Shadowing Practice: English Conversation - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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In this American English pronunciation video, we'll go for a hike in Colorado.
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My dad and I discuss the hike, and we'll talk about interesting pronunciations and vocabulary words that come up in real English conversation.
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This hike is called Chihuahua Gulch.
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Chihuahua.
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Have you heard this word before?
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It's a teeny tiny breed of dog.
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The spelling is pretty strange in American English because this word comes to us from Spanish.
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The breed originated in Mexico.
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This hike is called Chihuahua Gulch, and it's about seven miles round trip.
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Round trip.
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The opposite of this phrase is one way.
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So when you go somewhere and come back, that's round trip.
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Notice how the D is dropped.
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Round trip.
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We often drop the D when it comes between two other consonants.
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Round trip.
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round trip.
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It's about seven miles round trip and it goes up about 1900 feet.
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So this hike ends at a lake Yeah, you go, you start off going uphill about,
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30 minutes then you go through this long valley and Notice how my dad really stretches out the word 'long'.
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Why does he do that?
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When we want to really stress words, we make them longer.
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And you might do that especially with the word long, making it longer for dramatic purposes.
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Long valley.
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That took a long time.
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That test was so long.
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Through this long valley with a lot of gorse and little lakes and-- Gorse.
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Hmm, do you know that word?
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I didn't either.
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Let's find out what it means.
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With a lot of gorse and little lakes and little streams.
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Gorse.
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Gorse are these bushes.
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Oh, I didn't know that.
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And you sort of go to the end of the trees and where the Jeep Road ends.
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Did you understand what he said there?
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He called this road a "Jeep Road." So a jeep is a really rugged vehicle that has a high clearance.
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That is a lot of room between the ground and the bottom of a car.
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you would not be able to drive a regular car on this road.
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Where the Jeep road ends, and then it's just a single path, and you end up at a mountain lake.
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And you said mountain lake, eh, you seen one, you seen them all?
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Eh, you seen one, you seen them all.
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This is a phrase you might use to say that something isn't special.
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Now the full grammatically correct pronunciation of this phrase would be: If you've seen one, you've seen them all.
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But that's not how we pronounce it.
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We like to reduce things in American English, especially familiar words and phrases.
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And this is a familiar known phrase.
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You've seen one, you've seen them all.
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We drop the word if.
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We reduce you've to just yip.
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and we reduce them to um.
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Yaseen.
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Seen him.
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You've seen one, you've seen them all.
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Another scenario where you may use this.
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Do you want to visit Paris?
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Nah, I'm not that into cities.
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You seen one, you seen them all.
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Eh, you seen one, you seen them all?
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A lot of them are pretty similar.
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A lot of them.
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my dad also reduced them to 'um'.
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This is a really common reduction, just like in the phrase, you seen one, you seen them all.
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Thank you.
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a lot of them.
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A lot of them.
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Practice that with me out loud, smoothly connecting all the words.
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A lot of them.
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A lot of them.
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A lot of them are pretty similar.
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But you do have a great view.
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You can see a long way out over the.. a couple of different mountain ranges.
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A couple of different mountain ranges.
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My dad reduced the word 'of' to just the schwa.
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a A cupola.
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We do this so much in conversation,
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especially with this phrase: A couple of a couple of different mountain ranges and the lake itself is probably probably.
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This is how we pronounce probably most of the time in conversation.
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You can do it too.
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It simplifies the word and makes it easier to say.
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Try it now.
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Probably.
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Probably.
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probably itself is probl and maybe 200 by 400.
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Does Thank you.
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I did see somebody swimming there once.
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Very cold.
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It'd be ice cold.
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It'd be really cold.
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Listen to the different ways we describe how cold it is.
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Very cold.
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Ice cold.
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It'd be really cold.
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Really cold.
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ice cold, very cold.
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Really and...
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"very" are words we use before adjectives to say there's a lot of something.
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really cold.
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very cold a high amount of coldness.
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Ice cold is another great way to describe something being very cold.
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Now, this lake is not ice, it's water.
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It's very cold water.
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So describing it as ice cold is an exaggeration, a hyperbole.
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I know it's not actually ice.
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I know it's just extremely cold water.
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Very cold.
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Ice cold.
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It'd be really cold.
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I had no temptation to do that.
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Yeah, I don't think I will either.
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But this is just You can't design a better day.
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There's not much wind, hardly any clouds.
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Cool, but not cold.
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- It's nice.
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- And this time of year, you have a lot of aspen turning yellow.
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- This time of year, Another example of reducing the word 'of' to just the schwa in natural conversation.
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this time of year.
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- It's nice.
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- And this time of year, you have a lot of aspen turning yellow, and these bushes, I mean, they would be green in the summer.
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Yeah, it looks awesome.
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I mean I love I love the view.
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I Yeah.
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sweeping views.
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And we have seen Uh...
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wildlife along here.
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Yeah.
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Just a couple hundred yards down once there were four moose.
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Moose.
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These animals are fairly rare to see in the wild.
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One other time when I was in Colorado, we saw one.
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Click here or in the video description to see that video.
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There were four moose grazing right by the path.
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Further down yet, we saw a herd of maybe 10 or 15 antelope.
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- Wow.
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- Galloping along, you often see deer.
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you often see.
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My dad reduced you to y.
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changing the vowel to the schwa.
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This is also a common reduction.
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Why do we do this?
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because in American English, the contrast between stressed and unstressed syllables is really important.
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So if we can make unstressed syllables even shorter by changing something, then we do that you often see.
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You often see deer up here
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and then on the rocks you can see marmots sometime and pica which are little tiny animals like that and they squeak.
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How many times have you done this hike?
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Probably five or six.
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Probably.
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there's another probably to probably reduction.
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Probably five or six.
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And to me, it's the most scenic hike around here, especially in September.
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Scenic.
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This is a great word you can use to describe a beautiful landscape.
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Scenic.
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Scenic.
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To me it's the most scenic hike around here, especially in September, because the aspen are turning yellow and a lot of these bushes are turning red.
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June, July, It's just the water is too high.
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You'd have to take off your shoes and put on sandals and just wade through.
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So usually we wait till August or September to do this one.
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Wade.
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This is what you do when you're walking through water.
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So you're not swimming, you're walking like through a creek.
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If the water is too deep, then you can't wade.
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You have to swim.
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Take off your shoes and put on sandals and just wade through.
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Here is David walking over the creek that Dad says you have to wade through when the water is higher.
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We didn't make it to the top.
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Yeah, but we got to a good turning around point.
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And we had a fantastic view.
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We had lunch.
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looking out down the Long Valley Couldn't have been better.
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Couldn't have been better.
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A word here is being reduced to just the schwa.
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What word is it?
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We noticed before that the word 'of' reduces to just the schwa but here it's the word 'have'.
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Yes, the word 'have' can be changed to just the schwa sound.
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Uh.
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in conversation, especially after could, couldn't, should, shouldn't would, wouldn't.
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I've actually seen native speakers mess this up and write 'should of' instead of 'should have'.
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It makes sense because 'of' and 'have' can both produce to the same single sound, the schwa.
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Shoulda.
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But if this sound is following could, couldn't, should, shouldn't. Would, wouldn't.
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The word is definitely have and reducing 'have' to just the schwa after these words will help your English sound natural.
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Practice.
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Good night.
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Couldna.
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Notice I'm dropping the T in the contraction.
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This is how native speakers will say this phrase.
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Couldna.
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Couldna.
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Special thanks to my dad for being in yet another Rachel's English video.
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To see more videos that use Real English Conversation for teaching, check out my Real English playlist.
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If you want to see my absolute latest video, click here.
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If you're new to the channel, check out this 'Where to Start' playlist.
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Click here to subscribe.
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I make new videos on American English every Tuesday.
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To be sure we can keep in touch, click here to sign up for my newsletter.
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Why practice speaking with this video?
Practicing speaking with this video offers an immersive experience, allowing you to engage with real American English conversation in a natural context. As the speakers discuss their hike in Colorado, you’re not only exposed to a rich vocabulary but also to practical expressions that you can use in everyday dialogue. By shadowing their speech, you can improve your English pronunciation and fluency. This method of learning, known as shadow speech, enables you to hear how phrases are used naturally while adapting your speaking style and rhythm accordingly.
Grammar & Expressions in Context
This video is filled with useful grammar and expressions that highlight conversational American English. Here are a few key structures you can note:
- Round trip - Commonly used to describe a journey where you return to your starting point. Notice how it’s pronounced with a dropped "D," reflecting a casual conversational style.
- Stretching words for emphasis - Phrases such as “long valley” demonstrate how elongating words can add drama or emphasis in speech. This is particularly effective in storytelling.
- Reduction of phrases - The expression “If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all” is often shortened in casual conversation to “You’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.” Understanding this reduction can help you become more fluent in real-life conversations.
Common Pronunciation Traps
While practicing with the video, pay attention to specific words and pronunciations that may be challenging:
- Chihuahua - This word, though familiar, has a unique spelling and pronunciation influenced by its Spanish origins. Make sure to practice saying it correctly to avoid confusion.
- Gorse - A lesser-known word that refers to specific types of bushes. Its pronunciation may be tricky, so emphasize clarity when saying it in conversation.
- Jeep road - The term used to describe a rugged road can be mispronounced if you’re not accustomed to the context. Focus on the way it flows within the conversation to grasp proper usage.
By identifying and practicing these pronunciation traps, you can enhance your IELTS speaking practice or any other speaking engagements. Use the shadowspeak technique to analyze these words in depth, further improving your English pronunciation and confidence.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | you've seen · have seen · I've actually seen |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | is called · is dropped · being reduced |
| Possibility with “might / may” might/may + verb — something that is possible but not certain | might do · might use · may use |
| Advice with “should” should + verb — saying what is a good idea | shouldn't would · should of |
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.