Shadowing Practice: American English Imitation - Exercise 19: Salary - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “American English Imitation - Exercise 19: Salary”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: terrible, rachel, advance, Vail, waitress. This video has 46 sentences and 460 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:50. The speaker talks at a steady 120 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 76% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding. 7 of its 46 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.
Key vocabulary in this video
12 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| awful adjective | /ˈɔːfʊl/ | Very bad. |
| salary noun | /ˈsæləɹi/ | A fixed amount of money paid to a worker, usually calculated on a monthly or annual basis, not hourly, as wages. Implies a degree of professionalism and/or… |
| ski noun | /skiː/ | One of a pair of long flat runners designed for gliding over snow or water. |
| thanksgiving noun | /ˌθæŋksˈɡɪv.ɪŋ/ | The expression of gratitude. |
| sweetheart noun | /ˈswiːtˌhɑːt/ | A person who is always very kind. |
| waitress noun | /ˈweɪ.tɹɪs/ | A female attendant who serves customers in a restaurant, café, or similar. |
| terry noun | /ˈtɛɹi/ | A type of coarse cotton fabric covered in many small raised loops that is used to make towels, bathrobes and some types of nappy/diaper. |
| advance verb | /ədˈvɑːns/ | To help the progress of (something); to further. |
| ticket noun | /ˈtɪk.ɪt/ | A pass entitling the holder to admission to a show, concert, sporting event, etc. |
| dollar noun | /ˈdɑ.lɚ/ | Official designation for currency in some parts of the world, including Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, and elsewhere… |
| normally adverb | /ˈnɔː.mə.li/ | Under normal conditions or circumstances; usually; most of the time |
| anybody | /ˈɛn.i.bə.di/ | Any one out of an indefinite number of persons; anyone; any person. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | haven't worked |
| Past continuous was/were + -ing — an action in progress at a moment in the past | was wondering |
| Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around now | you're saying · I'm trying |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 28 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, you're, haven't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
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 awful, salary, ski.
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.