Yesterday, you learnt the difference between tense and lax vowels. Today, I want to show you something that affects so many of the sentences you say in English.
Try saying these three words out loud:
watched | inspired | painted
They all end in '-ed'. But each one is pronounced differently:
watched → /wɒtʃt/
inspired → /ɪnˈspaɪəd/
painted → /ˈpeɪntɪd/
This is one of those rules that native speakers follow automatically without even thinking about it. But for learners, getting this wrong can make your speech sound unnatural, even when your grammar and vocabulary are perfect.
The good news is that this rule is surprisingly simple. Click below to hear audio examples of all of today's words and sentences. You need to hear this, not just read it.