Shadowing Practice: [A2] The Person I Admire | English Listening & Speaking Practice - Learn English Speaking with Video

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37 sentences
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Hi everyone.
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Welcome back to the 5 -Minute English Podcast.
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I'm Jessica, and today I want to tell you about someone very special to me.
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A person I truly admire.
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He's not a movie star or a famous leader.
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He's my dad.
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When I was little, I thought my dad could do anything.
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He fixed broken things, cooked delicious food, and always made me laugh when I was sad.
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Even now, when I'm an adult, I still feel that way.
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He's strong, kind, and so patient.
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My dad works as an engineer.
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His job is not easy.
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Sometimes he comes home late and looks very tired.
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But no matter how busy he is, he always finds time to talk to me.
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Every night he asks, how was your day?
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And really listens to my answer.
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That's something I love about him.
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He always listens.
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He's also the one who taught me how to stay calm and solve problems.
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When I make mistakes, he never gets angry.
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He just says, it's okay, Jess.
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What can we learn from this?
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That question helps me think differently and not give up.
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One of my favorite memories is going fishing with him when I was about 10.
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We didn't catch many fish, but we talked for hours about life, dreams, and funny stories.
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I think that's when I started to understand how wise he is.
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Quiet, but full of good advice.
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My dad isn't perfect, but to me, he's the best role model.
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He works hard, cares deeply for our family, and always teaches by example.
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I admire his strength, his honesty, and his kindness.
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So, who's the person you admire the most?
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Maybe it's someone in your family, too.
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Think about what makes them special.
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And try talking about it in English.
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Thanks for listening to today's episode of the 5 -Minute English Podcast.
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If you enjoyed this story, don't forget to follow, share, and come back for more short English stories every week.
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See you next time.

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This A2 speaking lesson is built on the video “[A2] The Person I Admire”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: dad, English, admire. This video has 37 sentences and 332 words to shadow. The speech runs for 2:16. The speaker talks at a steady 147 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 88% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.

Key vocabulary in this video

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

WordPronunciationMeaning
admire verb/ədˈmaɪɹ/To regard with wonder and delight.
deeply adverb/ˈdi(ː)pli/To a deep extent or degree; very greatly.
solve verb/sɒlv/To find an answer or solution to a problem or question; to work out.
delicious adjective/dɪˈlɪ.ʃəs/Pleasing to the sense of taste; tasty.
differently adverb/ˈdɪf.ə.ɹənt.li/In a different way.
kindness noun/ˈkaɪnd.nəs/The state of being kind.
honesty noun/ˈɑ.nɪ.sti/The act, quality, or condition of being honest.
teach verb/ˈtiːt͡ʃ/To pass on knowledge to.
mistake noun/mɪˈsteɪk/An error.
angry adjective/ˈæŋ.ɡɹi/Displaying or feeling anger.
laugh verb/læf/To show mirth, satisfaction, or derision, by peculiar movement of the muscles of the face, particularly of the mouth, causing a lighting up of the face and…
cook verb/kʊk/To prepare food for eating, typically by heating it, combining it with other ingredients, seasoning it, preparing it for serving, etc.
quiet adjective/ˈkwaɪ̯.ət/With little or no sound; free of disturbing noise.
favourite adjective/ˈfeɪv.ɹɪt/Most-liked. (In other words, [person]'s favorite [noun] = the [noun] that [person] likes the most.)
calm adjective/kɑm/Peaceful, quiet, especially free from anger and anxiety.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

WordMeaning
give up verbTo surrender (someone or something); to inform on (someone).

Sentences worth repeating

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

  • Every night he asks, how was your day?
  • That's something I love about him.
  • What can we learn from this?
  • So, who's the person you admire the most?
  • Maybe it's someone in your family, too.

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 5 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, didn't, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

  • Long words — get the stress right: differently /ˈdɪf.ə.ɹənt.li/, engineer /ˌɛnd͡ʒɪˈnɪ(ə)ɹ/

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 admire, deeply, solve.

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 →