GRAMMAR NO. 3: Pronunciation of -ed/-d suffix (past tense)

Formation of the past tense & past participle

The past tense and the past participle of the verbs in English can be formed in 2 different ways:

a) Regular verbs add the suffix -ed (-d when the verb ends with "e") to the infinitive: for example, "talk" (infinitive) = "talked" (past), or "decide" (infinitive) = "decided" (past)

b) Irregular verbs change the infinitive form, there is not a rule to understand the formation here.

Pronunciation of the -d/-ed suffix

The most complicated part of this suffix is its pronunciation. We can find 3 types of pronunciation, according to the pronunciation of the last sound of the infinitive:

1) Last sound of the verb in the infinitive is VOICELESS (– p – k – s – ch – sh – f – x – h):
-d/-ed = [t]

2) Last sound of the verb in infinitive is VOICED (– l – v – n – m – r – b – v – g – w – y – z):
-d/-ed = [d]

3) Last sound of the verb in the infinitive is /d/ or /t/:
-d/-ed = [id]

EXCEPTIONS!!!

The pronunciation of this suffix has several exceptions. They all adjectives that didn't evolve into the standard pronunciation that we have now and that has been described above. Some of them are: wicked, blessed, learned, beloved, ragged, and naked.

wicked /ˈwɪk.ɪd/ adj

• old-fashioned morally wrong and bad

It was a wicked thing to do

Of course, in the end, the wicked witch gets killed

It was the wicked and wild wind

Near synonyms: evil; naughty

• old-fashioned slightly immoral or bad for you, but in an attractive way

a wicked grin (grin= wide smile)

a wicked sense of humour

blessed /ˈbles.ɪd/ adj

• /ˈbles.ɪd//blest/formal holy

Blessed are the meek (=quite, gentle, not willing to fight) for they shall inherit the Earth

• /ˈbles.ɪd/literary bringing you happiness, luck, or something you need

blessed peace/rain/silence

a blessed relief

learned /ˈlɜː.nɪd//ˈlɝː-/ adj

• formal describes someone who has studied for a long time and has a lot of knowledge

a learned professor

beloved /bɪˈlʌv.ɪd/ adj (/bɪˈlʌvd/ when it is used as a verb, e.g. beloved by his wife)

• loved very much

Her beloved husband died last year

She was forced to leave her beloved Paris and return to Lyon

Eric was a gifted teacher beloved by all those he taught over the years

ragged /ˈræg.ɪd/ adj

• (of clothes) not in good condition; torn

The children were wearing dirty ragged clothes.

• (of a person) untidy, dirty and wearing old torn clothes

Two ragged children stood outside the station begging for money

• (especially of an edge) rough and not smooth

The leaves of this plant have ragged edges

The patient's breathing was ragged (= not regular) and uneven

A ragged (= not straight) line of people were waiting at the bus stop

• not performing well, because of not being organized

The team were rather ragged in the first half of the match, but improved in the second half.

naked /ˈneɪ.kɪd/ adj

• not covered by clothes

a naked man

naked bodies

stark naked (= completely naked)

US informal buck/butt naked (= completely naked)

He was naked to the waist (= not wearing clothes above his waist)

The children were half naked (= partly naked)

They stripped naked (= took off their clothes) and ran into the sea

• Something that is naked does not have its usual covering

a naked flame/light bulb (= one with nothing surrounding or covering it)

a naked hillside (= one without trees or plants)

LISTENING TO EXPLANATIONS

PRACTICE

1) Take a piece of paper and write as many examples as possible to show the 3 different pronunciations (results at the bottom of the post)

2) Click here if you would like to practice identifying the pronunciation of the -d/-ed suffix

3) Click here to further practice

4) Read the following text (check unknown words first):

OUR ENCHANTED ANNIVERSARY EVENING

A) It happened to be our anniversary when we traveled to Barcelona, so my wife Doris and I planned a special evening out. I purchased a beautiful bouquet of red roses that smelled wonderful and a black pearl necklace that sparkled in the moonlight. I beamed as I presented them to Doris. She pinned a rose to her sequined lapel. Her auburn hair shimmered in the sunset’s bronzed glow. I called a checkered taxi and we passed many highlighted sights before we arrived in front of the restaurant. The waiter seated us as soon as we walked into the neon-signed restaurant. I noticed a secluded table. (22 verbs)

B) We positioned ourselves near an opened window and prepared to eat. My wife Doris looked at the selections listed on the menu and decided to have an appetizer. I picked the mushroom soup. A few minutes later the waiter returned. “What would you like to have?”, he asked. Doris ordered some steamed shrimp and broiled trout. I requested a tossed Cesar salad with a grilled steak and a baked potato. While we dined, we chatted and sipped a glass of white wine. Doris wolfed down her food but I savored the meal and chewed my steak slowly. When she finished, she munched on some pretzels. She soon gobbled up all the pretzels in the small bowl placed on the table. Later, we nibbled on a slice of decorated cheesecake as we talked. I wanted some coffee with my dessert. Doris preferred to drink iced tea. After the salted pretzels, Doris needed to drink some water. The waiter finally handed me the bill and I offered him a tip. We tipped him 15% of the totaled charges. He thanked us and smiled as we exited the restaurant. (40 verbs)

C) Outside the now closed restaurant, we strolled along the cobble-stoned street, stopped and laughed when we spotted a trained puppy that jumped and played with its owner. We then relaxed and watched the sunset from a padded park bench as the boats in the harbor rocked, pitched and bobbed on the water. Next, we watched a romantic movie at a new cinema that interested us. The aged couple in the movie argued and chased each other as they sailed down an unnamed river that tumbled and surged through rapids which boiled around jagged rocks. Frequently they were trapped and scared. When the colorized movie ended the two discovered that they really loved each other. Finally, at the disco, we danced, swayed to the music and hugged each other often. Whenever I kissed Doris she blushed and giggled. Both of us enjoyed our enchanted evening out together. We hope you liked our story. (41 verbs)

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Results:
1) asked
baked
brushed
cooked
cracked
crashed
danced (da:ns) + t
dressed
dropped
escaped
finished
fixed
guessed
helped
hoped
hiked
joked
jumped
knocked
kissed
laughed (læf) + t
locked
looked
missed
mixed
packed
passed
picked
pressed
pushed
pronounced
relaxed
slipped
smoked
stopped
shopped
talked
typed
walked
washed
watched
worked

2) advised (ad’vaiz) + d
agreed
allowed
answered
appeared
arrived
believed
belonged
burned
called
carried
changed
cleaned
closed
covered
cried
damaged
described
died
dried
earned
encouraged
enjoyed
entered
explained
explored
filled
followed
happened
interviewed
imagined
jailed
killed
listened
lived
loved
measured
moved
opened
planned
played
performed
pulled
realized
remembered
rained
repaired
saved
shared
shaved
showed
signed
slammed
stayed
snowed
studied
tried
traveled
turned
used
welcomed
whispered
worried
yawned

3) attended
arrested
collected
contacted
counted
decided
defended
demanded
divided
ended
expanded
expected
exported
flooded
graduated
hated
hunted
included
invited
invented
landed
needed
painted
planted
printed
presented
pretended
protected
provided
rented
repeated
reported
respected
rested
scolded
skated
started
shouted
treated
visited
waited
wanted
wasted