Shadowing Practice: 4000 Essential English Words 3 - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “4000 Essential English Words 3”. This video has 941 sentences and 8280 words to shadow. The speech runs for 52:47. The speaker talks at a natural 157 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. Only 78% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| sheep noun | /ˈʃiːp/ | A woolly ruminant of the genus Ovis. |
| trick noun | /ˈtɹɪk/ | Something designed to fool, dupe, outsmart, mislead or swindle. |
| chef noun | /ʃɛf/ | The presiding cook in the kitchen of a large household. |
| circus noun | /ˈsɜːkəs/ | A traveling company of performers that may include acrobats, clowns, trained animals, and other novelty acts, that gives shows usually in a circular tent. |
| knight noun | /ˈnaɪ̯t/ | An armored and mounted warrior of the Middle Ages. |
| worm noun | /wɝm/ | A generally tubular invertebrate of the annelid phylum; an earthworm. |
| monkey noun | /ˈmʌŋki/ | A member of the clade Simiiformes other than those in the clade Hominoidea containing apes, generally (but not universally) distinguished by small size, tails… |
| cone noun | /ˈkoʊn/ | A surface of revolution formed by rotating a segment of a line around another line that intersects the first line. |
| uncle noun | /ˈʌŋ.kl̩/ | The brother or brother-in-law of one’s parent. |
| grandfather noun | /ˈɡɹæn(d)ˌfɑðɚ/ | A father of someone's parent. |
| bump noun | /bʌmp/ | A light blow or jolting collision. |
| yell verb | /jɛl/ | To shout; holler; make a loud sound with the voice, especially to express intense emotions such as anger or excitement. |
| shepherd noun | /ˈʃɛpəɹd/ | A person who tends sheep, especially a grazing flock. |
| grandson noun | /ˈɡɹæn(d)sʌn/ | A son of one's child. |
| apprentice noun | /əˈpɹɛntɪs/ | A trainee, especially in a skilled trade. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| run away verb | To flee by running. | |
| come back verb | To return to a place. | |
| come out verb | /ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/ | To be discovered; to be revealed. |
| pick up verb | To lift; to grasp and raise. | |
| work together verb | To be coworkers with someone; to share a workspace with someone. | |
| come over verb | To affect in a sudden, unprecedented or surprising manner; to overwhelm a person's ordinarily contrary impulse. | |
| go back verb | To return to a place or state after having been there at a previous time. | |
| look through verb | To take a view of the contents of; search in, either with the eyes or by hand. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- This is how you repay me?
- Would you like some dessert?
- How did you get to my garden?
- Why should we execute it?
- What are you doing here?
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 let me go, I will give · if the wall broke, it would be |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | is known · should be called · was defeated |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | have had · hasn't committed · has had |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | Kids who used · person who inhabited · Anyone who retrieved |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 93 contractions and reduced forms, such as didn't, couldn't, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: grandfather /ˈɡɹæn(d)ˌfɑðɚ/, thief /ˈθiːf/, grandmother /ˈɡɹæn(d)ˌmʌðɚ/, clothing /ˈkloʊðɪŋ/, thread /ˈθɹɛd/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: sheep /ˈʃiːp/, chef /ʃɛf/, shepherd /ˈʃɛpəɹd/, sheriff /ˈʃɛɹɪf/, shout /ʃaʊt/
- Long words — get the stress right: ridiculous /ɹɪˈdɪk.jə.ləs/, publication /ˌpʌblɪˈkeɪʃ(ə)n/, ordinary /ˈɔɹdɪnɛɹi/, institution /ˌɪn.stɪˈtʃuː.ʃən/, priority /pɹaɪˈɒɹɪti/
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 sheep, trick, chef.
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.











