Shadowing Practice: لماذا تفشل البدايات؟ - لغات الحب الخمس - الجزء الأول - دوباميكافين - Learn English Speaking with Video
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 362 sentences and 4276 words to shadow. The speech runs for 24:32. The speaker talks at a natural 174 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 91% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.
Key vocabulary in this video
13 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| romance noun | /roʊˈmæn(t)s/ | An intimate relationship between two people; a love affair. |
| cinema noun | /ˈsɪn.ə.mə/ | A movie theatre, a movie house. |
| ashamed adjective | /əˈʃeɪmd/ | Feeling shame or guilt. |
| romantic adjective | /ɹoʊˈmæn(t)ɪk/ | Fantastic, unrealistic (of an idea etc.); fanciful, sentimental, impractical (of a person). |
| discover verb | /dɪˈskʌvə/ | To find or learn something for the first time. |
| trash noun | /tɹæʃ/ | Useless physical things to be discarded; rubbish; refuse. |
| mall noun | /mɔːl/ | A pedestrianised street, especially a shopping precinct. |
| barrier noun | /ˈbæɹi.ə/ | A structure that bars passage. |
| buffalo noun | /ˈbʌf.ə.loʊ/ | An animal from the subtribe Bubalina, also known as true buffalos, such as the Cape buffalo, Syncerus caffer, or the water buffalo, Bubalus bubalis. |
| scare verb | /skɛɚ/ | To frighten, terrify, startle, especially in a minor way. |
| blessing noun | /ˈblɛs.ɪŋ/ | Some kind of divine or supernatural aid, or reward. |
| upload verb | /ˈʌpˌloʊd/ | To transfer data to a computer on a network, especially to a server on the Internet. |
| terrify verb | /ˈtɛɹɪfaɪ/ | To frighten greatly; to fill with terror. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| find out verb | To discover, as by asking or investigating. |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 138 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: ashamed /əˈʃeɪmd/, trash /tɹæʃ/
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 romance, cinema, ashamed.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Conditional sentences if + clause, will/would + verb — a condition and its result | if I was a lawyer, I would like · if you knew it before, you would be · If you liked it, you would give |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | was asked · be held · must be done |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | person who was · man who was · people who are |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has never been loved · have been married · has been married |
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.











