Shadowing Practice: 54 The Play - Heinemann GK - Learn English Speaking with Video

This video has 58 sentences and 304 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:11. The speaker talks slowly, about 96 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

15 less common words from the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

• duck /dʌk/ (noun) — Any of certain aquatic birds of the family Anatidae, having a flat bill and webbed feet, distinguished from swans and geese by generally being smaller and…
• ear /ˈɪə̯/ (noun) — The organ of hearing, consisting of the pinna or auricle, auditory canal, eardrum, malleus, incus, stapes and cochlea.
• mouse /maʊs/ (noun) — Any mammal of the many rodent families (especially Muridae) that have a small body and a long tail.
• cow /kaʊ/ (noun) — An adult female of the species Bos taurus, especially one that has calved.
• pluck /plʌk/ (verb) — To pull something sharply; to pull something out
• woof /wʊf/ (noun) — The set of yarns carried by the shuttle of a loom which are placed crosswise at right angles to and interlaced with the warp; the weft.
• orange /ˈɒɹɪnd͡ʒ/ (noun) — An evergreen tree of the genus Citrus such as Citrus sinensis which yields oranges (the fruit).
• pink /ˈpɪŋk/ (noun) — A color reminiscent of pinks, the flowers.
• nose [nəʊ̯z] (noun) — A protuberance on the face housing the nostrils, which are used to breathe or smell.
• animal /ˈænɪməl/ (noun) — A multicellular organism of the kingdom Animalia that is usually mobile, with cells that are not encased in a rigid cell wall (distinguishing them from plants…
• mouth /maʊθ/ (noun) — The front opening of a creature through which food is ingested.
• horse /hoɹs/ (noun) — A hoofed mammal, Equus ferus caballus, often used throughout history for riding and draft work.
• color /ˈkʌl.ə/ (noun) — The spectral composition of visible light.
• welcome /ˈwɛl.kəm/ — Greeting given upon someone's arrival.
• wonderful /ˈwʌndəfl̩/ (adjective) — Tending to excite wonder; surprising, extraordinary.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

• look at (verb) — To observe or watch.

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 3 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, I'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

How to practise with this video

1. Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
2. Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
3. Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like duck, ear, mouse.