Shadowing Practice: 24 Hours In New York - Learn English Speaking with Video
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B1 speaking lesson is built on the video “24 Hours In New York”. This video has 1004 sentences and 6035 words to shadow. The speech runs for 46:32. The speaker talks at a steady 130 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 84% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 194 of its 1004 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:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| boot noun | /but/ | A heavy shoe that covers part of the leg. |
| shoe noun | /ˈʃu/ | A protective covering for the foot, with a bottom part composed of thick leather or plastic sole and often a thicker heel, and a softer upper part made of… |
| gatekeep verb | /ˈɡeɪt.kiːp/ | To control or limit access to something. |
| bestie noun | /ˈbɛsti/ | A best friend. |
| wolverine noun | /ˌwʊlvəˈɹiːn/ | A solitary, fierce mammal of the Mustelidae family, Gulo gulo. |
| backpack noun | /ˈbæk.pæk/ | A knapsack, sometimes mounted on a light frame, but always supported by straps, worn on a person’s back for the purpose of carrying things, especially when… |
| helicopter noun | /ˈheliːˌkɔptə(ɹ)/ | An aircraft that is borne along by one or more sets of long rotating blades which allow it to hover, move in any direction including reverse, or land; and… |
| backflip noun | /ˈbæk.flɪp/ | An act of rotating one's body 360 degrees in the backward direction. |
| musk noun | /mʌsk/ | A greasy secretion with a powerful odour, produced in a glandular sac of the male musk deer and used in the manufacture of perfumes. |
| yana noun | /ˈjɑː.nə/ | Any of the vehicles of Buddhist or Tantric practice. |
| rehearsal noun | /ɹɪˈhɝsl̩/ | The practising of something which is to be performed before an audience, usually to test or improve the interaction between several participating people, or to… |
| scam noun | /ˈskæm/ | A fraudulent or dishonest deal. A swindle. |
| kyle noun | /kaɪl/ | A narrow arm or channel of the sea between an island and the mainland, or between two islands. |
| embrace verb | /ɛmˈbɹes/ | To clasp (someone or each other) in the arms with affection; to take in the arms; to hug. |
| jacket noun | /ˈd͡ʒæk.ɪt/ | A piece of clothing worn on the upper body outside a shirt or blouse, often waist length to thigh length. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| calm down verb | To become less excited, intense, or angry. | |
| figure out verb | To come to understand; to discover or find a solution; to deduce. | |
| hold up verb | To wait or delay. | |
| wake up verb | /ˌweɪk ˈʌp/ | To stop sleeping; to awake. |
| walk around verb | To walk with no planned destination; to meander. | |
| beat up verb | To give a severe beating to; to assault violently with repeated blows. | |
| come back verb | To return to a place. | |
| come down verb | To descend, fall down, collapse. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- What'd you think so far?
- You know what I'm saying?
- You didn't hear her call you a unit?
- You actually didn't hear it?
- You know what I'm saying, dude?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Conditional sentences if + clause, will/would + verb — a condition and its result | if you'd be asking me what I'd be |
| “Used to” used to + verb — a past habit or state that is no longer true | used to hate · used to be |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | I've never done · haven't seen · I've never been |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | are charred · is called · was terrified |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 335 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, gonna, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: shoe /ˈʃu/, decoration /ˌdɛkəˈɹeɪʃən/, shout /ʃaʊt/, optional /ˈɑp.ʃə.nəl/, reservation /ˌɹɛz.ɚˈveɪ.ʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: helicopter /ˈheliːˌkɔptə(ɹ)/, decoration /ˌdɛkəˈɹeɪʃən/, cameraman /ˈkæm(ə)ɹəˌmæn/, supernatural /ˌsu.pəɹˈnæ.tʃə.ɹəl/, reservation /ˌɹɛz.ɚˈveɪ.ʃən/
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 boot, shoe, gatekeep.
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.











