-ED explanation

We use 3 different pronunciations for -ED endings.

Sound -t = walked – walkt
Sound -d = cleaned – cleand
Sound -id = needed – need-id

The pronunciation depends on the last consonant of the verb.

Look at the image and repeat after me.

-ED ending pronunciation chart: -t after unvoiced consonants (danced, touched, sniffed, coughed, snacked, stopped, brushed, guessed, relaxed); -d after voiced consonants (filled, learned, remembered, jogged, loved, used, realized, grabbed, formed); -id after -t or -d (started, needed, excited, shaded).

There are a few things you must remember before everything comes together.

1) If the base verb ends in a -T or a -D sound (start, need, skate, shade), we hear the vowel in the –ED ending pronounced as -ID. We only hear this vowel sound before the final -D after these 2 letters (-T and -D).

2) If the base verb ends in any other sound (NOT -T or -D), the -E in the -ED ending is silent.

Last, I believe whether the sound officially ends in -T or -D, as you see above in the left 2 columns, this will naturally happen when you learn to make the -E silent.