Shadowing Practice: English Speaking Lesson (Making Requests In English!) - Learn English Speaking with Video
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It is time to improve your English speaking skill.
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And this time, we're going to learn how to make requests in English and how to accept or reject them.
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Hello, my name is Matty from POC English.
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And in this lesson, we're going to learn how to make requests and how to accept or reject them.
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So this video is going to be in two different parts
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the first part will be about different ways of making requests in English.
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And the second part will be different ways of accepting or rejecting a request.
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Plus, I will show you lots of mini dialogues so that you will see how to use the new structures.
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Let's start with the first part, different ways of making requests.
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And the first way of making requests in English is to use imperative sentences.
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What is an imperative sentence?
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Look at these examples.
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Bring me a glass of water.
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Give me a pen or subscribe to my channel.
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Look at these three sentences.
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They all begin with a verb.
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These are examples of imperative sentences.
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An imperative sentence is used to command or to make a request.
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Imperative sentences begin with a verb.
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Close the door, open your box, turn off the light.
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Using imperative sentences for requests can be the easiest way and at the same time the rudest way.
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Let me show you a few examples.
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Close the door please. Be quiet.
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Don't make any noise.
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Also turn off the TV and don't ever touch my phone.
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Okay?
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How can we make our requests more formal and more polite.
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Let's start the sentence with can and say can you?
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Can you answer the phone please?
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Can you call me this afternoon?
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Can you get me a cup of coffee?
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All of these questions begin with can you plus the base form of the verb.
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To make it even more polite, you can say, can you please?
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And then base form of the verb.
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Can you please answer the phone?
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Can you please call me this afternoon?
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Can you please get me a cup of coffee?
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Let me show you some other examples.
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Huh.
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Can you please water the plants?
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Can you please get me some water?
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Can you please help me with my homework?
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Want to make this even more formal?
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Instead of can, use could.
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Now pay attention.
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Could is the past of can.
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But when we use could for requests, this doesn't make the sentence simple past.
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No, no, no. The sentence is still present, but a polite request.
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It's more polite and more formal than can you please.
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Could you please answer the phone?
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Could you please call me this afternoon?
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Could you please get me a cup of coffee?
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How do you make this?
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It's very easy.
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Could you or could you please plus the base form of the verb?
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Could you please subscribe to my channel?
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Let me show you some other examples.
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Could you please turn the volume up?
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Listen, could you please speak up?
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I cannot hear you.
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Whoa, could you please clean up the table?
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Hmm, want to make this even more polite and more formal?
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Yes, that's possible.
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Instead of could, use will.
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Will you please?
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Will you please bring me a glass of water?
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Will you please give me a pen?
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Will you please subscribe to my channel?
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How to make this sentence?
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Very easy started with will you or will you please in the base form of the verb.
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Let me show you some other examples.
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Will you please turn down the volume?
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Will you please bring me a glass of water?
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Oh my God, will you please clean up your room?
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Guess what?
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I want to make it even more polite
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and more formal how instead of will use would would you
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please would you please answer the phone would you please call
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me this afternoon would you please get me a cup of coffee
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so start your sentence with would you please
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and then the base form of the verb would you please water the plants Let me show you some other examples.
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Would you please help me with my homework?
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Would you please get me a cup of coffee?
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Would you please scratch my back?
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We can use would you in another way.
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Would you mind plus verb in the ing form.
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Would you mind verbing?
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Again, this is very polite and very formal.
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Would you mind answering the phone, please?
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Would you mind turning down the volume?
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Would you mind opening the windows?
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Pay attention to the structure.
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Would you mind plus verb in the...
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Pay attention to the structure of this sentence.
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Would you mind plus verb in the ing form.
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And here's a pronunciation point for would you.
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When D reaches Y, we usually pronounce it as J.
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So instead of would you, you say would you. Would you.
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Would you please subscribe to my channel?
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Let me show you some other examples.
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Would you mind closing the window?
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Would you mind answering the phone?
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Would you mind getting the door?
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And that was the first part of this video, learning different ways of making requests in English, from the least formal to the most formal.
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Now it is time to move on to the second part of this lesson, but before that, if you want to receive the summary of this lesson
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and all other lessons that I post on YouTube in a single PDF file
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so that you can review the lesson whenever you want, you simply have to subscribe to my mailing list.
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It's for free.
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How?
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on the link above my head, the side of the video, go to my website, enter your email address and click subscribe.
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That's it.
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When the summary of the lesson is available and ready, I will send it to your email address.
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All right, now let's move on to the second part of this lesson, learning different ways of accepting or rejecting a request.
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If you want to accept a request, for example, somebody asked you to open the window
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and you want to say okay here are a few ways you can say sure
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or sure thing you can say no problem you can also say of course
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or a very interesting one which i really like you can say consider it done
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so to accept the request you can say sure
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or sure thing no problem of course or consider it done could you please answer the phone sure thing
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Can you turn the volume down?
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No problem.
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Will you help me with my homework? Of course.
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Would you call her tonight?
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Consider it done.
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Well, there are many different ways of rejecting a request and saying no. I'm going to divide them to informal, semi-formal, and formal.
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If you want to reject a request in an informal way, for example, when your friends ask you to do something and you want to say it's not going to happen,
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you can use these phrases.
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You can say no way.
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No way, which means I am not going to do that, my friend.
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You can also say, that's not gonna happen.
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That's not gonna happen.
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And you can say, in your dreams.
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In your dreams.
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Let me show you some examples.
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Can you answer the phone?
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No way.
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Hey, turn the volume down.
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That's not gonna happen.
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Go get me a cup of coffee. In your dreams.
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a very easy way of rejecting a request is to say no
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but saying no alone it's kind of awkward right you want
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to come up with some explanation why you are rejecting the request
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so you can use these two semi-formal structures after no
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so you can say no but why it's just that it's just that and then you come up with a reason.
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Or you can say, no, the thing is, and then you come up with the explanation.
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No, it's just that.
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No, the thing is, let me show you some examples.
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Hey, turn the volume down.
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Uh, no, it's just that this is my favorite show.
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Will you close the windows?
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No, the thing is, I'm actually hot.
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What if you want to say no and reject a request but in a formal way?
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In this case, you can use this phrase, I'm afraid.
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For example, I'm afraid not, I'm afraid I can't, I'm afraid I can't do this.
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Or you could say, I'm sorry, but, and then come up with the explanation.
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I'm sorry, but I can't close the windows because it's too hot in here.
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Let me show you some other examples would you mind helping
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me with my homework i'm afraid i can't see i'm kind of busy myself
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will you please open the window i'm sorry but i'm kind of cold myself
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and that's it guys i hope you've enjoyed this lesson don't forget to practice speaking in english see ya
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Who Is This Video For?
This lesson is perfect for beginner to intermediate English learners aiming to master everyday communication. Whether you want to sound more polite in requests or simply avoid sounding rude, the video breaks down practical structures for real-life situations. It’s ideal for anyone who wants to learn English with YouTube through clear, actionable examples—no fluff, just usable phrases.
Words & Idioms Worth Stealing
Here are key phrases to add to your toolkit:
- Imperative sentences: Commands/requests starting with verbs (e.g., "Bring me a glass of water"). Note: They’re direct but can sound rude without "please."
- Could you please…: A polite, formal alternative to "can you." Despite "could" being the past tense of "can," it’s used for present requests (e.g., "Could you please answer the phone?").
- Worth stealing: "Don’t make any noise" (a common, casual request) and "help me with my homework" (a relatable, everyday phrase).
How to Get the Accent Right
To nail the pronunciation, focus on intonation—requests with "can you" or "could you" rise slightly at the end, signaling politeness. Practice the shadowing technique: play a line from the video, pause, and repeat it immediately, mimicking the speaker’s rhythm and stress. For example, when saying "Could you please get me some water?", stress "please" and "water" to sound natural. Tools like a shadowing app can help you compare your speech to the video, but even repeating aloud with YouTube works. Remember: "could" is pronounced /kʊd/, not /kuːd/—keep the vowel short to sound like a native.
Why This Works for Speaking Practice
The video’s mini dialogues are perfect for shadowspeak—repeating real conversations to build fluency. By practicing requests in context, you’ll learn when to use casual imperatives ("Close the door") vs. formal "could you" phrases. This mix of structure and examples makes it easy to apply what you learn in real life. Whether you’re a student or a professional, mastering these requests will make your English sound more natural and confident.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | mind verbing · mind answering · mind turning |
| Superlatives the -est / the most … — the top or bottom of a group | the easiest · the least formal |
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | will be · will show · Will you please |
| Future with “going to” be going to + verb — a plan or something you can see coming | we're going to learn · is going to be · I'm going to divide |
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.