Shadowing Practice: First Day Nerves at the Café - Learn English Speaking with Video
Choose a practice mode
Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.
25 sentences
If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.
1
Good morning! Come on in. What can I get you?
2
Hi! Sorry, it's my first time here.
3
No problem at all. Take your time.
4
Okay, can I get a large iced latte, please?
5
Sure. Iced, in this weather? It's freezing today!
6
Oh, you're right. Make it hot. No, wait — iced!
7
Sounds like you've got a big day ahead.
8
Yeah. It's my first day at a new job.
9
I'm so nervous, I can't even order a coffee!
10
Oh, I know that feeling. Get the hot one.
11
And try a cinnamon roll. Sam makes the best ones.
12
She's right. She comes in every single morning.
13
Okay, a hot latte and a cinnamon roll, please.
14
Coming right up!
15
So, where's the new job?
16
At Brightside, the design company across the street.
17
Wait — Brightside? Are you the new developer?
18
Yes, that's me! How did you know?
19
Because I'm Maya, the designer on your team!
20
No way! I've been worried about meeting the team all week.
21
Relax. You've already met one of us, and we're friendly.
22
Here you go. Welcome to the neighborhood!
23
Thanks! I think I'll be back tomorrow.
24
Great! Same order as today?
25
Yes — and this time, I won't change my mind!
Download App
Everything you need to speak fluently
AI PronunciationScore every sentence
IPA PracticeMaster every sound
VocabularyBuild your word bank
Vocab GameLearn while playing
Same Channel
A11,376
Can You Swim? What Can You Do?
American AccentBritish AccentKidsDaily Conversation
A21,169
What's in Your School Bag?
American AccentBritish AccentKidsTeensDaily Conversation
B1693
Discipline Beats Motivation
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
A1610
A Day in My Life 1: Getting Up
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
A1188
Fast and Slow: The Big Race
American AccentBritish AccentKidsDaily Conversation
A1337
Lunch Break: What Do You Want to Eat?
American AccentDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B2235
Why a Song Gets Stuck in Your Head
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B1463
Calling In Sick: I Can't Come to Work Today
American AccentBusiness EnglishDaily ConversationWorking Adults
A2126
A Day in My Life 9: Doing the Dishes
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B1529
IELTS Speaking Part 1: Food, Shopping and the Weather
American AccentBritish AccentIELTS PrepDaily ConversationUniversity Students
B273
IELTS Speaking Part 2: Describe a Quiet Place You Like to Go
American AccentBritish AccentIELTS PrepUniversity Students
A1144
A Day in My Life 5: Leaving the House
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
A2200
Lunch in the School Canteen
American AccentKidsTeensDaily Conversation
B1159
Back from Japan: Telling a Friend About My Trip
American AccentBritish AccentTravel EnglishDaily ConversationUniversity Students
A21,481
Taking the Bus to the City Centre
British AccentTravel EnglishDaily ConversationWorking Adults
A2113
Speaking Challenge: A Family Holiday I Remember
British AccentIELTS PrepDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B132
Under the Weather
British AccentDaily ConversationWorking Adults
A2832
Finding Things at the Supermarket
British AccentTravel EnglishDaily ConversationWorking Adults
C1180
IELTS Speaking Part 3: Health, Fast Food and Exercise
American AccentBritish AccentIELTS PrepUniversity Students
A252
A Day in My Life 19: Cleaning the House
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
FOR YOU
Recommend Video
B122
27 sentences
Practising My First Presentation with a Colleague
American AccentBusiness EnglishDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B12
21 sentences
Rush Hour at Sam's Café
American AccentDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B169
290 sentences
THINK and SPEAK in English: your daily routine
American AccentDaily ConversationHigh School StudentsUniversity Students
B11
80 sentences
Vlog #1. Day In Life of a Magnet maker
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B11
178 sentences
Learn English with Stories ⭐ A Stranger at the Cafe | Level 3 English Listening & Speaking Practice
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B21
22 sentences
He Pretended It Was His First Day At The Bank And They Fell For It
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B12
216 sentences
第一次和新同事吃飯，我才發現自己完全聽不懂他們｜Real Life Office English
Business EnglishDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B15
93 sentences
Repeat After Me + Shadowing Practice!
American AccentDaily ConversationHigh School StudentsUniversity Students
B12
350 sentences
Which Coffee Personality Are You? | Fun English Listening Practice
Travel EnglishDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B11
537 sentences
3K
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B119
13 sentences
English Shadowing: Lunch Break at the Office!
Business EnglishDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B12
361 sentences
my first week in my new apartment...
American AccentTeensDaily ConversationHigh School Students
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B1 speaking lesson is built on the video “First Day Nerves at the Café”. This video has 25 sentences and 199 words to shadow. The speech runs for 1:30. The speaker talks at a steady 132 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 84% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 8 of its 25 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 13 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| cinnamon noun | /ˈsɪnəmən/ | A small evergreen tree native to Sri Lanka and southern India, Cinnamomum verum or Cinnamomum zeylanicum, belonging to the family Lauraceae. |
| designer noun | /dɪˈzaɪnɚ/ | A person who designs something, or who designs things as a profession. |
| relax verb | /ɹɪˈlæks/ | To make something loose. |
| developer noun | /dɪˈvɛləpɚ/ | A person or entity engaged in the creation or improvement of certain classes of products. |
| freeze verb | /ˈfɹiːz/ | Especially of a liquid, to become solid due to low temperature. |
| latte noun | /ˈlɑ.teɪ/ | A drink of coffee made from espresso and steamed milk, generally topped with foam. |
| friendly adjective | /ˈfɹɛnd.li/ | Generally warm, approachable and easy to relate with in character. |
| neighborhood noun | /ˈneɪbɚˌhʊd/ | The residential area near one's home. |
| ice noun | /aɪs/ | Water in frozen (solid) form. |
| roll verb | /ɹəʊl/ | To revolve by turning over and over; to move by turning on a horizontal axis; to impel forward with a revolving motion on a supporting surface. |
| weather noun | /ˈwɛðɚ/ | The short-term state of the atmosphere at a specific time and place, including the temperature, relative humidity, cloud cover, precipitation, wind, etc. |
| coffee noun | /ˈkɑfi/ | A beverage made by infusing the beans of the coffee plant in hot water. |
| worry verb | /ˈwʌ.ɹi/ | To be troubled; to give way to mental anxiety or doubt. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| come on in verb | Synonym of come in (“to enter”). |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- What can I get you?
- Sorry, it's my first time here.
- Sounds like you've got a big day ahead.
- It's my first day at a new job.
- Are you the new developer?
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 | I've been · You've already met |
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | I'll be · won't change |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 10 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, you've, can't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
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 cinnamon, designer, relax.
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.