Pronunciation contrast
send vs sent
Meaning, pronunciation, and examples
Send is the base and present-tense verb. Sent is its irregular past-tense and past-participle form. The final consonant marks the difference.
American English
Hear the difference
Each term has female and male playback at natural speed. Listen without looking, then compare the recordings with the IPA.
Word 1
send
verb, base or present tense
To cause something to go or be delivered to a destination.
US pronunciation
/sɛnd/
UK IPA
/send/
Hear two natural voices
Word 2
sent
verb, past tense and past participle
The past-tense and past-participle form of send.
US pronunciation
/sɛnt/
UK IPA
/sent/
Hear two natural voices
Sound contrast
Voice D and release T
After the shared N, keep the voice running into D for send. For sent, stop the airflow with an unvoiced T. The final release may be small in natural speech, so sentence tense remains an important second clue.
Direct answer
What is the difference?
Use send for an action happening now, habitually, or in the future. Use sent for an action completed in the past or with have, has, or had. The words share SEN at the beginning; send finishes with voiced /d/, while sent finishes with unvoiced /t/.
Listen in context
6 example sentences
Context makes meaning, grammar, and natural rhythm easier to understand. Every sentence has its own playback.
Examples with
send
- Please send the revised document today.
- We send customers a confirmation by email.
- I will send the photographs after lunch.
Examples with
sent
- She sent the revised document yesterday.
- We have sent a confirmation to every customer.
- The office sent me a replacement card.
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