Shadowing Practice: Day in the Life: Heart Surgeon - Learn English Speaking with Video

Choose a practice mode

Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.

53 sentences

If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.

okay 6 a .m right on time it's a story of

my professional life getting to the hospital in the dark

and get going home in the dark we have surgery this morning we operate most mornings

we're doing open heart surgery on the patient this morning a minimally invasive mitral valve repair

through a little incision in the side ready to go Patients are nervous before open -heart surgery.

It's pretty understandable, but I always tell them the important thing is I'm not nervous Hey,

good morning So you um you showed up, huh?

That's half the battle just showing up is half the battle.

Yeah, you all set for today?

So it's just like we talked about in the office.

We're going to work on fixing your mitral valve.

We're going to do a little two -inch incision in the side.

Yeah, everything is favorable for that.

So just like we talked about.

So anything go on last night I need to know about?

No mitral issues.

Yeah, okay.

Well, let's go down to the ICU and we can review the patients that are there.

okay good morning everybody what's the plan the plan is to

if we can get the tubes out today maybe keep the

wires another day okay um send them upstairs can you go upstairs today

or yes okay very good any issues we need to take

care of before i go to the operating room no sir

no okay all right all right have a good day and i'll catch up with you on the floor after

surgery the operation is like a well choreographed ballet where a lot everyone knows their role

the technicians and the scrub techs

and the perfusionists who run the heart lung machine all these

people are very sophisticated they all know exactly what to do

so the environment is very controlled it's very pleasant we actually listen to music now the kind of music

that we listen to is always a question it brought to me i listen to classical music

but i've got a lot of 20 somethings and 30 somethings in there

that if they listen to classical music they get bored

so in order to keep them happy i listen to rap

or hip -hop and a lot of pop music

if you do something a thousand times

or ten thousand times you get the sequence in your mind

and then the only thing you have to do is be ready for unexpected circumstances

which in a case like this would be very very unusual okay

so i've got these special magnifying lenses on called luke's

and it allows me to see inside they magnified 3 .5 times

so everything looks very big and very close and it helps us to evaluate valves and coronary arteries

okay well we're all finished surgery's over everything went fine we're

able to fix the patient's valve through a little two inch incision he was stable through the whole time

and i'm completely satisfied so now let's go give the family the good news

okay everything went great yeah we're all done the operation was nice

and smooth everything went fine okay the nurses will give you

a full briefing on what to expect once you see him

in the ICU okay all right okay we'll talk later all right okay well the first case is over

and I had a successful completion

so I'm pretty satisfied one thing about cardiac surgery is that every day is a new day.

It's exciting.

I've never been bored a single day in my entire career.

So all in all, it's a pleasure and it's an honor to operate on patients and be entrusted with their carry.

Download App

Everything you need to speak fluently

AI PronunciationScore every sentence

IPA PracticeMaster every sound

VocabularyBuild your word bank

Vocab GameLearn while playing

Scan QR

Download on theApp Store Get it onGoogle Play

FOR YOU

Recommend Video

78 sentences

This is Victoria's Secret Angel Taylor Hill's Morning Routine | Waking Up With | ELLE

Daily ConversationWorking Adults

201 sentences

Advanced English Conversations to Improve English Speaking Skills

Daily ConversationHigh School StudentsUniversity Students

472 sentences

50 SWAT Officers Hunt Down The Arkansas Hospital Shooter

Daily ConversationWorking Adults

Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This video has 53 sentences and 621 words to shadow. The speech runs for 4:01. The speaker talks at a natural 155 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 84% 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
valve noun	/ˈvælv/	A device that controls the flow of a gas or fluid through a space, such as a pipe, manifold, or plenum.
classical adjective	/ˈklæs.ɪ.k(ə)l/	Of or relating to the first class or rank, especially in literature or art.
satisfy verb	/ˈsætɪsfaɪ/	To be enough (for)
bore verb	/boɹ/	To inspire boredom in somebody.
upstairs adverb	/ˌʌpˈstɛɹz/	Up the stairs; on or to a higher floor or level.
stable noun	/ˈsteɪ.bəl/	A building, wing or dependency set apart and adapted for lodging and feeding (and training) ungulates, especially horses.
unusual adjective	/ʌnˈjuːʒ(u)əl/	Not usual, out of the ordinary.
wire noun	/ˈwaɪɚ/	Metal formed into a thin, even thread, now usually by being drawn through a hole in a steel die.
repair verb	/ˈɹiːpɛɚ/	To restore to good working order, fix, or improve damaged condition; to mend; to remedy.
nurse noun	/nɝs/	Anyone performing this role, regardless of training or profession.
smooth adjective	/smuːð/	Having a texture that lacks friction. Not rough.
tube noun	/tuːb/	Anything that is hollow and cylindrical in shape.
sequence noun	/ˈsiː.kwəns/	A set of things next to each other in a set order; a series.
unexpected adjective	/ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd/	Not expected, anticipated or foreseen.
completion noun	/kəmˈpliː.ʃən/	The act or state of being or making something complete; conclusion, accomplishment.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Meaning
show up verb	To appear, arrive, or attend, especially suddenly or erratically.

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	i'll catch · will give · we'll talk
Obligation: must / have to / need to saying that something is necessary	need to know · need to take · have to do

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 14 contractions and reduced forms, such as we're, I'm, I've. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “sh” and “zh” sounds: unusual /ʌnˈjuːʒ(u)əl/, completion /kəmˈpliː.ʃən/, technician /tɛkˈnɪʃən/, incision /ɪnˈsɪʒən/, perfusionist /pə(ɹ)ˈfjuːʒənɪst/
Long words — get the stress right: unusual /ʌnˈjuːʒ(u)əl/, unexpected /ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd/, favourable /ˈfeɪv(ə)ɹəbəl/, coronary /ˈkɔɹənɛɹi/, perfusionist /pə(ɹ)ˈfjuːʒənɪst/

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 valve, classical, satisfy.

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: Day in the Life: Heart Surgeon - Learn English Speaking with Video

Choose a practice mode

Download App

Day in the Life as a Doctor

Pope Leo Leads Prayer After Being Discharged from Hospital

SurGenTec Testimonial

CAN WE SURVIVE A LEG WORKOUT AT FLEX LEWIS’ DRAGON’S LAIR? | OLYMPIA WEEKEND

How to perform CPR - A Step-by-Step Guide

Inside Your Knee When You Suffer an Injury

I had surgery... my body tried to drown me

Kari Jobe Carnes | An Interview with Jenn Johnson for WorshipU

A Day in the Life | General Contracting Site Supervisor | Sierra Construction