Shadowing Practice: Urbanisation and the growth of global cities - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “Urbanisation and the growth of global cities”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: cities, infrastructure, urbanisation, benefit. This video has 20 sentences and 276 words to shadow. The speech runs for 2:12. The speaker talks at a steady 126 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 83% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 13 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| urbanization noun | The process of the formation and growth of cities. | |
| refine verb | /ɹɪˈfaɪn/ | To purify; reduce to a fine, unmixed, or pure state; to free from impurities. |
| specialize verb | /ˈspɛʃəˌlaɪz/ | To narrow in scope. |
| amenities noun | /əˈmɛn.ə.tiːz/ | Synonym of pleasantries. |
| connectivity noun | The state of being connected. | |
| stimulate verb | /ˈstɪm.jəˌleɪt/ | To encourage into action. |
| continually adverb | /kənˈtɪnjuəli/ | In regular or repeated succession; very often. |
| investor noun | /ɪnˈvɛs.tə(ɹ)/ | A person who invests money in order to make a profit. |
| capability noun | /ˌkeɪ.pəˈbɪl.ɪ.ti/ | The power or ability to generate an outcome. |
| historically adverb | /hɪˈstɔɹɪkli/ | In a historic manner; with reference to history or the historical record. |
| euro noun | /ˈjʊɹoʊ/ | The currency unit of the European Monetary Union. Symbol: € |
| productivity noun | /ˌpɹɒdʌkˈtɪvəti/ | The state of being productive, fertile, or efficient. |
| sustainable adjective | /səˈsteɪnəbəl/ | Able to be sustained. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| find out verb | To discover, as by asking or investigating. |
Pronunciation to watch
- Long words — get the stress right: amenities /əˈmɛn.ə.tiːz/, continually /kənˈtɪnjuəli/, capability /ˌkeɪ.pəˈbɪl.ɪ.ti/, historically /hɪˈstɔɹɪkli/, productivity /ˌpɹɒdʌkˈtɪvəti/
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 urbanization, refine, specialize.
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.