{"id":4983,"date":"2015-08-11T09:00:02","date_gmt":"2015-08-11T13:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/?p=4983"},"modified":"2015-06-23T00:18:25","modified_gmt":"2015-06-23T04:18:25","slug":"english-past-tense-ed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/english-past-tense-ed\/","title":{"rendered":"Pronunciation: English past tense -ed"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Image<\/a>

Image by hobvias sudoneighm
on Flickr.com.<\/p><\/div>\n

Here is a short lesson about the pronunciation of the past tense ending \u2013ed suffix used in English. It is common for ESL speakers to mispronounce words in the past tense, but after reading this post I hope any confusion you have about the different pronunciations of the regular past tense \u2013ed ending are cleared up.<\/p>\n

I have a short video at the end of the post so that you not only read about these pronunciation rules, but you also get to hear how different verbs sound when the -ed suffix is added.<\/p>\n

To begin, as a review, forming the regular past tense in English is rather simple: just add \u2013ed to the end of the base form of the verb. This is true if you are using the verb to talk about yourself (first person), someone else, or a group of people (second and third person). There is only one conjugation for the regular past tense in English (add -ed). There are of course many irregular past tense verbs in English too, but this post is focused only on the regular past tense verbs.<\/p>\n

Although it is easy to remember how to form the past tense in English, remembering how to pronounce this \u2013ed differently with different verbs can be a bit more tricky. Even though there is only one way to write the \u2013ed suffix, there are three ways to pronounce it! These differences in pronunciation are associated with the last sounds of the word the \u2013ed suffix is added to.<\/p>\n

Take a look at the chart below. This chart outlines the three ways the \u2013ed suffix can be pronounced: \/Id\/, \/t\/, and \/d\/.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
If the base verb ends in one of these sounds:<\/td>\nExample base verb<\/td>\nExample with-ed<\/td>\nPronounce the \u2013ed:<\/td>\nIs there an extra syllable?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\/t\/ or \/d\/<\/strong><\/td>\naccept<\/strong><\/td>\naccepted<\/strong><\/td>\n\/Id\/<\/strong><\/td>\nyes<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
end<\/strong><\/td>\nended<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
all unvoiced sounds<\/em><\/td>\nhope<\/em><\/td>\nhoped<\/em><\/td>\n\/t\/<\/em><\/td>\nno<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

no<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

laugh<\/em><\/td>\nlaughed<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
fax<\/em><\/td>\nfaxed<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
wash<\/em><\/td>\nwashed<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
watch<\/em><\/td>\nwatched<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
like<\/em><\/td>\nliked<\/em><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
All other letter sounds, for example….<\/strong><\/td>\nplay<\/strong><\/td>\nplayed<\/strong><\/td>\n\/d\/<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
allow<\/strong><\/td>\nallowed<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
beg<\/strong><\/td>\nbegged<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

The pronunciation that is used with the most number of verb is \/d\/. Think of this as your \u2018fallback\u2019 or \u2018go-to\u2019 pronunciation for the \u2013ed suffix. So, when shouldn\u2019t you use the pronunciation? Here is one time you should use a different pronunciation: for verbs that end in unvoiced sounds (unvoiced sounds are ones in which you forcibly push air out from your mouth without vibrating your vocal cords). If you have trouble figuring out what sounds are unvoiced, hold your hand in front of your mouth and say some different sounds. For sounds like \/p\/ or \/ch\/ you should feel air exit your mouth and hit your hand. If this happens you are producing an unvoiced sound. For sounds like \/g\/ or \/m\/ you won\u2019t feel air. These are voiced sounds.\u00a0 In English if a verb ends in an unvoiced sound, the \u2013ed ending is pronounced like the letter \u2018t\u2019.\u00a0 Also, if a verb already ends in the sound \/t\/ or \/d\/ then the \u2013ed suffix forms an additional syllable, and both the letters \u2018e\u2019 and \u2018d\u2019 (of the \u2013ed ending) are pronounced as \/Id\/.<\/p>\n

Based on what I have just presented take a look at the following verbs in the past tense and try pronouncing them using these new rules. Give it a go!<\/p>\n

wanted
\ncamped
\nneeded
\naccepted
\naimed
\npushed
\nmimicked
\nreached
\nfrowned
\nbuzzed
\ndecreased
\ncoughed
\npermitted
\nborrowed
\nblended
\nended
\nparked
\nsearched
\nheated
\nhelped
\ndropped
\ninsisted
\nwalked<\/p>\n

freed
\nechoed<\/p>\n

Now listen to me pronouncing these different past tense verbs and see if you got their pronunciation correct. If not, don\u2019t despair, play the video again, review the chart above once more, and try again. Practice makes perfect.<\/p>\n