Shadowing Practice: Harvey Calls It Quits With Esther | Suits - Learn English Speaking with Video

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223 sentences

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Did Jeffrey get greedy again?

No. A man named Kenneth Jackson is claiming my nut-free muffins put him in anaphylactic shock.

What happened?

Too much gluten?

Not enough gluten?

Harvey, this isn't funny.

This is my company, and my entire brand is based on quality.

I'm sorry.

I'll take it seriously.

Thank you.

Don't thank me.

Thank Lewis, because he's gonna handle this case.

What?

This is a business matter, not personal, and I'm not stealing Lewis's client.

You're not stealing me.

You already handled my divorce.

But are you gonna tell me that Lewis is a better lawyer than you?

No, I'm gonna tell you that he's a damn good lawyer, and he'd do anything to protect you.

That's not the point.

I need this to go away quietly, and Lewis doesn't do anything quietly.

Then tell him that.

He never listens to me.

Then get him to listen or get another law firm, because I'm not taking this case.

Harvey, I don't need another firm.

I need you.

You know what I think?

I think you want to go out with me again, and you came to me with this because you're afraid to say it to me.

I don't believe you.

You think I concocted a lawsuit against my own company just to tell a man I've already been with

that I like him?

Sure looks that way.

In that case, I guess I do have the wrong man for the job.

Thank you for taking the time.

You need to tell Louis you've been sleeping with Esther.

What?

Oh, please.

It took me all of two seconds to put it together after I saw you two mooning over each other this morning.

It's not what you think.

We bonded together during her divorce proceeding.

Harvey, you said you wanted to be friends.

This is me being your friend.

Friends don't accuse each other of things.

I'm not accusing you.

I'm looking out for you.

How is that looking out for me?

Because like I said, you need to tell him.

Well, you know what?

I don't need to do that because for once, your radar is off.

We haven't been sleeping together.

We slept together one time.

What difference does that make?

You promised him you wouldn't do it at all.

Donna, Louis isn't rational on his best days with issues that don't involve his sister.

Now, how is he going to take it if I do what you're asking?

And how do you think he's going to react when he finds out you kept this from him?

He's not going to find out.

Yes, he is.

Because I didn't have to be me to see the way you two looked at each other.

And someday Louis is going to see that too.

Donna, I appreciate you telling me this as a friend.

Now, as a friend, I'm telling you to mind your own business.

I told you to settle this thing.

And I'm trying to.

Then why did I just get a notice that the FDA is investigating my company?

What?

What did you do?

I was gonna settle, but then Rachel found out their lawyer has a history of blackmailing company, so her only option was to countersue.

You filed a countersuit against my explicit instructions?

You know what, Esther?

You came to me for help.

And I'll tell you how to bake your muffins.

Because you don't know the first thing about my business.

And you don't know the first thing about mine.

I don't have to.

I know you.

And you've got a chip on your shoulder the size of Montana, and when it comes out, you make everything worse.

You know what, Esther?

I was right to do what I did.

And for once, I'm not gonna let you treat me like I'm less than you.

Less than me?

Yes, less than you.

I'm always your buffoon brother.

Well, not this time.

You had no right to do this without asking me.

I didn't ask you because you wouldn't have listened.

No, you never listened, which is why I wanted to go to Harvey in the first place.

What?

You heard me.

How could you betray me like that?

I wasn't betraying you.

I was looking out for myself.

If you were looking out for yourself, then why did you lie to me about going to him?

Because you're always jealous whenever I ask anyone else to do anything.

You're my brother, Louis, not my boyfriend.

If you wanted Harvey so much, why don't you go to him right now?

I can't.

Because when I went to him, he told me I should trust you.

He really said that?

He didn't just say that.

100

He said you were a damn good lawyer.

101

I am a damn good lawyer.

102

But I should have told you.

103

Well, what are we going to do now?

104

It depends.

105

Do you think you can trust me or not?

106

I can.

107

Gretchen, where are we at with the Cabrillo claim?

108

I have to go.

109

I'm not Gretchen.

110

That's too bad for you because she's still in the habit of covering for you.

111

Covering for me for what?

112

I told you Lewis was gonna find out about Esther.

113

And I told you it's none of your business.

114

Well, it became my business when Lewis asked me about it yesterday, and I had to lie to his face just to get him to leave it alone.

115

I didn't ask you to do that.

116

Yes, you did, and you know it.

117

Donna, I don't have time for this.

118

I have an appointment.

119

What appointment?

120

I checked with Gretchen so you couldn't get out of this with some made-up thing.

121

Your calendar's empty.

122

You know what, Donna?

123

One thing I learned the hard way is not to tell your secretary everything.

124

Well, be careful, Harvey.

125

Because you're about to learn the hard way that I may have lied to Louis about this once, but I am never, never gonna do it again.

126

I got in a fight with Donna.

127

Fight about what?

128

She wants me to tell Lewis that I slept with his sister.

129

Why exactly does she want you to do that?

130

Because I promised Lewis I wouldn't, and she thinks he's gonna find out.

131

Why would you make a promise like that to Lewis if you had no intention of keeping it?

132

I had every intention of keeping it.

133

It's Lewis's sister.

134

But then I met her, and.. it happened.

135

Well, why don't you just tell him that?

136

Because he's like a four-year-old, and on top of that, he doesn't own her.

137

She's his sister.

138

But this isn't about his relationship with his sister.

139

It's about his relationship with you.

140

You made him a promise.

141

Yeah, and as long as he doesn't find out I broke it, it doesn't matter.

142

And in light of the story you told me the other day, that's probably what someone you know very well said to herself. Are you shitting me?

143

You're comparing me to her?

144

I most certainly am.

145

Right down to you putting Donna in a position not to say anything.

146

Donna is not an eight-year-old boy, and I'm not cheating on my wife.

147

No, but you're putting two people you care about in positions to feel betrayed.

148

Betrayed?

149

Yes, like when someone has an affair with someone else.

150

Okay, you don't get to say that to me.

151

It's my job to say things like that to you.

152

Then you don't know what you're talking about, because I've lived my whole life not to be her.

153

And when people do that, they very often become that very thing in a different way.

154

Well, I'm not goddamn her!

155

Well, then you better take a look in the mirror.

156

Because you made a promise, snuck behind someone's back to break it, and when confronted with that fact, you're denying all responsibility.

157

That sounds like an affair to me.

158

Esther, what are you doing here?

159

I'm actually going out to dinner with Louis and Donna.

160

Well, thanks for the invitation, but that's the last thing in the world I want to do right now.

161

That's not why I'm here.

162

I was thinking about what you said about why I called you first and then about how you handled it.

163

And I thought maybe you might want to take me out this weekend.

164

Esther, what do you think is going on between us?

165

I don't know.

166

I just...

167

You don't know?

168

Well, I'll tell you.

169

We had a moment.

170

It was nice.

171

But I'm not interested in sneaking around.

172

Who said anything about sneaking around?

173

I did.

174

And you just got divorced.

175

And you're a mother of two.

176

And I'm not gonna be the reason that... That what? That nothing.

177

Why don't you just go out to your dinner?

178

Harvey, tell me what's going on.

179

What's going on is you asked me out and I said no. So please, just leave me alone.

180

Harvey...

181

I said leave me alone.

182

You and I are gonna have a talk right now.

183

Okay, whatever it is, it can wait.

184

I need to tell you something.

185

Does that have something to do with why my sister just left here too upset to go out to dinner?

186

You piece of shit, I knew it.

187

What'd you do to her now?

188

I didn't do anything to her, Louis.

189

And when I say now, I mean as opposed to before when you slept with her.

190

That's right.

191

Donna, the one you tried to steal from me at dinner the other night told me.

192

Calm down.

193

I didn't try to steal anything.

194

You made a promise to me!

195

And even after I told you about when Esther and I were kids and the boys used me to get to her, you still went ahead and betrayed me.

196

Lewis, it had already happened.

197

And I was just now about to tell you.

198

Bullshit.

199

You were never gonna tell me.

200

You were gonna keep it to yourself to the day you died.

201

Lewis, you have to believe me.

202

I swear I was just about to tell you.

203

What you're about to do is get your ass kicked.

204

All right, watch yourself.

205

Don't threaten something you can't handle.

206

You don't think I can handle you?

207

You also thought I was too stupid to find out, but I did find out.

208

I found out that you're nothing but a lying, cheating...

209

I didn't cheat with Esther.

210

It was two grown people making a goddamn decision for themselves.

211

Well, that decision ended with her walking out of here near tears because she didn't have all the facts, like the fact that you're a serial womanizer who can't stand when anyone else has.

212

Shut the hell up!

213

So he takes whatever woman's inside...

214

I'm telling you.

215

...because he's so messed up from whatever goddamn thing happened to him in his pathetic childhood...

216

Shut the hell up!

217

He can't!

218

Harvey.

219

Get away from me.

220

Get the hell out of here.

221

Harvey.

222

Get away from me.

223

Get the hell out of here.

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “Harvey Calls It Quits With Esther”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: Harvey, Lewis, Donna, Esther, Louis. This video has 223 sentences and 1867 words to shadow. The speech runs for 9:29. The speaker talks fast, about 197 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 85% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 48 of its 223 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.

Key vocabulary in this video

The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
betray verb	/bɪˈtɹeɪ/	To deliver into the hands of an enemy by treachery or fraud, in violation of trust; to give up treacherously or faithlessly.
sneak verb	/sniːk/	To creep or go stealthily; to come or go while trying to avoid detection, as a person who does not wish to be seen.
cheat verb	/ˈt͡ʃiːt/	To violate rules in order to gain, or attempt to gain, advantage from a situation.
muffin noun	/ˈmʌf.ɪn/	A type of flattish bun, usually cut in two horizontally, toasted and spread with butter, etc., before being eaten.
gluten noun	/ˈɡluːtən/	The major protein in cereal grains, especially wheat; responsible for the elasticity in dough and the structure in baked bread.
accuse verb	/əˈkjuz/	To find fault with, blame, censure.
quietly adverb	/ˈkwaɪ.ɪt.li/	Producing little or no noise.
anaphylactic adjective	/ˌænəfəˈlæktɪk/	Pertaining to anaphylaxis.
blackmail noun	/ˈblækˌmeɪl/	The extortion of money or favors by threats of public accusation, critique, or exposure.
concoct verb	/kənˈkɒkt/	To prepare something by mixing various ingredients, especially to prepare food for cooking.
countersue verb		To sue a person or entity who is suing one.
countersuit noun		A lawsuit filed against a party that has filed a suit against one.
womanizer noun	/ˈwʊm.əˌnaɪ.zəɹ/	A man who habitually flirts with and seduces, or attempts to seduce, women.
greedy adjective	/ˈɡɹiːdi/	Having greed; consumed by selfish desires.
confront verb	/kənˈfɹʌnt/	To stand or meet facing, especially in competition, hostility or defiance; to come face to face with.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
find out verb		To discover, as by asking or investigating.
calm down verb		To become less excited, intense, or angry.
come out verb	/ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/	To be discovered; to be revealed.
get out of verb		To leave, exit or escape from; to become free of.
go ahead verb	/ˌɡoʊ əˈhɛd/	To proceed with; to begin.
go away verb		To depart or leave a place.
make up verb	/ˌmeɪk ˈʌp/	To constitute, to compose.
sleep together verb		To have sex with each other.

Sentences worth repeating

Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:

You know what I think?
You're comparing me to her?
Why don't you just go out to your dinner?
What'd you do to her now?
You don't think I can handle you?

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	you've been sleeping · haven't been sleeping
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	I've already been · I've lived

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 98 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, I'm, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “th” sounds: threaten /ˈθɹɛt.n̩/, pathetic /pəˈθɛtɪk/
The “sh” and “zh” sounds: rational /ˈɹæʃ(ə)nəl/, invitation /ɪnvɪˈteɪʃən/, instruction /ɪnˈstɹʌkʃən/
Long words — get the stress right: anaphylactic /ˌænəfəˈlæktɪk/, womanizer /ˈwʊm.əˌnaɪ.zəɹ/, invitation /ɪnvɪˈteɪʃən/

How to practise with this video

Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like betray, sneak, cheat.

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.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →

Shadowing Practice: Harvey Calls It Quits With Esther | Suits - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

Key vocabulary in this video

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Sentences worth repeating

Grammar in this video

Pronunciation to watch

How to practise with this video

What is the Shadowing Technique?