Shadowing Practice: I'm making my Ansible and Kubernetes DevOps books free this month - Learn English Speaking with Video
Choose a practice mode
Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.
37 sentences
If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.
1
Hi everyone, I just wanted to let you know
2
that until the end of this month I'm going to be offering my Ansible for DevOps and Ansible for Kubernetes books.
3
for free on LeanPub, mostly because I remember going through the Great Recession, or whatever it was called,
4
of 2008, and one of the hardest parts of that whole experience, besides the fact that a lot of people lost a lot of money
5
and some time and investment in their projects and things, was a lot of people lost jobs.
6
Or even if they didn't lose jobs, they were in a situation where they were in a kind of bad place for a while.
7
And I think one of the things that we can do,
8
all of us, especially those of us who might have a position that they feel a little more confident and secure keeping,
9
even in the midst of all this turmoil with the coronavirus and COVID -19 and the stock markets,
10
is we can help one another to learn and to be flexible and to be able to be adaptable.
11
flexibility, we can learn a new skill and we can develop a new talent
12
and be able to get another job or position somewhere else.
13
And I think a lot of us have taken that for granted for the past decade because it's been
14
It's been a seller's market for the job marketplace, but if that does change,
15
I want to make sure that people have the ability to to learn new skills and to be in a new position.
16
And so that's why I'm offering my books for free for the next, until the end of this month.
17
And please take me up on that offer.
18
If you ever get something out of them, You can send me a tip, you can sponsor me on GitHub or something, but don't worry about that right now.
19
I just want as many people as possible to learn these tools
20
that can help with finding a new position or just learning a new skill.
21
Even if you're not looking right now or not planning on being on the chopping block or anything, being able to know new skills in our marketplace,
22
Ansible and Kubernetes and some of these other DevOps tools that are described in the books, I think is a very valuable skill that can help anyone in any position.
23
So thank you and hopefully things are going well for you.
24
And I'm kind of used to being at home because I work from home.
25
I have for the past five or so years and I love it.
26
But I'm also an introvert.
27
I know how hard it can be for some people to be in this new situation.
28
come together at this time and help.
29
One of the worst things that could happen is for somebody to feel alone and afraid, especially in the midst of market turmoil.
30
And, you know, people getting sick and all that.
31
So please, please know that I am keeping you in my prayers.
32
If you don't pray and you don't believe in that, that's great, but I'll still pray for you anyway.
33
And I will continue doing my live series, although this week and for the foreseeable future,
34
you might be hearing some pounding from upstairs because that's where the kids have their playroom slash schoolroom area,
35
and they will be running around up there since they're not going to be going out anywhere on Tuesdays anymore.
36
So hopefully I'll see you tomorrow on my live stream.
37
If not, please take advantage of the book offer, and I will see you some other time.
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
FOR YOU
Recommend Video
B21
179 sentences
She learned one new skill that unlocked a $120K salary
Business EnglishInterview EnglishWorking Adults
B23
572 sentences
Episode 527: I lost my job after 10 years and am I too old to switch to a security career?
Business EnglishInterview EnglishWorking Adults
B22
65 sentences
English Job Interview Tips and Tricks 3 | English Job Interview Preparation
Business EnglishInterview EnglishWorking Adults
B22
32 sentences
Pushing Back on an Unrealistic Deadline
Business EnglishInterview EnglishWorking Adults
B211
89 sentences
The Art Of Winning In Tech
Business EnglishInterview EnglishUniversity Students
B2171 sentences
Interview Tips from a Senior Software Engineer... and a 4 year old
Business EnglishInterview EnglishUniversity Students
B28
85 sentences
this will change how you make YouTube videos FOREVER
Business EnglishInterview EnglishUniversity Students
B2435 sentences
Color Palettes Worth Another Look
Business EnglishDaily ConversationUniversity Students
B22
265 sentences
A Day in the Life of an Amazon Software Engineer
Business EnglishInterview EnglishUniversity Students
B21
181 sentences
8 Years of Data Analytics Advice in 12 Minutes
Business EnglishInterview EnglishUniversity Students
C11
356 sentences
How to Make People Beg to Pay You: The Economics of Absence | Robert Greene
Business EnglishWorking Adults
B21
246 sentences
The Fastest Way to Be Confident at Work (Even If You're Quiet)
Business EnglishInterview EnglishWorking Adults
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “I'm making my Ansible and Kubernetes DevOps books free this month”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: skill, position, learn, Ansible. This video has 37 sentences and 612 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:34. The speaker talks at a natural 172 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 87% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 14 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| turmoil noun | /ˈtɜːmɔɪl/ | A state of great disorder or uncertainty. |
| amidst | /aˈmɪdst/ | In the midst or middle of; surrounded or encompassed by; among. |
| marketplace noun | An open area in a town housing a public market. | |
| adaptable adjective | /əˈdæptəbəl/ | Capable of being adapted. |
| coronavirus noun | /kəˈɹoʊnəˌvaɪɹəs/ | A member of the family Coronaviridae, comprising viruses which infect animals and human beings, and the genome of which consists of a single strand of RNA. |
| foreseeable adjective | /fɔɹˈsi.ə.bəl/ | Able to be foreseen or anticipated. |
| introverted adjective | /ˈɪn.tɹəˌvɜːɹ.təd/ | Thinking about internal or spiritual matters. |
| playroom noun | A room, allocated as a children's play area, in which noisy or boisterous activities are tolerated. | |
| schoolroom noun | A classroom, a room in a school used for instruction. | |
| chop verb | /t͡ʃɑp/ | To cut into pieces with short, vigorous cutting motions. |
| upstairs adverb | /ˌʌpˈstɛɹz/ | Up the stairs; on or to a higher floor or level. |
| flexibility noun | /ˌflɛksɪˈbɪlɪti/ | The quality of being flexible, whether physically or metaphorically. |
| sponsor noun | /ˈspɒn.səː/ | A person or organization with some sort of responsibility for another person or organization, especially where the responsibility has a religious, legal, or… |
| flexible adjective | /ˈflɛk.sɪ.bəl/ | Capable of being flexed or bent without breaking; able to be turned or twisted without breaking. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| go out verb | To leave, especially a building. |
| go through verb | To travel from one end of something to the other. |
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 | have taken · It's been |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | was called · are described |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 12 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, I'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- Long words — get the stress right: adaptable /əˈdæptəbəl/, coronavirus /kəˈɹoʊnəˌvaɪɹəs/, foreseeable /fɔɹˈsi.ə.bəl/, introverted /ˈɪn.tɹəˌvɜːɹ.təd/, flexibility /ˌflɛksɪˈbɪlɪti/
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 turmoil, amidst, marketplace.
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.