Shadowing Practice: Adele - Easy On Me (Live at the NRJ Awards 2021) - Learn English Speaking with Video
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 20 sentences and 223 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:28. The speaker talks slowly, about 64 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. Only 79% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
10 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| silence noun | /ˈsaɪ̯ləns/ | The absence of any sound. |
| deeply adverb | /ˈdi(ː)pli/ | To a deep extent or degree; very greatly. |
| deny verb | /dəˈnaɪ/ | To disallow or reject. |
| ease verb | /iz/ | To free (something) from pain, worry, agitation, etc. |
| swim verb | /swɪm/ | To move through the water, without touching the bottom; to propel oneself in water by natural means. |
| shine verb | /ʃaɪn/ | To emit or reflect light so as to glow. |
| intentions noun | /ɪnˈtɛnʃənz/ | Desire to court, marry, date, woo or sleep with someone. |
| drown verb | /dɹaʊn/ | To die from suffocation while immersed in water or other fluid. |
| choose verb | /t͡ʃuːz/ | To pick; to make the choice of; to select. |
| stick noun | /stɪk/ | A small, thin branch from a tree or bush; a twig; a branch. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| give up verb | To surrender (someone or something); to inform on (someone). |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 11 contractions and reduced forms, such as ain't, didn't, I've. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: shine /ʃaɪn/, intentions /ɪnˈtɛnʃənz/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like silence, deeply, deny.
Wat is de Shadowing-techniek?
Shadowing is een wetenschappelijk onderbouwde taalleermethode die oorspronkelijk is ontwikkeld voor professionele tolkentraining en gepopulariseerd door polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. De methode is eenvoudig maar krachtig: je luistert naar native Engelse audio en herhaalt het onmiddellijk hardop — als een schaduw die de spreker volgt met slechts 1–2 seconden vertraging. In tegenstelling tot passief luisteren of grammaticadrills, dwingt shadowing je hersenen en mondspieren om echte spraakpatronen tegelijkertijd te verwerken en te reproduceren. Onderzoek toont aan dat het de uitspraaknauwkeurigheid, intonatie, ritme, verbonden spraak, luisterbegrip en spreekvaardigheid aanzienlijk verbetert — waardoor het een van de meest effectieve methoden is voor IELTS Speaking-voorbereiding en echte Engelse communicatie.

















