs use other suffixes. Depart → departure. Succeed → success. Decide → decision. Discuss → discussion. Students cannot freely guess — they must learn which verbs take -ment.
PATTERN 6 — Common spelling errors: 'Developement' (wrong — only one e between p and m). 'Governement' (wrong — govern has no e at the end). 'Argreement' (wrong — agree + ment has no extra letter). Watch for over-spelling.
PATTERN 7 — Building vocabulary efficiently: Once students know -ment, they can recognise hundreds of formal and academic nouns. Learning the pattern is more efficient than learning each noun separately. The suffix is highly productive in English.
The -ment suffix is essential for academic and formal English. Many of the most important nouns in news, government, business, and education are -ment nouns: government, development, management, employment, treatment, agreement. Students who know the pattern can read and produce these nouns confidently. The lesson connects to other word-building lessons — noun suffixes (#15), -ness suffix (#86), prefixes (#13). All show patterns for building words. Together they cover the main word-formation tools in English.
Build a -ment noun wall with verb-noun pairs. Develop/development. Manage/management. Move/movement. Pay/payment. Agree/agreement. Add words as students meet them. Drill the pattern through speed practice — call out a verb, students give the noun. Speed forces automatic recall.
Choose the correct -ment noun form. Apply the spelling rules.
Each sentence has a -ment spelling error or wrong noun form. Find the wrong word, write the correct one, and explain.
Use this sequence directly in class — guided discovery, no textbook needed. Tap each step to mark it done.
STEP 1 — What -ment does (5 min): Write 'manage' on the board. Add -ment to make 'management'. Show that -ment turns verbs (action words) into nouns (naming words). The verb manage becomes the noun management. Establish the basic pattern.
STEP 2 — The basic rule (6 min): Drill the basic pattern. Most verbs just add -ment with no spelling change. Develop + ment = development. Move + ment = movement. Pay + ment = payment. Agree + ment = agreement. Treat + ment = treatment. Practise five examples.
STEP 3 — Common -ment nouns (5 min): Drill the most common -ment nouns. Government, development, management, agreement, treatment, employment, payment, movement, appointment, requirement. These appear in news, reports, and formal writing.
STEP 4 — Spelling watch (5 min): Show the most common spelling errors. Developement (wrong — development). Governement (wrong — government). Successment (wrong — success). Departmentment (wrong — departure). Drill the correct spellings.
STEP 5 — -ment vs -ness (4 min): Show the difference. -ment for verbs (develop → development). -ness for adjectives (kind → kindness). Different suffixes for different word types. Practise five of each.
Use directly in class — copy, adapt, or read aloud. No printing needed.
For each strategy, choose the option that best describes where you are now.
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