Shadowing Practice: Customer Service Training Video - Learn English Speaking with Video

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83 sentences

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I made this reservation two weeks ago.

I have a confirmation number.

This is unacceptable.

I want to talk to the manager.

Hello?

Mr. Collins, I have a woman here at the front desk who made a reservation two weeks ago.

We have no record of it.

Don't.

For Pete's sake, Nancy, can't you take care of this yourself?

I'm busy in here.

Just, I don't know, find her a room someplace.

I already left.

She insists on talking to the general manager.

Oh, geez.

All right, all right, all right.

I'll be right down there, okay?

Hang on.

God, it's unbelievable.

I've got to do everything myself.

E .O.

Talk to me, baby.

Come on.

There you go.

Okay.

Here we go, Nancy.

Say, would you give me a hand with these?

I think my wife packed the cinder block in there.

That's heavy.

I'll send up a bellman if I can find one, okay?

Fine.

No geezer.

I'm going to carry a suitcase.

Yeah, right.

So you got the key?

Yeah.

It's hard to fight the ground.

Who can have an appetite after that?

Hello there.

Hello.

I'm Ted Collins, general manager here.

I understand there's been some sort of a problem.

Yes, they seem to have lost my reservation, and I was given a confirmation number.

Now, I'm in town for a conference.

I have to have a room.

Well, now, of course you do.

Now, don't you worry about a thing.

I'm going to take care of everything for you.

You know what?

Why don't we go sit by the fire where both of us will be a little more comfortable?

Mr. Collins, Cheryl needs to see you right away.

Nancy, can't you see I'm busy here?

She said it's urgent.

She's in front of Bull Roommate.

Oh, geez.

All right, I'll be right there.

Don't you run away on me.

I'll be right back for you.

Okay.

And I'm missing the first dance right now.

Now, I know that the bride and groom made arrangements for me.

Cheryl, what's the problem here?

Who are you?

I'm the general manager.

Why don't you start managing something, then?

Right now, I'm missing my cousin's reception because you've got the tables arranged

so close together I can't get my chair through it.

Look, just calm down.

Don't make a scene, okay?

Look, how about if I roll you in there myself and give you your own little table over on the side someplace?

I don't want my own table.

I don't want to be by myself.

This is a wedding reception for crying out loud.

What is it with you people?

You're never satisfied.

Last year, I spent over, I don't know, $50 ,000 on all these ramps and these special entrances, and that still wasn't good enough.

I mean, what is it you want anyway?

Now, we know you wouldn't think of treating your customers the way Mr. Collins did.

Yet, many managers unknowingly fail to treat employees and co -workers with the same respect, courtesy, and fairness they extend to their customers.

But that failure can come back to haunt them.

Because employees who are mistreated are likely to be less productive, less courteous, less effective employees.

In other words, it's just bad business.

Doesn't everyone in your workforce deserve to be treated with common decency?

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Business EnglishDaily ConversationHigh School Students

Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This speaking lesson is built on the video “Customer Service Training Video”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: manager, Collins, reservation, Nancy, employees. This video has 83 sentences and 559 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:50. The speaker talks at a steady 146 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 80% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding. 18 of its 83 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.

Key vocabulary in this video

15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
reservation noun	/ˌɹɛz.ɚˈveɪ.ʃən/	The act of reserving, withholding or keeping back.
reception noun	/ɹɪˈsɛp.ʃn̩/	The act of receiving.
confirmation noun	/ˌkɑn.fəɹˈmeɪ.ʃən/	An official indicator that things will happen as planned.
desk noun	/dɛsk/	A table, frame, or case, in past centuries usually with a sloping top but now usually with a flat top, for the use of writers and readers. It often has a…
worker noun	/ˈwɝ.kɚ/	One who works: a person who performs labor for a living; traditionally, especially, manual labor.
sake noun	/ˈseɪ̯k/	Cause, interest or account.
entrance noun	/ˈɛn.tɹəns/	The action of entering, or going in.
extend verb	/ɛkˈstɛnd/	To increase in extent.
arrangement noun	/əˈɹeɪnd͡ʒmənt/	The act of arranging.
productive adjective	/pɹəˈdʌk.tɪv/	Capable of producing something, especially in abundance; fertile.
urgent adjective	/ˈɜː.d͡ʒənt/	Requiring immediate attention.
courtesy noun	/ˈkɝɾəsi/	Polite behavior.
bride noun	/bɹaɪd/	A woman in the context of her own wedding; one who is going to marry or has just been married.
unbelievable adjective	/ˌʌnbɪˈliːvəbl̩/	Not to be believed.
insist verb	/ɪnˈsɪst/	To hold up a claim emphatically.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Meaning
calm down verb	To become less excited, intense, or angry.
close together adjective	Near each other in time or space.
send up verb	To imitate (someone or something) for the purpose of satirical humour.

Sentences worth repeating

Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:

Say, would you give me a hand with these?
Nancy, can't you see I'm busy here?
Why don't you start managing something, then?
What is it with you people?
I mean, what is it you want anyway?

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 32 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, I'm, I'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “sh” and “zh” sounds: reservation /ˌɹɛz.ɚˈveɪ.ʃən/, reception /ɹɪˈsɛp.ʃn̩/, confirmation /ˌkɑn.fəɹˈmeɪ.ʃən/
Long words — get the stress right: reservation /ˌɹɛz.ɚˈveɪ.ʃən/, confirmation /ˌkɑn.fəɹˈmeɪ.ʃən/, unbelievable /ˌʌnbɪˈliːvəbl̩/, unacceptable /ˌʌn.ækˈsɛp.tə.bl̩/, unknowingly /ʌnˈnəʊ.ɪŋ.li/

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 reservation, reception, confirmation.

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 →

Shadowing Practice: Customer Service Training Video - Learn English Speaking with Video

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