Shadowing Practice: Beginner Listening A1 Lesson #7 | Nationalities, Languages, and Countries - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
1
So, Abidemi, let's talk about languages.
2
Sure.
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So, you are from Nigeria, and Nigeria has many languages, correct?
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That's true, yes.
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How many languages can you speak?
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I would say that I can speak one language very well.
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Me too.
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And that would be English.
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but I speak another I speak other languages fairly well Yoruba which is a Nigerian language
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French and a little bit of Japanese as well now you are Canadian also
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and in Canada students study French correct that's true yes do you speak French often in Canada While I was living there,
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I spoke it a lot more, yes. Do you like French?
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I love French.
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I love learning languages.
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French, I think, is very hard for some people,
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myself included, because the pronunciation of some words is very different than the pronunciation of American English.
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So I think it's funny that there are some words in French that look exactly the same as words in English,
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but we pronounce them completely differently.
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For example, I will say the word in English and you say the same word in French, okay?
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I will try.
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For example, impossible.
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Impossible.
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Right.
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So that is so interesting.
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Again, impossible.
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Impossible.
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And they're spelled the same, correct?
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That's true.
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Yeah.
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How about reservation?
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Reservation.
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That's so cool.
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I have never thought of it like that before, Todd.
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But you're right.
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They look the same, but the pronunciations are different.
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I think it's a trick because we see the word and we know how to say it one way,
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but we have to say it a different way.
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That's yeah we just can't do that well that's true yeah
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so uh you can speak uruba yoruba how do you say how are you in yoruba
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oh that's so cool again baori baori baori oh wow that's so cool thank you yeah have you ever taught that language?
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No, never.
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I don't think too many people want to learn it outside of Nigeria.
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I think in the future, more people will want to learn unique languages.
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I hope you're right.
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Yeah, maybe.
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Maybe.
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What language do you want to learn in the future?
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I have many that if I had more time, I would like to learn.
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I'm interested in Japanese, of course I live in Japan now
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so I would like to speak it better I would also like to learn Mandarin Russian how was
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that another Nigerian language Spanish and maybe a couple of others yeah there's so many languages I want to learn.
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I want to learn Spanish too.
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I can speak some Thai and Japanese because I lived as a teacher in both countries.
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But I want to learn a language that has the same alphabet.
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So I can read Thai but not very well.
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and I can read Japanese, but not very well.
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But I want to learn a language where it's easy to read and see what the word is.
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You know, because in Thai, you can't do that.
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In Japanese, you can't do that.
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I know what you mean.
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It would make it easier to learn the language.
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But in Russian, you can't do that.
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That's true.
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Right?
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It's completely different.
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That's true.
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But they have alphabets that are the same.
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So you just have to decode them.
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A little bit, yeah.
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We have the phrase, it's all Greek to me.
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Which means you have no idea.
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Anyway, thanks a lot, Abidemi.
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Thank you, Todd.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This A1 speaking lesson is built on the video “Beginner Listening A1 Lesson”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: language, learn, speak, French, word. This video has 73 sentences and 581 words to shadow. The speech runs for 4:36. The speaker talks at a steady 126 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 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 |
|---|---|---|
| pronunciation noun | /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/ | The formal or informal way in which a word is made to sound when spoken. |
| reservation noun | /ˌɹɛz.ɚˈveɪ.ʃən/ | The act of reserving, withholding or keeping back. |
| alphabet noun | /ˈæl.fəˌbɛt/ | The set of letters used when writing in a language. |
| trick noun | /ˈtɹɪk/ | Something designed to fool, dupe, outsmart, mislead or swindle. |
| spell noun | /spɛl/ | Words or a formula supposed to have magical powers. |
| phrase noun | /ˈfɹeɪ̯z/ | A short written or spoken expression. |
| differently adverb | /ˈdɪf.ə.ɹənt.li/ | In a different way. |
| pronounce verb | /pɹəˈnaʊns/ | To declare formally, officially or ceremoniously. |
| decode verb | /dɪˈkəʊd/ | To convert from an encrypted form to plain text. |
| teach verb | /ˈtiːt͡ʃ/ | To pass on knowledge to. |
| fairly adverb | /ˈfeɹ.li/ | In a fair manner; fair; not biased or skewed or favouring a certain party |
| impossible adjective | /ɪmˈpɒs.ɪ.bəl/ | Not possible; not able to be done or happen. |
| correct adjective | /kəˈɹɛkt/ | Free from error; true; accurate. |
| completely adverb | /kəmˈpliːtli/ | In a complete manner; thoroughly. |
| anyway adverb | /ˈɛniweɪ/ | Regardless; anyhow. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | will say · will try · will want |
| Obligation: must / have to / need to saying that something is necessary | have to say · have to decode |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 9 contractions and reduced forms, such as can't, you're, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, reservation /ˌɹɛz.ɚˈveɪ.ʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, reservation /ˌɹɛz.ɚˈveɪ.ʃən/, differently /ˈdɪf.ə.ɹənt.li/, impossible /ɪmˈpɒs.ɪ.bəl/
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 pronunciation, reservation, alphabet.
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.