4-0810_MasterAmericanAccent_1 8/3/16 4:55 PM Page 46

Track Practice Sentences

151
1. Did you go to his graduation?
2. Would you take our picture?
3. Why can’t you be punctual?
4. Don’t you like nature?
5. Actually, this is a fortunate situation.
6. You’re adventurous, aren’t you?
7. Why won’t you do it gradually?
8. Can’t you change your schedule?

Track
152
Words Ending in -ed
The final ed forms the past tense of regular verbs (such as needed and worked) and of some
adjectives (such as interested and tired). The ed can cause problems for some non-native
speakers because it can be pronounced in three different ways: as /Id/, /d/, or /t/. Here are
the three rules you need to know when pronouncing -ed.

Rule 1
If the last letter of the word is spelled with a d or a t, the ed is pronounced as /Id/
and as a separate syllable.

needed admitted attended decided

avoided separated visited waited

Rule 2
If the last letter of the word ends in a voiced consonant or a vowel sound, the e is
silent and d is pronounced as /d/. (Reminder: Voiced consonants are /b/, /d/, /g/,
/v/, /m/, /n/, / r/, /l/, /z/, /ʤ/, /y/, and /ð/.)

opened changed earned pulled

called closed loved showed

Rule 3
If the last letter of the word ends in a voiceless consonant, the e is silent and the
d is pronounced as /t/. (Reminder: Voiceless consonants are /p/, /t/, / k/, /f/, /s/,
/ʃ/, /tʃ/, and /θ/.)

passed helped laughed stopped

washed watched worked liked

46 Mastering the American Accent

4-0810_MasterAmericanAccent_1 8/3/16 4:55 PM Page 47

Practicing the -ed Sounds

In the spaces provided, write the correct past tense sound of -ed in the following verbs.
(Is it /Id/, /d/, or /t/?)
1. admitted _______ 8. hugged _______
2. controlled _______ 9. liked _______
3. developed _______ 10. marched _______
4. dressed _______ 11. preferred _______
5. ended _______ 12. pretended _______
6. exploded _______ 13. pulled _______
7. finished _______ 14. robbed _______

Linking ed Ending and a Vowel Track

153
Linking is connecting the final sound of one word to the first sound of the following word.
You will need to learn to link words together to create smooth, natural speech. This is dis-
cussed in much greater detail in Chapter Eight, “Sound Like a True Native Speaker.” It is
especially important for you to learn to link words with ed endings. The final /t/ and /d/
sounds are much easier to pronounce if they are connected to the vowel that follows it.
example: sounds like:
1. stayed in stay din
2. turned on turn don
3. developed a develop ta
4. needed a nee de da

Words for Practice

Track
1. worried about 4. interested in 154
(

2. looked at 5. worked on
(

3. talked about 6. liked it

(

More Linking Practice: -ed + it Track

155
Practice linking the final consonant to the word it.
/Id/ verbs
1. I needed it. 3. I attended it.
(

2. I painted it. 4. I admitted it.

(

/t/ verbs
1. I cooked it. 3. I watched it.
(

2. I liked it. 4. I stopped it.

(

/d/ verbs
1. I used it. 3. I changed it.
(

2. I cleaned it. 4. I loved it.

(

Chapter Four: PROBLEMATIC CONSONANTS 47

Track Practice Dialogues for -ed Verbs
156
1. a. What did you think of the movie?
b. I liked it a lot.

(
2. a. What did you do with the money?
b. I deposited it in the bank.

(
3. a. How did you cook the chicken?
b. I fried it in oil.
(

4. a. Is the heater on?

b. No, I turned it off.
(

5. a. When did you paint the room?

b. I painted it last week.
(

Track
157 Story for Practice
Pay attention to the pronunciation of the -ed endings. Make sure you are linking the final
-ed to the following word if it begins with a vowel sound.

Learning English
/d/ /d/
As soon as Pablo arrived in the United States from Spain, he decided to work on
(

/d/ /d/
his English skills. He had studied English in school, but he only remembered a
(

/d/ /Id/
little bit of what he had learned. He wanted to have more confidence when
/d/ /d/
speaking with Americans. He enrolled in a local college that accepted students from
(

/d/ /d/
all over the world. When he started attending the courses, he realized that he had a
(

/Id/ /d/ /d/

long way to go. He was frustrated and confused and he struggled to understand his
(

/d/ /t/ /d/

classmates. He was surprised that they talked very fast. It seemed impossible to
(

become fluent.

/d/ /t/
One day he stayed after class and asked his teacher for advice. His teacher
(

/d/ /Id/
advised him not to give up and told him that he needed American friends to
(

/d/
practice speaking English with. He encouraged him to start a foreign language club.
(

48 Mastering the American Accent

 /Id/ /Id/ /Id/
So, he decided to do what the teacher recommended. He invited a lot of his

(
classmates to join the club.
/Id/ /Id/
His English improved quickly and his accent sounded better and better. Also,
/t/
he helped American students improve their Spanish skills. Then one day,
(
/d/ /t/ /d/
an American girl named Emily walked into the club. She planned to travel to

(
/Id/
Spain and was interested in practicing Spanish with Pablo. Pablo and Emily
(
/t/ /Id/ /t/
practiced speaking together and corrected each other’s mistakes. Pablo liked Emily,

(
/t/ /d/ /Id/
and he always looked forward to seeing her at the club. She seemed interested in

(
/Id/ /d/ /Id/
him too, so he decided to ask her out. She agreed. They dated for a while and then
/d/ /Id/ /d/
he proposed. She accepted the proposal and they soon got married. Pablo
/t/ /d/
stopped attending the language club, achieved all of his English goals, and they
(

/d/
lived happily ever after.

Track
The th Sound 158

“You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”

Eleanor Roosevelt

One of the most difficult consonant sounds for non-native speakers is the th or /q/ sound
and the /ð/ sound. Remember that for this sound the tip of your tongue should touch the
edges of your front teeth, and the tip of the tongue vibrates a bit while air flows out through
your tongue and upper teeth. It’s also acceptable to just touch the back of the front teeth as
long as the air is flowing through.

There are two th sounds in English: the voiced th as in that, and the voiceless th as in think.

Practice Words for /q/ (voiceless th) Track

159
anything earth nothing Thursday
author ninth thank wealthy
both health thing with

Chapter Four: PROBLEMATIC CONSONANTS 49