Shadowing Practice: Useful Restaurant English: How to pay the bill - Learn English Speaking with Video

This video has 28 sentences and 149 words to shadow. The speech runs for 1:02. The speaker talks at a steady 143 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 87% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.

Key vocabulary in this video

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

• decline /dɪˈklaɪn/ (verb) — To move downwards, to fall, to drop.
• restaurant /ˈɹɛst(ə)ˌɹɑnt/ (noun) — An eating establishment in which diners are served food, usually by waiters at their tables but sometimes (as in a fast food restaurant) at a counter.
• payment /ˈpeɪmənt/ (noun) — The act of paying.
• shift /ˈʃɪft/ (noun) — A movement to do something, a beginning.
• excuse /ɪksˈkjuz/ (verb) — To forgive; to pardon; to overlook.
• battery /ˈbæt.əɹi/ (noun) — A device used to power electric devices, consisting of one or more electrically connected electrochemical cells or (archaically) electrostatic cells.
• cash /ˈkæʃ/ (noun) — Money in the form of notes or bills and coins, as opposed to checks, credit or electronic transactions.
• credit /ˈkɹɛdɪt/ (noun) — Reliance on the truth of something said or done; faith; trust.
• hello /hɛˈloʊ/ — A greeting (salutation) said when meeting someone or acknowledging someone’s arrival or presence.
• promise /ˈpɹɑmɪs/ (noun) — An oath or affirmation; a vow.

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 8 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, didn't, I'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

• The “sh” and “zh” sounds: shift /ˈʃɪft/, cash /ˈkæʃ/

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 decline, restaurant, payment.