Pratique du Shadowing: Talking about Traffic in English (Must-Know Words and Phrases!) - Apprendre l'anglais à l'oral avec YouTube

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I'm Teacher Mike and today we are talking about traffic.
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I'm Teacher Mike and today we are talking about traffic.
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Traffic is a noun that means vehicles moving on a road.
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If you don't know what vehicles are,
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vehicles are cars, buses, vans,
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motorcycles, etc. So, if there are no vehicles on a road,
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we can say that there is no traffic.
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And if there are many vehicles on a road,
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we can say that there is a lot of traffic.
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When there is a lot of traffic and it cannot move,
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or can only move very slowly,
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we call this a traffic jam.
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So today we are going to learn some different words
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and phrases that we can use to talk about traffic and traffic jams.
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When I drive places, I like to check the traffic before I leave.
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I usually do this using Google Maps.
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I do this because the amount of time that it takes to get somewhere depends on the traffic.
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For example, taking my wife to work can take anywhere from 10 to 15 minutes,
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depending on the traffic.
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If there's not much traffic,
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it usually takes just 5 minutes.
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But if there's a lot of traffic,
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it can take up to 15 minutes.
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Now, I just said there's not much traffic and there's a lot of traffic.
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Those are two ways that we can describe the amount of traffic on the road.
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But let's also look at some other ways that we can describe the traffic.
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If there's a lot of traffic,
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and this affects how quickly we can get somewhere,
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we often just say bad traffic or heavy traffic.
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Because heavy and bad are adjectives,
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we can put them before the word traffic.
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Heavy traffic, bad traffic, or we can connect them with verb to be.
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So, we can say, there's a lot of traffic.
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There's heavy traffic.
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There's bad traffic.
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Or, the traffic is bad.
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The traffic is heavy.
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Is grammatically correct, but I don't think I would ever say that.
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If there's not much traffic, we often use these.
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There's not much traffic.
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There's little traffic.
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There's light traffic.
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Or, the traffic's not bad traffic's not bad.
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And if there are almost no vehicles at all on the road,
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you can say, there's no traffic.
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And yes, there are other things that you could say as well,
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but I'm just trying to help you understand the basics right now.
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In the beginning of this video,
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I told you that when there's a lot of traffic and it can't move,
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or can only move very slowly,
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we call that a traffic jam.
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So now we're going to look at some more ways to talk about traffic jams.
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As you've probably noticed, traffic jam is a noun,
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and it is an uncountable noun,
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so we always say a traffic jam or traffic jams.
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Lots of English learners want to say the traffic is jammed using jammed as an adjective.
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And although that is grammatically correct,
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I don't recommend saying it.
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So here are some examples to help you better understand how we use traffic jam as a noun.
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Traffic jams are very common in this city.
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Or, this city has a lot of traffic jams.
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I'm stuck in a traffic jam,
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so I'm going to be a bit late.
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There's a bad traffic jam around the intersection of 5th and Main.
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Let's do a U-turn.
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It looks like there's a traffic jam up ahead.
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Also, when there is a very bad traffic jam and none of the vehicles are able to move at all,
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we can say that the traffic is gridlocked.
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This basically just means that no one can move in any direction.
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Everyone is stuck.
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You might also hear about bumper-to-bumper traffic.
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The black things on the front and back of your car are called bumpers.
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So bumper- to-bumper traffic means
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that your bumpers are very close to the bumpers of the car in front of you and the car behind you.
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Basically, it means that that traffic is moving very slowly.
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Also, as you may know,
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we often use the verb get to talk about change.
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So when we talk about traffic conditions changing,
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we also often use get.
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Here are some examples.
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The traffic usually gets pretty bad early in the evening.
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The traffic is fine right now,
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but it's going to get worse soon.
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We might want to wait for the traffic to get better before we leave.
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So yeah, those are the basics for talking about traffic.
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If you have any other questions about traffic,
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please feel free to let me know.
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Thank you for watching!

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Context & Background

In this video, Teacher Mike discusses the topic of traffic, emphasizing its relevance in everyday life and communication. He begins by defining traffic as a noun that refers to vehicles moving on a road, including cars, buses, and motorcycles. Teacher Mike explains how traffic can significantly impact travel times, mentioning how he checks the traffic using Google Maps before leaving to avoid delays. This context provides English learners with practical vocabulary related to traffic, enhancing their ability to engage in meaningful conversations about daily commutes and experiences.

Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication

  • There's a lot of traffic. - Use this phrase when discussing congested road conditions.
  • There's heavy traffic. - An alternative way to express significant vehicle presence on the road.
  • There's not much traffic. - Perfect for describing light congestion or clear roads.
  • There's a traffic jam. - Indicates a situation where vehicles cannot move freely.
  • The traffic is bad. - A common way to express dissatisfaction with road conditions.

Step-by-step Shadowing Guide

To enhance your English speaking practice with the concepts discussed in this video, consider using the shadowing technique. This method involves mimicking the speaker's words and tone. Start by following these steps:

  1. Watch the Video: First, view the video attentively, focusing on Teacher Mike's pronunciation and intonation.
  2. Listen and Repeat: Pause the video after short sections and repeat the phrases aloud, matching Mike's pace and tone as closely as possible.
  3. Utilize a Shadowing App: If you find it helpful, use a shadowing app to record your repetitions. Playback your voice to compare it with the original.
  4. Practice Regularly: Make it a habit to practice these phrases daily, gradually incorporating them into your conversations when discussing traffic or travel.
  5. Engage with Others: Find a language partner to practice using these phrases in real-time discussions about commuting experiences. The more you engage in dialogue, the more natural it will become.

By following this shadowing technique, you will improve your pronunciation, fluency, and comfort in discussing traffic-related topics in English. This practical approach enables you to leverage the everyday relevance of traffic while enhancing your overall language skills.

Qu'est-ce que la technique du Shadowing ?

Le Shadowing est une technique d'apprentissage des langues fondée sur la science, développée à l'origine pour la formation des interprètes professionnels. Le principe est simple mais puissant : vous écoutez de l'anglais natif et le répétez immédiatement à voix haute — comme une ombre suivant le locuteur avec un décalage de 1 à 2 secondes. Les recherches montrent une amélioration significative de la précision de la prononciation, de l'intonation, du rythme, des liaisons, de la compréhension orale et de la fluidité.

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