Shadowing Practice: British English phrases that confuse learners - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Hello, hello and welcome back to the English Like a Native podcast.
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My name is Anna and today we are diving deep into a handful of unusual phrases
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that native speakers use in the UK.
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I was actually inspired to do this episode after watching one of my favourite comedians.
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he's from the UK from the north of the UK
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and he's called Peter K
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so let me share with you some of these wonderful little phrases see
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if any of them are new to you if they are
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and you're watching via YouTube or a streaming platform that allows you to use the comments feature
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then I encourage you to try to write out a sentence that's relevant to you using the phrase
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that you've just learned and that way you're making passive vocabulary more active.
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Okay so the first phrase I'm going to share with you is I'll tell you this for free.
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I'll tell you this for free.
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I'll tell you this for free.
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So this is a conversational phrase that's used before giving a strong opinion,
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often a warning or a piece of honest truth.
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It really just means listen carefully because I'm about to share something
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that I'm sure about and I think you need to know.
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For example, if you come to me and you're upset
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because you've been offended by some actions or words of a close friend,
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and I know your close friend very well, then I might give you this advice.
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I'll tell you this for free.
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He's not going to apologize.
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or perhaps you are planning to come to the UK for
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a holiday maybe you already live here maybe you're planning to go to a different city
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and you haven't yet booked your travel so you haven't booked your plane
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or your train tickets and I know very well how the prices can change
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so I might say to you I'll tell you this for free
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if you don't book now the prices will go up
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so be more organized and book or something
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that I said to someone recently they are planning to have a family
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and I said to them I'll tell you this for free parenting in a heat wave is not for the faint-hearted
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Because having little children during intense heat just makes everything so much harder.
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So I'll tell you this for free, parenting in a heat wave is not for the faint hearted.
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Okay.
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The next phrase I'd like to introduce you to is believe you, me, believe you, me.
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This is slightly odd.
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When you really think about it, it feels odd.
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It's just an emphatic version of believe me.
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That's all you're saying.
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Believe me.
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But rather than saying you should believe me or listen to me, believe me because what I'm saying is true,
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you say, believe you me.
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And this means I promise you that what I'm about to say or what I've just said is true.
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Trust me.
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OK, so it's emphasizing that what you're saying is the truth.
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it's informal and I'm not sure if the youth of today use it
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but certainly it was a common phrase when I was young
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and something that my generation and the older generations still use it's slightly dramatic slightly theatrical
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but there it is and I really love this phrase believe you me she knows exactly what she's doing.
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Yes, it looks dangerous, but believe you me, she's an expert.
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Or you might come out of a meeting and your friend looks at you and says, did it go well?
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How was it?
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I might say, believe you me, that meeting was awkward.
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or you might say believe you me once you've taught a
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room full of tired students on a Friday afternoon nothing scares you
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because tired teenagers on a Friday afternoon are really hard work
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and quite confrontational so believe you me once you've taught a room full of tired students on a Friday afternoon, nothing scares you.
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Fantastic.
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A very different type of phrase now is I wouldn't touch him with a barge pole.
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It's such a funny phrase.
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I wouldn't touch him with a barge pole.
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Now, this means I would completely avoid a person.
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So, we usually use this in the context of relationships or intimate connections.
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So imagine you're trying to find me a partner.
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Let's say I'm single.
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I've been single for a long time and you think I should be with someone and you say, Anna, come on.
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I know lots of eligible bachelors and I'd love to introduce you to someone
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or to one or two of them and see if there's a spark there.
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Tell me, would you like to meet Alfred?
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And you show me a picture of Alfred and you tell me a little bit about him.
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And I say, oh, no, I've met Alfred, haven't I?
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Didn't he go to that summer party?
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And you say, yes, that's Alfred.
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Should I arrange a date for you guys?
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And I'd say, no, no, no. I wouldn't touch Alfred with a barge pole.
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And so I'm saying, not only do I not want to date him, but I also just don't want to have anything to do with him.
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I don't want to be involved with him in any way.
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It suggests that there's something really repulsive or offensive about that person.
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So something that that person does or has said or has portrayed,
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they've come across in a way that repulses me, offends me.
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And I say, I wouldn't touch that person with a barge pole.
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No, thank you.
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Now, a barge pole is an extremely large pole
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that would be used when you're on the canals in a barge
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and you'd use the pole to push your barge away from the sides of the canal.
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I assume I haven't spent much time on a barge.
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So my experience of barges and barge poles is limited, but it's a very long pole,
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maybe a 10 foot pole.
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If you're an expert in barges and canals, then please correct me if I'm wrong.
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But a barge pole is very long.
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So if you wouldn't even extend a long pole to touch someone, then they must be very offensive.
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Okay, it's strongly negative and quite judgmental.
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So, be careful how you use it.
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But here are some example sentences.
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You might say, he seems charming, but I wouldn't touch him with a barge pole.
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He is not my type.
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Or moving away from relationships, you might say, that company has a terrible reputation.
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I wouldn't touch them with a barge pole.
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Or she asked if I'd join his business idea, but honestly, I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole.
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It seems too risky.
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So when we use it to talk about a person, I wouldn't touch him, her or them, then it sounds very personal and it's harsh so be careful
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but when you use it to talk about a company an idea an offer then it means
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that that offer or company seems dodgy or risky
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or just not worth getting involved with all right moving on
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first things first maybe i should have started with this phrase first things first.
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So this means let's deal with the most important thing before anything else.
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I think it's quite obvious, really.
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You're saying let's deal with the first thing first.
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Before anything else, let's do the important thing.
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Let's do the preparation first.
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So for example, in the morning when my son wakes up, he creeps into my bedroom and he says,
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mommy, mommy, not every morning, but most mornings, mommy, mommy, can I go downstairs and watch something?
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And I say to him, first things first, we must get dressed, brush our teeth, wash our faces,
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and then go downstairs and have breakfast.
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And if there's still time, then I might let you watch TV for a little while before school.
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So first things first.
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You say it just before telling whoever you're talking to what should be prioritized or what task you should begin with.
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For example, you might say, First things first, has everyone got the worksheet?
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Or first things first, let's make a cup of tea and talk about the problem.
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Or you could say first things first, before you worry about sounding native, make sure your message is clear.
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okay so that's four items we've had
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so far I'll tell you this for free believe you me
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I wouldn't touch him with a barge pole first things first and finally we end with chock-a-block
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Chocoblock.
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I love this one.
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We spell it C-H-O-C-K.
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Choc hyphen a hyphen block.
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B-L-O-C-K.
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Chocoblock.
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Chocoblock.
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Chocoblock just means completely full, crammed or crowded.
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I might say it took me ages to park the car park was chock-a-block
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or I went to the supermarket and I had to leave
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because it was just chock-a-block
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or I might say I'd love to meet up with you for coffee
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but this week my diary is chock-a-block so it suggests that something's completely full and there's no more room.
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It's often unpleasant if a place is chock-a-block.
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Fantastic.
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Okay, so which of those phrases was your favorite?
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Are there any of those phrases that were completely new to you?
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And if so, please let me know in the comments.
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I do hope that you enjoyed this episode.
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If you'd like to get more from your listening experience, then consider becoming a Podcast Plus member where you can enter into my community,
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get access to lots of previous podcasts with transcripts,
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interactive questions, writing prompts, and all sorts of support in order to help turn your passive learning into active learning.
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For now, it's time for me to say goodbye, have a nice day and take care.
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Thank you.

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Todo lo que necesitas para hablar con fluidez

Pronunciación con IAEvalúa cada oración
Práctica de IPADomina cada sonido
VocabularioConstruye tu banco de palabras
Juego de vocabularioAprende mientras juegas

Vocabulario y notas de pronunciación para esta lección

Este vídeo tiene 148 frases y 1665 palabras para practicar shadowing. La parte hablada dura 13:23. El hablante mantiene un ritmo constante de unas 124 palabras por minuto, cómodo para el shadowing. Solo el 81 % de las palabras está entre las 3.000 más comunes del inglés, por lo que el vocabulario es exigente.

Vocabulario clave de este vídeo

15 palabras del vídeo que vale la pena aprender, con su pronunciación y significado:

PalabraPronunciaciónSignificado
pole sustantivo/pəʊl/polo
barge sustantivo/ˈbɑɹd͡ʒ/lancha a remolque, barcaza
phrase sustantivo/ˈfɹeɪ̯z/frase
canal sustantivo/kəˈnæl/canal, caz
podcast sustantivo/ˈpɑdˌkæst/podcast, pódcast
offensive adjetivo/ˈɔˌfɛnsɪv/ofensivo, ofensiva
introduce verbo/ˌɪntɹəˈdus/presentar
scare verbo/skɛɚ/asustar, atemorizar
passive adjetivo/ˈpæs.ɪv/pasivo
risky adjetivo/ˈɹɪski/riesgoso, arriesgado
faint adjetivo/feɪnt/débil
downstairs adverbio/daʊnˈstɛɹz/abajo
offend verbo/əˈfɛnd/ofender
reputation sustantivo/ˌɹɛpjʊˈteɪʃən/reputación, nombradía
strongly adverbio/ˈstɹɔŋli/fuertemente

Phrasal verbs que vas a escuchar

PalabraPronunciaciónSignificado
come across verbopasarse a
go up verbosubir
wake up verbo/ˌweɪk ˈʌp/despertarse, recordar

Pronunciación a tener en cuenta

El hablante usa 62 contracciones y formas reducidas, como you're, wouldn't, I'm. Dilas en su forma corta, tal como las oyes.

  • Los sonidos de “sh” y “zh”: reputation /ˌɹɛpjʊˈteɪʃən/, unusual /ʌnˈjuːʒ(u)əl/, preparation /ˌpɹɛpəˈɹeɪʃ(ə)n/, brush /bɹʌʃ/, harsh /ˈhɑɹʃ/
  • Palabras largas — cuida el acento: reputation /ˌɹɛpjʊˈteɪʃən/, unusual /ʌnˈjuːʒ(u)əl/, preparation /ˌpɹɛpəˈɹeɪʃ(ə)n/, eligible /ˈɛl.ɪ.d͡ʒɪ.bəl/, apologize /əˈpɑləˌd͡ʒaɪz/

Cómo practicar con este vídeo

  1. Escucha el vídeo entero una vez sin hablar y anota las palabras que no conoces.
  2. Haz shadowing frase por frase a velocidad normal, repitiendo cada una hasta que tu ritmo coincida con el del hablante.
  3. Grábate y compara con el original, prestando atención a palabras como pole, barge, phrase.

Gramática en este vídeo

Las estructuras que más usa el hablante, con las palabras exactas del vídeo:

EstructuraEn el vídeo
Present perfect have/has + participio pasado — una acción pasada que sigue importando ahorayou've just learned · you've been offended · haven't booked
Voz pasiva be + participio pasado — importa lo que ocurre, no quién lo hacewas actually inspired · you've been offended · be involved
Posibilidad con “might / may” might/may + verbo — algo posible pero no seguromight give · might say · might come
Consejo con “should” should + verbo — decir qué es buena ideashould believe · should be · Should I arrange

¿Qué es la Técnica de Shadowing?

Shadowing es una técnica de aprendizaje de idiomas respaldada por la ciencia, desarrollada originalmente para la formación de intérpretes profesionales y popularizada por el políglota Dr. Alexander Arguelles. El método es simple pero poderoso: escuchas audio en inglés nativo y lo repites en voz alta de inmediato, como una sombra que sigue al hablante con solo 1-2 segundos de retraso. A diferencia de la escucha pasiva o los ejercicios de gramática, el shadowing obliga a tu cerebro y músculos de la boca a procesar y reproducir simultáneamente patrones de habla reales. Las investigaciones muestran que mejora significativamente la precisión de la pronunciación, la entonación, el ritmo, el habla conectada, la comprensión auditiva y la fluidez al hablar, convirtiéndola en una de las metodologías más efectivas para la preparación del IELTS Speaking y la comunicación en inglés en el mundo real.

Técnica de shadowing: lee la guía completa paso a paso →