Shadowing Practice: 16 Polite Ways To Ask People To Repeat In English - Learn English Speaking with Video
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If English isn't your first language, the feeling of having to constantly ask people to repeat themselves can be even more frustrating, especially because it can make you feel like you're being repetitive, saying, "Can you repeat that, please?" all the time. And yeah, it's part of the learning process. It's actually great that you're putting yourself out there and actually connecting with people. And there's nothing wrong with asking people to repeat themselves and try again.
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I just want to state that the aim of this lesson is to expand your vocabulary so you don't feel limited by the same expression, "Can you repeat that, please?", over and over again. And it will automatically boost your confidence a little bit in these awkward situations because, after all, you're going to be able to express yourself in multiple ways in your second language. How amazing is that?
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And I'm also going to tell you in this lesson what not to do. And I'm going to give you a three-step process to help you navigate those tricky moments.
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So, give yourself a pat on the back, and when you finish this lesson, you will know at least 16 ways to ask someone politely to repeat themselves in British English.
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But first off, let's start talking about things I recommend you don't do. Things that I recommend you avoid doing or saying when asking somebody to repeat something.
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And the first is making noises.
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Making noises like "Huh?" or "Eh?" These sorts of noises are generally considered by quite a few people in the UK to be rude, especially on their own to show that you've misunderstood.
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Now, you may get away with it more with close friends or family. But even then, some people, like my mother, don't like it. If I say, "Huh?" to my mum, she will instantly say, "Huh?" back at me. She doesn't like it at all. She finds it quite rude.
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And it's possibly because you're making a noise rather than using words. So, generally, I would suggest that you avoid doing it. You may get away with it in certain situations, but generally, I'd say to try to avoid it.
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But, on a side note, I will say if you're using them in combination, like making a noise and then saying something, then that can work.
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Like, "Uh, sorry, what did you say?" That can work a bit more because it's part of a structure and you've actually used words.
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But, in general, making noises like "Huh?" could be considered quite rude in the UK.
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Another one you may want to avoid is the word what.
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Now, this one depends more, in my opinion, on tone. So, you need to be careful.
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I'm going to talk about tone of voice later in the lesson, but what can sound a little bit flippant, especially if delivered with a kind of flat tone.
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"What?" Now, this one you may get away with more if you have a kind of rising tone and a much more open face, like this: "What?" But again, I would use it in combination with other words, like sorry, to make it a bit politer.
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Like, "Sorry, what?" But what as an isolated word could be a little bit dangerous, especially if you use the wrong tone of voice.
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But if you use the right tone of voice, it may be more acceptable.
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But, in general, I would say definitely with the noises and what, you should consider avoiding those in the UK.
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So, those are the ones that I would suggest avoiding.
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But now let's move on to one of the most common ways that British people ask people to repeat things.
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The most common way to ask somebody to repeat themselves in British culture is just saying, "Sorry." Now, this isn't included on that list of 16. I've got 16 more expressions, but I wanted to get this one out of the way first.
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Sorry is a great way to ask somebody to repeat themselves, to say it again.
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So, they say something, you didn't quite understand what they said: "Sorry?" With that kind of rising intonation, it shows that something's missing.
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And, by the way, that word sorry doesn't always mean sorry. It's not always an apology here. It simply means, "Could you repeat that?" "Sorry?" And make sure that your face shows that you didn't understand.
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But hello, you wonderful people. Welcome to English Right Now.
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My name is Roy. I'm a British English teacher, and I've been doing this for quite some time. I've been doing this for nearly 16 years, helping learners just like you to understand pronunciation in a modern British RP accent, British culture, slang and idioms, and generally understand the way that British people work.
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And in this lesson, I'm going to teach you some really natural ways to ask people to repeat themselves.
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We've already talked about what not to do with the "Huh?" and the "What?" in general situations, but we're also going to talk about tone of voice and a three-step method.
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And if you want to learn even more about this lesson, there's a free PDF that you can download in the description below.
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And please do remember to like and hype the lesson. It helps other learners to learn as well.
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But now, let's crack on with those 16 expressions.
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Sixteen ways of saying, "Can you repeat that, please?", or asking somebody to repeat themselves.
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So, we've already said sorry.
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But quite often we'll say something like: "Oh, could you say that again, please?" So, this is a really polite way to ask somebody to repeat what they've just said.
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So, you might want to add the word sorry in front. I'm going to talk about that a little bit later on.
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But: "Could you say that again, please?" It's just a polite way of asking somebody to repeat.
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And likewise, an alternative to this with a similar kind of idea: "Would you mind saying that again, please?" They both work in all situations.
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You could use them in the workplace. You could use them down the pub, wherever you want.
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"Would you mind saying that again, please?" It's like saying, "Is it an inconvenience for you to repeat?" Of course, they will repeat.
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If you're with friends, you could also say: "What was that?" Now, this one is really informal, so it's more common with friends.
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But: "What was that?" Again, with that kind of rising intonation to show that you're genuinely engaged, that you want somebody to repeat something.
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"What?" "What was that?" You're basically showing that you missed some key information and you want it repeated.
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Now, you'll notice that sorry and those three examples have all been questions.
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But, quite commonly, to get somebody to repeat something, we actually highlight that we didn't understand something.
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So, rather than asking a question, we show a problem.
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An example of this is: "I didn't catch that." Catch basically means that you missed something.
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"I didn't catch that." You can combine these. We'll talk about that three-step process a little bit later on.
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But you could also add a word like quite to show that you almost understood, but you missed maybe just one or two key words.
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Like: "Sorry, I didn't quite catch that." "I'm a bit lost." This is quite informal.
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It's something we say when we've just lost track of the conversation.
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Like somebody's telling a story and maybe you've got a little bit distracted, something's going on in the corner of the room, and you come back, and it's totally your fault.
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You might say: "Sorry, I'm a bit lost." You could even do this down the phone, like if somebody's calling you from a sales company.
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"Sorry, I'm a bit lost." In other words, it means you don't totally understand what's happening.
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Another similar example to I didn't quite catch that is: "I missed what you said." Or: "I missed that." By saying I missed what you said, it's effectively showing that part of the information was lost and, therefore, you need it repeating.
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Like I say, we don't always ask directly that people repeat things.
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Sometimes we just highlight that it was our fault.
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This is a key part of British culture.
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A similar example to I missed what you said is: "I didn't get that." Get is a really versatile word.
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And in this case, it could mean something like understand or obtain the information.
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In other words: "I didn't get it." "I didn't receive the information." Or: "I didn't understand." It works in both ways.
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So, if somebody says something, you could just say: "Sorry, I didn't get that." It basically shows they hadn't communicated their point, and it's kind of making it about you, which is a really important thing to do in British culture.
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I'm going to talk about that three-step method towards the end of the lesson.
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But I would say if you want to highlight there is a problem with communication, it is politer in British culture to highlight that you are the one with the problem — that they are not a bad communicator.
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So, we don't say: "You're mumbling. Speak up." That would be really rude.
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We say something like: "Sorry, I think I need to clean my ears out. I didn't quite catch that." We blame ourselves, not the other person, for the miscommunication.
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"Excuse me, could you repeat that last part?" We commonly highlight which part we need repeating.
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Now, this expression is a question, and it could be used everywhere from down the pub to the workplace.
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"Could you repeat that last part?" Again, if you want to change it: "Could you repeat the first part?" Or: "Sorry, I missed the part in the middle." Or: "I missed the bit about blah, blah, blah." So, for example: "Excuse me, could you repeat the bit about the price, please?" If somebody's trying to sell something over the phone.
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One that is really, really informal is: "Say that again." This is more common amongst very close friends — somebody you have a level of intimacy with.
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"Say that again." Basically, it's a really direct way of saying, "Repeat yourself." It's something I might say to my very close friend, my best friend.
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"Oh, mate, say that again." "What?" Again, I use that word what, which with people that I've just met may come across as a bit rude.
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But with my best friend: "What? Say that again." ...would be absolutely fine.
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But there has to be a level of connection there.
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A strong level.
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If this is the year that you really want to take your English to the next level, I have something really exciting to tell you about.
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At the moment, we're offering a subscription to all of my courses.
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So, there's a course on pronunciation in a modern British RP accent, with hours upon hours of lessons aimed at teaching you how to pronounce things in a modern British RP accent.
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There's a course on the 250 most common slang expressions, the 250 most common idioms, and also a course on understanding British people — British people like me — understanding British culture, the way we think, and why we say what we say.
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Plus, on top of all of those lessons across the three courses, there are live sessions each week with me.
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There's a Conversation Club, which is more student-focused, where you meet people from all over the world.
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And there's also a Feedback Session, where you ask questions and I give you feedback.
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One hour a week for each of those, every single week that you're a member.
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So, there's a lot more information in the link below.
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But I look forward to seeing you on the courses and helping you achieve your goals this year.
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Now let's talk about tone of voice, because tone of voice is everything in British culture.
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Let's look at this expression.
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This is one of the expressions I'm going to teach you: "Excuse me." It's quite a versatile phrase anyway, but when we're asking somebody to repeat something, the tone of voice is really important.
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"Excuse me?" ...sounds like you're genuinely asking somebody to repeat because you've missed some information.
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They say: "Oh, my name is..." "Excuse me?" It's asking them to repeat.
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It sounds genuine.
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There's a rising tone.
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If it's a bit flatter: "Excuse me." ...it means, potentially, "I did understand what you said, and I didn't like it." And then, if we do it with this sort of tone of voice: "Excuse me?!" ...it sounds like you've said something really offensive, I have taken offence, and I am demanding that you repeat it again.
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So again, there is a distinct difference between that rising: "Excuse me?" the flatter: "Excuse me." and: "Excuse me?!" And, as a kind of fourth point, if I say: "Excuse me!" ...it's probably that you've offended me, you've done something really rude, and I want you to acknowledge me.
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But that's a little bit different.
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"Excuse me?" "Excuse me." ...could be a pretty dangerous one.
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So, if you say: "Excuse me." ...it sounds a bit more like you're accusing the person of saying something wrong.
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So, make sure you get that rising tone.
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And it's similar with this one: "I beg your pardon." "I beg your pardon?" ...with that light rising tone genuinely sounds like you're asking somebody to repeat.
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"Oh, I beg your pardon?" But this one, in my experience, is more common with a negative tone.
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So, maybe somebody says: "You're a bit of an idiot." "I beg your pardon?!" "What did you just say?" "Oh... nothing... nothing." It's kind of a mixture of asking them to apologise and repeat it again, so it embarrasses them a bit further.
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But again: "I beg your pardon?" ...could be a genuine request for somebody to repeat themselves.
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But I would say that I beg your pardon when used in that way could be seen as a little bit more formal.
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"I beg your pardon?" There are more natural examples that we've talked about already.
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But I beg your pardon and Excuse me are two that you might need to be careful with in terms of tone of voice.
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And, in fact, with most of them, you do need to be careful.
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But a third one that I would say definitely be careful with is: "What did you just say?" It's got the same idea as Excuse me and I beg your pardon — this kind of accusation that they've said something wrong if it's delivered with that flat or negative tone.
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"What did you just say?" But again, it could be totally genuine.
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It could be a rising tone.
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"What? Sorry... what did you just say?" Again, asking them to repeat.
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So, tone is everything in British English.
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But those three — Excuse me, I beg your pardon, and What did you just say?
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— when delivered with a rising tone, could be completely genuine ways of asking somebody to repeat themselves.
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Come again?
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...is one that I do hear British people use from time to time.
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Now, in my opinion, this is a bit more American.
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It's more common in American English than British English, but it is creeping in.
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It is really informal, and you may be opening yourself up to a bit of banter.
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We'll talk about that in a moment.
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But: "Come again?" ...could be a way to ask somebody to repeat.
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"Oh, come again?" Again, it sounds a bit more American, but I have heard British people use that.
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And why could it open you up to banter?
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Well, I've talked about this in a previous lesson — words with double meanings.
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And sometimes those double meanings are a little bit naughty.
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Come can mean to orgasm.
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So, if somebody says: "Come again." ...somebody might joke and say something like: "Hardly the time." But again, that would only be in certain situations.
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Now you're in on the joke.
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But this one, as I say, you do hear from time to time in British English.
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But let's return to some really British examples of expressions.
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"Sorry, I was miles away." This basically means that your mind was somewhere else and you missed what that person was saying.
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In other words, you weren't really concentrating.
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"Sorry, I was miles away." Again, that word sorry is really important.
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And you could follow that up with one of the other examples: "Could you repeat that, please?" But Sorry, I was miles away is effectively showing that person that you didn't understand.
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A couple of other common British expressions do the same thing: "I must have been on another planet." Or: "Oh, I think I was on another planet." Highlighting that you weren't on planet Earth — you were on another planet.
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In other words, you weren't listening.
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And: "Sorry, I was off with the fairies." This is a really common British expression to say your mind was elsewhere.
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In fact, you can just say: "Sorry, my mind was elsewhere." That's another expression — a little bonus for you.
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But Sorry, I was miles away, Sorry, I was on another planet, and Sorry, I was off with the fairies all show that you weren't concentrating on what that person was saying.
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And, in fact, another common way of saying that you weren't listening and that you weren't concentrating is: "Sorry, I zoned out." "I zoned out." It basically means that you were focusing or concentrating on something else, or practically on nothing.
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"I zoned out." This one could be a bit rude because it basically shows that you weren't actually focusing at all on what the other person was saying.
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But it's really, really honest.
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And if you really strongly apologise: "Sorry, I'm not with it today. I zoned out. I'm really sorry." ...then you'll probably get away with it.
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But again, it's showing that you didn't understand.
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Another one that's really conversational and really British is: "Could you run that by me again?" This basically means: "Could you repeat what you said?" Now, I've had bosses say this to me.
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I've made a request, and they've said: "Sorry, could you run that by me again?" In other words: "Could you ask me again?" Or I've told them something and they've said: "Sorry, could you run that by me again?" It basically means: "Repeat what you've just said." "Run it by me again." Or: "Run that by me again." So, it could mean explain or repeat what you've just said.
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In other words, you might want that person to reword it somewhat.
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And before we move on to the three-step process, no list would be complete without the word: "Pardon." Now, in general, pardon would be seen as a more formal version of the word sorry.
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Sorry would be more common in all situations, whereas pardon can sound a little bit more formal.
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Now, this word is strongly debated by linguists, and it relates to the class structure in the UK.
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I'm not going to go into it in this lesson.
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But some people debate that this is the kind of word that Hyacinth Bucket would use to sound a bit more upper-class.
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Whatever side of the debate you stand on, fundamentally, pardon sounds like a more formal version of sorry.
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And personally, I'm more inclined to use the word sorry.
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And hopefully you got that reference to Hyacinth Bucket.
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It's from a TV show called Keeping Up Appearances.
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I highly recommend it.
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It's about this kind of middle-class woman whose name is spelt like this.
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And her name is technically spelt Hyacinth Bucket, but she refuses to accept the name — or the pronunciation Bucket — because it doesn't sound upper-class enough.
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In other words, she wants to sound more upper-class.
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So she says: "No, darling, it's Bouquet, darling. Bouquet, not Bucket." It's a really good TV series.
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I highly recommend it.
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But some people debate that pardon is the kind of word that Hyacinth Bucket — or rather, Bouquet — would use to sound a little bit more upper-class.
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But, as I say, whatever side of the debate you stand on, pardon is generally seen as slightly more formal, and sorry just works in all situations.
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But now let's move on to that three-step process.
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How to ask somebody to repeat themselves.
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So, first of all, the first step is to apologise, commonly with the word: "Sorry." "I'm really sorry." Or simply: "Sorry." The second step — and we often use this second step — is to blame something.
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Now, we normally blame ourselves.
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As I've talked about previously in this lesson, blaming other people for the problem is a little bit rude in British culture.
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So, we commonly blame ourselves or the environment for the miscommunication.
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Blaming, maybe, the telephone, or the general noise in the area where we're standing.
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So, for example: "Oh, sorry, my son's making a lot of noise in the background." And then the third step is either to request that the person repeat themselves or highlight the problem you're having.
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So: "I'm really sorry, my son's making a lot of noise. I didn't catch that." Or: "I'm really sorry, my son's making a lot of noise. Would you mind saying that again, please?" So, a couple of example sentences: "I'm really sorry. The line isn't great. There's a lot of interference on the line. I didn't get what you said there." That's apologising, highlighting a problem with the situation, and then highlighting the communication problem.
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Or: "Sorry, I think I need to get my ears checked." In other words, there's a problem with my ears.
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"Could you say that again, please?" So, in that case, we're apologising, blaming ourselves, and asking the person to repeat themselves.
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And, as I said, this isn't an exhaustive list, but you can let me know your favourite down in the comments below.
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Please do remember there's a free PDF.
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And also remember to like and hype this lesson.
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And if you want to watch this lesson again, you don't need to ask me.
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You don't need to say: "Could you say that again, please?" Just press play again and enjoy.
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But thank you very much for watching, and I'll see you in the next lesson.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B1 speaking lesson is built on the video “16 Polite Ways To Ask People To Repeat In English”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: repeat, word, British, tone, somebody. This video has 180 sentences and 3734 words to shadow. The speech runs for 20:13. The speaker talks fast, about 185 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 86% 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 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| pardon noun | /ˈpɑːdn̩/ | Forgiveness for an offence. |
| highlight verb | /ˈhaɪˌlaɪt/ | To make prominent; emphasize. |
| rude adjective | /ɹuːd/ | Lacking in refinement or civility; bad-mannered; discourteous. |
| informal adjective | /ɪnˈfɔɹ.m(ə)l/ | Not formal or ceremonious. |
| polite adjective | /pəˈlaɪt/ | Well-mannered, civilized. |
| concentrate verb | /ˈkɑn.sən.tɹeɪt/ | To bring to, or direct toward, a common center; to unite more closely; to gather into one body, mass, or force. |
| pronunciation noun | /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/ | The formal or informal way in which a word is made to sound when spoken. |
| genuinely adverb | /ˈd͡ʒɛn.ju.ɪn.li/ | In a genuine manner; truthfully, truly. |
| accent noun | /ækˈsɛnt/ | A higher-pitched or stronger (louder or longer) articulation of a particular syllable of a word or phrase in order to distinguish it from the others or to… |
| apologize verb | /əˈpɑləˌd͡ʒaɪz/ | To make an apology or excuse; to acknowledge some fault or offense, with expression of regret for it, by way of amends |
| apologizing noun | The act of making an apology. | |
| banter verb | /ˈbæntə/ | To engage in banter or playful conversation. |
| idiom noun | /ˈɪdiəm/ | A manner of speaking, a mode of expression peculiar to a language, language family, or group of people. |
| intonation noun | /ɪntəˈneɪʃən/ | The rise and fall of the voice in speaking. |
| learner noun | /ˈlɜɹnəɹ/ | One who is learning; one receiving instruction. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| get away with verb | To get away, or escape, taking (something) with one. | |
| come across verb | To change sides; to cross over to work for the opposition. | |
| come back verb | To return to a place. | |
| keep up verb | To maintain; to preserve; to prevent from deteriorating or falling. | |
| look forward to verb | To anticipate, expect, or wait for, especially with a feeling of approval or pleasure; to be excited or eager to. | |
| speak up verb | /ˌspik ˈʌp/ | To talk more loudly or clearly. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Let's look at this expression.
- We'll talk about that in a moment.
- In other words, you weren't really concentrating.
- In other words, you weren't listening.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | you've misunderstood · We've already talked · we've already said |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | could be considered · isn't included · was lost |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 114 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, didn't, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, intonation /ɪntəˈneɪʃən/, conversational /ˌkɒnvə(ɹ)ˈseɪʃənəl/, accusation /ˌæk.jʊˈzeɪ.ʃ(ə)n/, subscription /səbˈskɹɪpʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, genuinely /ˈd͡ʒɛn.ju.ɪn.li/, apologize /əˈpɑləˌd͡ʒaɪz/, intonation /ɪntəˈneɪʃən/, communicator /kəˈmjuːnɪkeɪtə/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like pardon, highlight, rude.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.