Shadowing Practice: Unit 11 Smile Trial - Learn English Speaking with Video

This video has 40 sentences and 367 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:13. The speaker talks at a steady 114 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 89% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.

Key vocabulary in this video

14 less common words from the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

• muscle /ˈmʌs.əl/ (noun) — A contractile form of tissue which animals use to effect movement.
• scientist /ˈsaɪəntəst/ (noun) — One whose activities make use of the scientific method to answer questions regarding the measurable universe. A scientist may be involved in original research…
• trick /ˈtɹɪk/ (noun) — Something designed to fool, dupe, outsmart, mislead or swindle.
• compare /kəmˈpɛɚ/ (verb) — To assess the similarities and differences between two or more things [“to compare X with Y”]. Having made the comparison of X with Y, one might have found it…
• electricity /ɪˌlɛkˈtɹɪsɪti/ (noun) — Originally, a property of amber and certain other nonconducting substances to attract lightweight material when rubbed, or the cause of this property; now…
• discover /dɪˈskʌvə/ (verb) — To find or learn something for the first time.
• experiment /ɪkˈspɛɹ.ə.mənt/ (noun) — A test under controlled conditions made to either demonstrate a known truth, examine the validity of a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of…
• genuine /ˈd͡ʒɛn.juˌɪn/ (adjective) — Belonging to, or proceeding from the original stock; native.
• involve /ɪnˈvɑlv/ (verb) — To have (something) as a component or a related part; to comprise, to include.
• emotion /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/ (noun) — A person's internal state of being and involuntary physiological response to an object or a situation, based on or tied to physical state and sensory data.
• facial /ˈfeɪ.ʃəl/ (adjective) — Of or affecting the face.
• participant /pɑːɹˈtɪsəpənt/ (noun) — One who participates.
• cortex /ˈkɔɹtɛks/ (noun) — The outer layer of an internal organ or body structure, such as the kidney or the brain.
• crinkle /ˈkɹɪŋkəl/ (verb) — To fold, crease, crumple, or wad.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

• pick out (verb) — To remove by picking.

Pronunciation to watch

• The “sh” and “zh” sounds: emotion /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/, facial /ˈfeɪ.ʃəl/
• Long words — get the stress right: electricity /ɪˌlɛkˈtɹɪsɪti/, experiment /ɪkˈspɛɹ.ə.mənt/, participant /pɑːɹˈtɪsəpənt/

How to practise with this video

1. Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
2. Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
3. Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like muscle, scientist, trick.