Shadowing Practice: English in a Minute: One-Trick Pony - Learn English Speaking with Video
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18 sentences
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1
Welcome to English in a Minute.
2
A pony is a small horse.
3
Sometimes people teach them to do tricks, like in a circus.
4
Okay, things are coming along nicely.
5
We should be ready for the big conference next week.
6
Wait a minute.
7
We still need someone to make a video of our products.
8
Ask Alyssa to do it.
9
She has tons of time.
10
Alyssa, no way.
11
She's a one-trick pony.
12
She works with still images, but not video.
13
Are you serious?
14
Why do we hire someone who can only do one thing?
15
A one-trick pony can only do one thing well.
16
A person who is a one-trick pony has little else to offer.
17
But we can also use this to describe someone who has had only one big success.
18
And that's English in a Minute.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B1 speaking lesson is built on the video “English in a Minute: One-Trick Pony”. This video has 18 sentences and 138 words to shadow. The speech runs for 0:59. The speaker talks at a steady 140 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 12 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| trick noun | /ˈtɹɪk/ | Something designed to fool, dupe, outsmart, mislead or swindle. |
| pony noun | /ˈpoʊni/ | A small horse; specifically, any of several small breeds of horse under 14.2 hands at the withers. |
| hire verb | /ˈhaɪɹ/ | To obtain the services of in return for fixed payment. |
| ton noun | /tʌn/ | The short ton of 2000 pounds (about 907 kg), 20 hundredweights of 100 pounds avoirdupois each. |
| nicely adverb | /ˈnaɪs.li/ | Precisely; with fine discernment or judgement. |
| circus noun | /ˈsɜːkəs/ | A traveling company of performers that may include acrobats, clowns, trained animals, and other novelty acts, that gives shows usually in a circular tent. |
| teach verb | /ˈtiːt͡ʃ/ | To pass on knowledge to. |
| describe verb | /dɪˈskɹaɪb/ | To represent in words. |
| minute noun | /ˈmɪnɪt/ | A unit of time which is one sixtieth of an hour (sixty seconds). |
| welcome | /ˈwɛl.kəm/ | Greeting given upon someone's arrival. |
| image noun | /ˈɪm.ɪdʒ/ | A visual or other representation of the external form of something in art. |
| horse noun | /hoɹs/ | A hoofed mammal, Equus ferus caballus, often used throughout history for riding and draft work. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| come along verb | To accompany. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | someone who can · person who is · someone who has |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has had |
| Advice with “should” should + verb — saying what is a good idea | should be |
| Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around now | are coming |
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 trick, pony, hire.
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.