Shadowing Practice: Ballroom Dancing | The Hunger Games: Catching Fire - Learn English Speaking with Video
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84 sentences
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1
Very all mahogany.
2
Hello, hello, not yet, not yet, no, no, no, no, no. Ooh, curtains.
3
Everybody who's anybody is here, and they all want to meet you.
4
Flavius.
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Octavia.
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Try one of these.
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They are divine.
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No, I can't eat another thing.
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Here.
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What's this?
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It's for when you're full.
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It makes you sick.
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So you can go on eating.
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How else could you taste everything?
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I think it's time for a dance.
16
Katniss?
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People are starving in 12.
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Here they're just throwing it out to stuff more in.
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Katniss!
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Peter, this is Plutarch Heavensby, head game maker, successor to Seneca Crane.
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It's a.. it's a fact to follow.
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Peter! May I?
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Please.
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So how do you like the party?
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It's a little overwhelming.
26
It's appalling.
27
Still, if you abandon your moral judgment, it can be fun.
28
So are you having fun?
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I'm the head game maker.
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Fun is my job.
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But that was what happened to Seneca Crane.
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Too much fun.
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Seneca decided to quit breathing.
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Decided?
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It was that her poison berries.
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Being head game maker has never been the most secure job in the world.
37
Then why are you here?
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Same reason as you.
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I volunteered.
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Why?
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Ambition.
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The chance to make the games mean something.
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The games don't mean anything.
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They'll only mean to scare us.
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Well, maybe it was you who inspired me to come back.
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Ah, the presidential welcome.
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I'm sure we'll meet again.
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Katniss, come.
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The president awaits.
50
You think we convinced him?
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I'm not sure what else we can do.
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Tonight, on this the last day of their tour, I want to welcome our two victors,
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two young people who embody our ideals of strength and valor.
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and I personally want to congratulate them on the announcement of their engagement.
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Your love has inspired us,
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and I know it will go on inspiring us every day for as long as you may live.
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Let's go!
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Let's go.
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Look at them.
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She's not who they think she is.
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She's not a leader.
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She just wants to save her own skin.
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It's as simple as that.
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I think that's true.
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But she's become a beacon of hope for the rebellion.
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And she has to be eliminated.
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I agree she should die, but in the right way. At the right time.
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It's moves and countermoves.
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That's all we gotta look at.
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Candace Everdeen is a symbol.
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They're mocking Jane.
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They think she's one of them.
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We need to show that she's one of us.
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We don't need to destroy her, just the image.
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Then we let the people do the rest.
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What do you propose?
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Shut down the black markets, take away what little they have then double the amount of floggings and executions put them on tv
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broadcast them live
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so fear more fear it won't work fear does not work as long as they have hope
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and katniss everdeen is giving them hope she's engaged make everything about
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that what kind of dress is she gonna wear floggings what's the cake gonna look like executions who's gonna be there fear,
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blanket coverage, shove it in their faces, show them that she's one of us now.
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They're gonna hate her so much, they might just kill her for you.
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Brilliant.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Ballroom Dancing”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: katniss, fear, Seneca, maker. This video has 84 sentences and 546 words to shadow. The speech runs for 6:09. The speaker talks slowly, about 89 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 85% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| maker noun | /ˈmeɪk.ɚ/ | Someone who makes; a person or thing that makes or produces something. |
| inspire verb | /ɪnˈspaɪə(ɹ)/ | To infuse into the mind; to communicate to the spirit; to convey, as by a divine or supernatural influence; to disclose preternaturally; to produce in, as by… |
| execution noun | /ˌɛk.sɪˈkjuː.ʃən/ | The act, manner or style of executing (actions, maneuvers, performances). |
| moral adjective | /ˈmoɹəl/ | Of or relating to principles of right and wrong in behaviour, especially conforming to principles of rectitude. |
| ideal adjective | /aɪˈdi(ə)l/ | Pertaining to ideas, or to a given idea. |
| broadcast noun | /ˈbɹɔːd(ˌ)kɑːst/ | A transmission of a radio or television programme intended to be received by anyone with a receiver. |
| engage verb | /ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ/ | To engross or hold the attention of; to keep busy or occupied. |
| announcement noun | /əˈnaʊns.mənt/ | An act of announcing, or giving notice. |
| engagement noun | /ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ.mənt/ | An appointment, especially to speak or perform. |
| symbol noun | /ˈsɪmbəl/ | A character or glyph representing an idea, concept or object. |
| judgment noun | /ˈd͡ʒʌd͡ʒ.mənt/ | The act of judging. |
| volunteer noun | /ˌvɑlənˈtɪɹ/ | One who enters into, or offers themselves for, any service of their own free will, especially when done without pay. |
| breathe verb | /bɹiːð/ | To draw air into (inhale), and expel air from (exhale), the lungs in order to extract oxygen and excrete waste gases. |
| convince verb | /kənˈvɪns/ | To make someone believe, or feel sure about something, especially by using logic, argument or evidence. |
| divine adjective | /dɪˈvaɪn/ | Of or pertaining to a god. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| come back verb | To return to a place. | |
| shut down verb | To close, terminate, or end; to stop operating, either permanently or temporarily. | |
| take away verb | /ˌteɪk əˈweɪ/ | To remove something and put it in a different place. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- No, I can't eat another thing.
- It's for when you're full.
- How else could you taste everything?
- Then why are you here?
- You think we convinced him?
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 18 contractions and reduced forms, such as gonna, I'm, they're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: execution /ˌɛk.sɪˈkjuː.ʃən/, ambition /æmˈbɪʃ.ən/, shave /ˈʃeɪ̯v/
- Long words — get the stress right: execution /ˌɛk.sɪˈkjuː.ʃən/, eliminate /ɪˈlɪm.ɪ.neɪt/, rebellion /ɹɪˈbɛl.i.ən/, congratulate /kənˈɡɹæd͡ʒ.ʊˌleɪt/, mahogany /məˈhɑɡəni/
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 maker, inspire, execution.
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.