Shadowing Practice: English in a Minute: Pie in the Sky - Learn English Speaking with Video
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13 sentences
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1
Welcome to English in a Minute.
2
Pie is a delicious dessert.
3
And there are so many different flavors, like cherry, lemon, banana cream.
4
But what could the idiom pie in the sky mean?
5
Pedro is finally moving to Hollywood to follow his acting dream.
6
He's been talking about that for years.
7
His plans are just pie in the sky.
8
His YouTube channel has over 4 million subscribers.
9
4 million?
10
Hmm.
11
Anything pie in the sky could be great, but probably won't happen.
12
As an adjective, pie in the sky describes dreams, plans, or goals that are unlikely to become reality.
13
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B1 speaking lesson is built on the video “English in a Minute: Pie in the Sky”. This video has 13 sentences and 99 words to shadow. The speech runs for 0:55. The speaker talks slowly, about 108 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 2 of its 13 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 12 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| delicious adjective | /dɪˈlɪ.ʃəs/ | Pleasing to the sense of taste; tasty. |
| unlikely adjective | /ʌnˈlaɪkli/ | Not likely; improbable; not to be reasonably expected. |
| cherry noun | /ˈt͡ʃɛɹi/ | A small fruit, usually red, black or yellow, with a smooth hard seed and a short hard stem. |
| lemon noun | /ˈlɛmən/ | A yellowish citrus fruit. |
| flavor noun | /ˈfleɪvə/ | The quality produced by the sensation of taste or, especially, of taste and smell in combined effect. |
| banana noun | /bəˈnænə/ | An elongated curved tropical fruit of a banana plant, which grows in bunches and has a creamy flesh and a smooth skin. |
| dessert noun | /dɪˈzɝt/ | The last course of a meal, consisting of fruit, sweet confections etc. |
| subscriber noun | /səbˈskɹaɪbɚ/ | A person who subscribes to a publication or a service. |
| adjective noun | /ˈæd͡ʒ.ɪk.tɪv/ | A word that modifies a noun or noun phrase or describes a noun’s referent. |
| idiom noun | /ˈɪdiəm/ | A manner of speaking, a mode of expression peculiar to a language, language family, or group of people. |
| cream noun | /kɹiːm/ | The butterfat or milkfat part of milk which rises to the top; this part when separated from the remainder. |
| describe verb | /dɪˈskɹaɪb/ | To represent in words. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect continuous have/has been + -ing — an action that started earlier and is still going on | He's been talking |
| Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around now | is finally moving |
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | won't happen |
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 delicious, unlikely, cherry.
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.