This speaking lesson is built on the video “A true friend will let you go”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: Paris, Rachel, Lauren, ralph, excited. This video has 79 sentences and 438 words to shadow. The speech runs for 2:32. The speaker talks at a natural 173 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 87% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow. 22 of its 79 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.

Key vocabulary in this video

15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
scare verb	/skɛɚ/	To frighten, terrify, startle, especially in a minor way.
genuine adjective	/ˈd͡ʒɛn.juˌɪn/	Belonging to, or proceeding from the original stock; native.
arrange verb	/əˈɹeɪnd͡ʒ/	To set up; to organize; to put into an orderly sequence or arrangement.
dinosaur noun	/ˈdaɪnəsoɹ/	Those animals of the clade Dinosauria that existed during the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods and are now extinct.
replica noun	/ˈɹɛplɪkə/	An exact copy.
paleontologist noun		One who studies paleontology.
pterodactyl noun	/ˌtɛɹ.əˈdæk.təl/	A pterosaur of the genus Pterodactylus.
rehiring noun		The act of hiring somebody again.
incredible adjective	/ɪŋˈkɹɛdəbəl/	Too implausible to be credible; beyond belief.
employee noun	/ˌɛm.plɔɪˈiː/	A person who provides labor to a company or another person.
excited adjective	/ɪkˈsaɪ.tɪd/	Having great enthusiasm, passion and energy.
absolutely adverb	/ˌæb.səˈlut.li/	In an absolute or unconditional manner; utterly, positively, wholly.
opportunity noun	/ˌɒp.əˈtjuː.nɪ.tɪ/	A chance for advancement, progress or profit.
fashion noun	/ˈfæʃən/	A current (constantly changing) trend, favored for frivolous rather than practical, logical, or intellectual reasons.
weird adjective	/ˈwiɚd/	Having an unusually strange character or behaviour.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Meaning
come back verb	To return to a place.
fall apart verb	To disintegrate, to break into pieces.
find out verb	To discover, as by asking or investigating.
look forward to verb	To anticipate, expect, or wait for, especially with a feeling of approval or pleasure; to be excited or eager to.

Sentences worth repeating

Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:

All right, we'll work it out.
You could really arrange that?
How would you feel about offering her a raise?
Do we have a deal?
Do you really think so?

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

Structure	In the video
Advice with “should” should + verb — saying what is a good idea	should go
Superlatives the -est / the most … — the top or bottom of a group	the worst · the weirdest
Future with “going to” be going to + verb — a plan or something you can see coming	you're not going to believe · are never going to believe · gonna do
Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction	You'll be · we'll work · you'll give

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 21 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, you're, you'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

Long words — get the stress right: pterodactyl /ˌtɛɹ.əˈdæk.təl/, incredible /ɪŋˈkɹɛdəbəl/, absolutely /ˌæb.səˈlut.li/, opportunity /ˌɒp.əˈtjuː.nɪ.tɪ/

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 scare, genuine, arrange.

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.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →

Shadowing Practice: A true friend will let you go - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson