HELPED /T/ OPENED /D/INVITED /ID/

THE PRONUNCIATION OF THE PAST -ED

IMPORTANT!!!!

There are 3 possible ways of pronouncing the past –ed, but you never say /ed/

INVITED /Id/ HELPED /t/ OPENED /d/

YOU PRONOUNCE / Id /…

When the infinitive ends in the sounds / d / or / t /,

for example:

o INVITE – INVITED /ɪn'vaɪtɪd/o DECIDE – DECIDED /dɪ'saɪdɪd/o START – STARTED /'stɑ:tɪd/o WAIT – WAITED /'weɪtɪd/o VISIT – VISITED /'vɪzɪtɪd/

YOU PRONOUNCE / t / …

When the infinitive ends in a voiceless sound (the vocal cords do not vibrate and there is no voice):

/ θ / / k / look – looked /'lʊkt/ / s / miss – missed /'mɪst/ / p / stop – stopped /'stɒpt/ / f / cough – coughed /'kɒft/ / ʃ / wash – washed /'wɒʃt/ / tʃ / watch – watched /'wɒtʃt/

Clue to know the voiceless sounds of English:

“A thick spy”

/ θ / / k / / s // p /

“ A fish in church”

/ f / / ʃ // tʃ /

YOU PRONOUNCE / d /…

When the infinitive ends in a voiced sound (the vocal cords vibrate when the air comes from the lungs and creates “voice”).

The voiced sounds of English are: All vowel sounds. All the consonant sounds which are not voiceless.

For example: LISTEN – LISTENED /'lɪsənd/ LIVE – LIVED /'lɪvd/ STAY – STAYED /'steɪd/

EXCEPTIONS:

Notice that / t / is voiceless and / d / is voiced, but when a regular verb ends in /d / or / t / the ending is pronounced / Id /.

WANT – WANTED /'wɒntɪd/ LAND – LANDED /'lændɪd/

Your turn now …

Regular Past Tense Verb Pronunciation Practice:

Read the following dialogue and write the phonetic symbol representing the sound of the –ed ending for each past tense verb.

Check your answers. Then, practise the dialogue aloud with a

partner. Be sure to carefully pronounce all past tense endings!

Practice:

Kathy: Tom, have you started your diet? I hope you haven’t gained weight. Tom: I boiled some eggs and sliced celery for lunch. Kathy: Have you exercised at all? Tom: I walked 5 miles and jogged in the park. Kathy: Have you cleaned the house? Calories can be worked off that way. Tom: I washed and waxed the floors. I even painted the bathroom. Kathy: Who baked this apple pie? Who cooked this ham? Tom: When I finished cleaning, I was starved. I prepared this food for dinner. Kathy: Oh, no! I’ll take this food home so you won’t be tempted . I really enjoyed being with you. Your diet is great! Tom: Oh, no!What happened? Somehow, I missed out on all the fun!!! .

See if you can pronounce these verbs correctly!!

GOOD LUCK WITH IT!!!!