Shadowing Practice: Yes Minister - Selling British Arms to Terrorists - Learn English Speaking with Video

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113 משפטים
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1
Concerns me deeply.
2
Really profoundly important.
3
Is it the amendment to the administrative order on stock controlling government establishment?
4
No. Or the procedure for the renewal of local authority leaseholds in special development areas?
5
No, what concerns me is a great issue, really, of life and death.
6
Oh.
7
Shouldn't that wait till after work?
8
It is work.
9
Oh, really?
10
Well, please go on.
11
How do British Armaments manufacturers sell their arms to foreigners?
12
Well, I believe you have to get an export license from the Department of Trade.
13
So private firms can sell their arms abroad?
14
Private companies and government agencies.
15
To whom do they sell?
16
Well, foreign governments, usually.
17
Is that all?
18
Well, sometimes you can sell to an arms dealer, a third party.
19
Perhaps a little man in Manchester buys on behalf of a party in the Channan Islands who has a contact in Luxembourg.
20
So there's no real control over who the arms go to in the end?
21
Oh, indeed there is.
22
The dealer has to provide an end-user certificate, which is a signature acceptable to Her Majesty's government that the ultimate customer is, in fact, an approved user.
23
Is that a real guarantee?
24
Would you be surprised, for instance, if a British aircraft carrier turned up in the Central African Republic?
25
Well, I for one, Minister, would be very surprised it's a thousand miles inland.
26
Yes, you know what I mean.
27
What about smaller weapons?
28
Well, it's virtually impossible.
29
There's stringent security, rigorous inspection procedures, meticulous scrutiny.
30
You mean it's all a facade?
31
Ah.
32
I think perhaps this conversation should end here, don't you, Minister?
33
No. It's as I thought.
34
Last night, a confidential source disclosed to me that British arms are being sold to Italian red terrorist groups.
35
I see.
36
May I ask who this confidential source was?
37
I'm afraid I said it was confidential.
38
Oh, I'm sorry.
39
I naturally assumed that meant you were going to tell me.
40
You seem to be very worried by this information.
41
Well, these things happen all the time.
42
It's not our problem.
43
So does robbery with violence.
44
Doesn't that worry you?
45
No, Minister.
46
Home Office problem.
47
Humphrey, we're letting terrorists get hold of murderous weapons.
48
We're not.
49
Well, who is? Who knows?
50
Department of Trade, Ministry of Defence, Foreign Office.
51
We, Humphrey, the British government.
52
Innocent lives are being set at risk by British arms in the hands of terrorists.
53
Only Italian lives, not British lives.
54
British tourists abroad.
55
Tourists?
56
Foreign office problem.
57
Humphrey, we have to do something.
58
With respect, Minister, we have to do nothing.
59
What do you mean?
60
The sale of arms abroad is one of those areas of government that we do not examine too closely.
61
Well, I have to, now that I know about.
62
You could say you don't know.
63
You're suggesting I should lie?
64
Oh, not you, Mr. No. Well, who should lie?
65
Sleeping dogs, Minister.
66
I'm going to raise this up.
67
No, Minister, I beg you.
68
A basic rule of government is never look into anything you don't have to.
69
And never set up an inquiry unless you know in advance what its findings will be.
70
I can't believe this.
71
We're talking about good and evil.
72
Our Church of England problem.
73
No, Humphrey.
74
Our problem.
75
We are discussing right and wrong.
76
You may be, Minister, but I'm not.
77
It would be a serious misuse of government time.
78
Selling arms to terrorists is wrong.
79
Can't you see that, Humphrey?
80
No, Minister.
81
Either you sell arms or you don't.
82
If you sell them, they will inevitably end up with people who have the cash to buy them.
83
But not terrorists.
84
Well, I suppose we could put some sort of government health warning on the rifle, Bux.
85
This gun can seriously damage your health.
86
It's all very well to take this lightly, Humphrey.
87
But we cannot close our eyes to something that is as morally wrong as this.
88
Very well, Minister.
89
If you insist on making me discuss moral issues, may I point out to you that something is either It's never morally wrong or it isn't.
90
It can't be slightly morally wrong.
91
Don't quibble, Humphrey.
92
Government isn't about morality.
93
Really?
94
What is it about?
95
Stability.
96
Keeping things going.
97
Preventing anarchy.
98
Stopping society.
99
Falling to bits.
100
Still being here tomorrow.
101
What for?
102
Pick up, huh?
103
What is the ultimate purpose of government, if it isn't for doing good?
104
Minister, government isn't about good and evil.
105
It's only about order or chaos.
106
And it's in order for Italian terrorists to get British bombs.
107
And you don't care?
108
It's not my job to care.
109
That's what politicians are for.
110
My job is to carry out government policy.
111
Even if you think it's wrong?
112
Well, almost all government policy is wrong.
113
Frightfully well carried out.

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “Yes Minister - Selling British Arms to Terrorists”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: Minister, arms, British, Humphrey, terrorist. This video has 113 sentences and 799 words to shadow. The speech runs for 4:46. The speaker talks at a natural 168 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 84% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 30 of its 113 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.

Key vocabulary in this video

The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

WordPronunciationMeaning
morally adverb/ˈmɔɹəli/In terms of morals or ethics.
confidential adjective/ˌkɔn.fɪˈdɛn.ʃəl/Kept, or meant to be kept, secret within a certain circle of persons; not intended to be known publicly.
dealer noun/ˈdiːlə(ɹ)/One who deals in goods, especially automobiles; a middleman.
facade noun/fəˈsɑ(ː)d/The face of a building, especially the front view or elevation.
foreigner noun/ˈfɔɹ.ɪ.nɚ/A person from a foreign country.
frightfully adverb/ˈfɹaɪtfəli/In a frightful manner.
leasehold nounA leasehold estate in land.
meticulous adjective/mɪˈtɪkjɪlɪs/Characterized by very precise, conscientious attention to details.
murderous adjective/ˈmɝdəɹəs/Of, characterized by, or pertaining to murder or murderers.
quibble verb/ˈkwɪbəl/To complain or argue in a trivial or petty manner.
stringent adjective/ˈstɹɪn.d͡ʒənt/Strict; binding strongly; making strict requirements; restrictive; rigid; severe.
profoundly adverb/pɹəˈfaʊndli/With depth, meaningfully.
anarchy noun/ˈæn.ɚ.ki/The state of a society being without authorities or an authoritative governing body.
misuse verb/mɪsˈjuːz/To use (something) incorrectly.
rigorous adjective/ˈɹɪɡəɹəs/Showing, causing, or favoring rigour/rigor; scrupulously accurate or strict; thorough.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

WordPronunciationMeaning
carry out verb/ˈkæ.ɹi aʊt/To hold while moving it out.
pick up verbTo lift; to grasp and raise.
set up verb/ˌsɛt ˈʌp/To make ready for use.

Sentences worth repeating

Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:

  • You mean it's all a facade?
  • May I ask who this confidential source was?
  • Doesn't that worry you?
  • You're suggesting I should lie?
  • Even if you think it's wrong?

דקדוק בסרטון הזה

המבנים שהדובר משתמש בהם הכי הרבה, עם המילים המדויקות מהסרטון:

מבנהבסרטון
סביל (Passive voice) be + past participle — הדגש הוא על מה שקורה, לא על מי שעושה את הפעולהbeing sold · being set
משפטי זיקה (Relative clauses) who / which + clause — מידע נוסף על אדם או דברcertificate, which is · people who have

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 23 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, I'm, isn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

  • The “sh” and “zh” sounds: confidential /ˌkɔn.fɪˈdɛn.ʃəl/, inspection /ɪnˈspɛkʃən/, politician /ˌpɑ.ləˈtɪʃ.ən/
  • Long words — get the stress right: confidential /ˌkɔn.fɪˈdɛn.ʃəl/, meticulous /mɪˈtɪkjɪlɪs/, morality /məˈɹælɪti/, inevitably /ɪˈnɛvɪtəbli/, politician /ˌpɑ.ləˈtɪʃ.ən/

How to practise with this video

  1. Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
  2. Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
  3. Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like morally, confidential, dealer.

מהי טכניקת השאדואינג?

שאדואינג היא טכניקת למידת שפה מבוססת מדע שפותחה במקור להכשרת מתורגמנים מקצועיים ופופולרית על ידי הפוליגלוט ד"ר אלכסנדר ארגואלס. השיטה פשוטה אך עוצמתית: אתה מקשיב לאודיו באנגלית ילידית וחוזר עליו בקול רם מיד — כמו צל העוקב אחרי הדובר עם עיכוב של 1–2 שניות בלבד. בניגוד להאזנה פסיבית או תרגילי דקדוק, שאדואינג מכריח את המוח והשרירים בפה לעבד ולשחזר דפוסי דיבור אמיתיים בו זמנית. מחקרים מראים שזה משפר משמעותית את דיוק ההגייה, האינטונציה, הקצב, הדיבור המחובר, הבנת השמיעה ושטף הדיבור — מה שהופך אותו לאחת השיטות היעילות ביותר להכנה לIELTS Speaking ולתקשורת באנגלית בעולם האמיתי.

טכניקת Shadowing: קרא את המדריך המלא שלב אחר שלב →