Pronunciation of -ed Endings on Verbs

The pronunciation of -ed at the end of verbs depends on the last sound in the verb before -ed is added. There are three possible pronunciations of -ed, and they are /ɪd/, /d/, and /t/.

It is important to remember that the pronunciation of -ed depends on the last sound of the verb and not the last letter of the verb.

For verbs that end in a /t/ or /d/ sound, the -ed ending is pronounced /ɪd/. The verbs bat, knit, flood, and guide all end in either /t/ or /d/, so when -ed is added it is pronounced /ɪd/:

bat /bæt/ → batted /bætɪd/

knit /nɪt/ → knitted /nɪtɪd/

flood /flʌd/ → flooded / flʌdɪd/

guide /gaɪd/ → guided /gaɪdɪd/

The other two pronunciations of -ed are based on the voicing of the last sound of the verb. A voiced sound is one that causes your vocal cords to vibrate when you speak. A voiceless sound is one that does not cause your vocal cords to vibrate when you speak. You can tell the difference by putting your hand on your throat when you speak. For example, when you say /m/ and /f/ the sound /m/ is voiced and /f/ is voiceless.

When the last sound of a verb is voiced and is not /d/ the -ed is pronounced /d/. The following verbs all end in a voiced sound, so the -ed is pronounced /d/:

rue /ruː/ → rued / ruːd/

clean /kliːn/ → cleaned / kliːnd/

flow /floʊ/ → flowed / floʊd/

hog /hɑːg/ → hogged / hɑːgd/

amuse /əˈmjuːz/ → amused / əˈmjuːzd/

call /kɑːl/ → called / kɑːld/

When the last sound of a verb is voiceless and is not /t/ then the -ed is pronounced /t/. The following verbs all end in a voiceless sound, so the -ed is pronounced /t/.

stop /stɑːp/ → stopped /stɑːpt/

access /ækˌsɛs/ → accessed /ækˌsɛst/

huff /hʌf/ → huffed /hʌft/

wash /wɑːʃ/ → washed /wɑːʃt/

kiss /kɪs/ → kissed /kɪst/

wink /wɪŋk/ → winked /wɪŋkt/

I hope this helps.