Shadowing Practice: Complaining about a Holiday - Learn English Speaking with Video

Creating lesson...
1
Good morning, can I help you?
2
I'd like to make a complaint about my holiday in Hawaii last week.
3
I'm sorry to hear that.
4
What exactly was the problem?
5
First of all, the bus taking us to the hotel broke down.
6
We had to wait for over two hours in the sweltering heat before a replacement arrived.
7
Then, when we got to the hotel, we found our room hadn't been cleaned.
8
Oh dear.
9
Did you complain to the hotel staff?
10
Of course, but we were told all the chambermaids were off duty.
11
Anyway, that's not all.
12
The people in the room above sounded like they were having all -night parties, every night.
13
I demanded another room but the receptionist told me the hotel was full.
14
Oh, I see.
15
And to cap it all, the food in the hotel restaurant was awful.
16
It was so bad, we had to eat out all the time despite having paid for meals
17
and the price of our holiday.
18
I do apologize.
19
I'd like to offer you a 20 % discount on the
20
price of one of our autumn breaks as a gesture of goodwill.
21
A 20 % discount?
22
You must be joking.
23
I want to see the manager.

About This Lesson

You're practicing English with "Complaining about a Holiday" using the Shadowing technique — a method originally developed for professional interpreter training.

Focus on sounding like the speaker — not just repeating words. With 15–30 minutes of daily practice, you'll build real-world speaking confidence.

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 →