Did you know that there are 3 ways to pronounce "ed" at the end of a word?
There is a tendency for people learning English to always pronounce the “ed” at the end of a word as a separate syllable. This, of course should only be done when the letter before the “ed” is d or t.
I was curious to see what the Web had to say about this and was surprised to learn that the other words can be divided into two groups. link
If the sound before the “ed” is voiced then the “ed” is pronounced as d, otherwise as t. This is a fairly subtle distinction, and I am not quite convinced that the sound of “ed” is ever really a d. Is there such a thing as an unvoiced d sound, or is the only distinction between d and t that d is voiced and t is unvoiced.
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Try pronouncing “welled” as in “she welled up with tears”. It is pronounced with a “d” sound at the end, rhyming with weld as in “I will weld the pipe”, not rhyming with welt, as in “I have a welt on my arm”.
I see what you are saying, but how different are the two sounds? Is the d really voiced?
Yes. The t sound is only used when the t (rather than ed) spelling is used, which is generally in the UK. It isn’t improper here in the USA but is not standard.
I use the t for past tense very rarely, but I do use it. I would say and write “the toast was burnt,” but I would also say and write “she burned the toast.” I would not usually write “she burnt the toast.” It seems sort of random when it sounds right to me and when it doesn’t.
The word learned, it is not unusual for someone to pronounce it learn-ed (two syllables) when describing a person, like a learned colleague. I don’t usually use that term myself though, and I don’t think most Americans do, but some do.
@LostInParadise The “d” sound in my example is clearly and distinctly enunciated.
The separate syllable in @JLeslie‘s “learn-ed” is also clearly distinct from the rest of the word. That has been clear since Judge Learned Hand served. When used in that manner, it is an adjective; when one says “I learned today…” (all one syllable) it is a verb tense.
I’ve noticed, and it irritates me, that young people in movies and on tv over-pronouce the “ed” sound. Sometimes it sounds like they’re saying “duh” or “ud”. I don’t know if voice coaches are teaching that now or if it’s just a thing. I haven’t heard, that I’ve noticed, anyone over 30 doing it.
@JLeslie ‘s example of learned and learnt is interesting. Between learnt and the two pronunciations of learned, all possibilities are covered, so you can’t say that the pronunciations of learnt and the two syllable learned are unnatural.
Spilled is another example of only pronouncing the d.
I have no explanation for it, but I’ve used and said dreamt my whole life. I never say or write dreamed.
I never use the word learnt. For the past tense I would use learned. I guess I would write that phonetically as lirnd? Or, lurnd? I’m not very good at writing out the phonetic pronunciation.
Learned person, learned is an adjective, so maybe that’s the difference for me. Adverb vs adjective. I’ve never really thought about it before.
“A learned colleague” sounds very strange. I would definitely say “A learn-ed colleague”.
I don’t think I’ve ever used a “t” in place of “ed”, like dreamt or burnt. I think it was ingrained in me in grade school.
^^Generally, it does sound less educated to me using learnt, but I don’t know if it is.
@smudges I’d skip “learned colleague” and say “a well educated colleague” instead.
^^ Both of the above: lol Now that makes sense!
When I say “I learned geometry…” the verb ends in a “d” sound.
Ending with a T sound would sound like D Boone Kilt A Bar
@zenvelo , Using @Hawaii_Jake ‘s example, how would you pronounce “spilled”? For some reason, I find it real hard to pronounce the final sound as d, although I have no problem using the d sound for filled.
@LostInParadise “I spilled my drink.” I enunciate, I don’t add T sounds on a whim.
In “dreamed” the “ea” is pronounced with a long “e” sound; in “dreamt” (which is spelled differently) it has a short e sound.
Listen to these people pronouncing spilled. It sure sounds like a t at the end. Part of the reason that the rule works is that it is generally easier or more natural to follow a voiced sound with a following voiced sound or to follow an unvoiced sound with another. Spilled is an exception
@LostInParadise Your recordings don’t demonstrate the real sound since they aren’t in the context of a conversation. I could not discern a consistent pronunciation and they sound like ending in “d” to me.
And I would posit that ”-lled” tends to be a d sound when before certain consonants such as “m”.
I think you are overreaching trying to dictate rules.
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