To binge or not to binge? That is the question.
But will you be bingeing or binging? That is another question.
First, let us look at the definition of the verb binge.
Binge (verb): excessive indulgence in an activity such as drinking, eating, or watching content.
Then what is the present participle or gerund form (-ing form) of the verb binge?
Is it binging? Like how the E in dance is dropped when it becomes dancing.
Or is it bingeing? Like how in British English, the E in age is retained when it becomes ageing (although it becomes aging in American English).
When a verb ends in a silent E, you would typically drop the E when turning it into a present participle or gerund. There are, however, exceptions to the rule.
As for the verb binge, both binging and bingeing are acceptable. This is unusual because it is more common for the silent E to be dropped after time. In fact, it is very rare for the E not to be dropped before adding -ing.
The statistics
Although both bingeing and binging are accepted, bingeing has become more common than its counterpart in recent times. In the Google Books Ngram Viewer, you can see that the two spellings both surged in use in the ‘80s, and then bingeing’s use continue to increase beyond binging’s.
Example sentences
Because bingeing and binging are simply different spellings of the same word, they can be used interchangeably. However, be sure to stay consistent within the same piece of writing.
I was bingeing the new Netflix series yesterday night.
Mom prohibited us from binging on snacks since last April.
Lack of self-control can lead to the bingeing of food and alcohol.
Fernando didn’t tell us about his binging problem for two years.
Bingeing coffee can cause muscle tremors, irritability, headache, and more.
Cynthia claimed she wasn’t binging beer these days, but her roommates all knew that was not true.
Edward had to see his psychiatrist again about his binging of food, alcohol, and TV shows.
Have you been bingeing Hot Cheetos again?
My grandma, who just learned how to use the Internet, has been bingeing soap operas all day and night.
Xavier knew his sister would be binging on his ice cream if she spotted it, so he hid it behind the other groceries in the freezer.
Other verbs that do not drop their E
Although it is rare for verbs ending in a silent E to not drop that E when becoming a present participle or gerund, there are indeed some verbs that fit this category.
- age → ageing (British English only)
- hinge → hingeing or hinging
- singe → singeing
- swinge → swingeing
- tinge → tingeing
Below are verbs ending in a sounded-out E but do not drop that E when becoming a present participle or gerund.
- agree → agreeing
- free → freeing
- see → seeing
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