Shadowing Practice: Imagine Dragons - Demons (Lyrics) - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B1 speaking lesson is built on the video “Imagine Dragons - Demons”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: hide, demons, kingdom, inside, eyes. This video has 23 sentences and 308 words to shadow. The speech runs for 2:52. The speaker talks slowly, about 107 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 85% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| demon noun | /ˈdiː.mən/ | An evil being resident in or working for Hell; a devil. |
| greed noun | /ɡɹiːd/ | A selfish or excessive desire for more than is needed or deserved, especially of money, wealth, food, or other possessions. |
| breed verb | /ˈbɹiːd/ | To give birth to; to be the native place of. |
| masquerade noun | /ˌmæskəˈɹeɪd/ | An assembly or party of people wearing (usually elaborate or fanciful) masks and costumes, and amusing themselves with dancing, conversation, or other… |
| sinner noun | /ˈsɪnɚ/ | A person who, by one particular action, has sinned. |
| weave verb | /wiːv/ | To form something by passing lengths or strands of material over and under one another. |
| bind verb | /ˈbaɪ̯nd/ | To tie; to confine by any ligature. |
| crawl verb | /kɹɔːl/ | To move by dragging one's body along or close to a surface, like a worm or insect, or on one's hands and knees, like a human baby. |
| fade verb | /feɪd/ | To hit the ball with the shot called a fade. |
| hail noun | /heɪl/ | Balls or pieces of ice falling as precipitation, often in connection with a thunderstorm. |
| fold verb | /ˈfəʊld/ | To bend (any thin material, such as paper) over so that it comes in contact with itself. |
| shine verb | /ʃaɪn/ | To emit or reflect light so as to glow. |
| wound noun | /ˈwund/ | An injury, such as a cut, stab, or tear, to a (usually external) part of the body. |
| shelter noun | /ˈʃɛltə/ | A place where a person or animal may find protection from the elements (especially rain, storms, or cold) sometimes as a place to sleep (such as a cave). |
| beast noun | /biːst/ | Any four-footed land mammal. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| wake up verb | /ˌweɪk ˈʌp/ | To stop sleeping; to awake. |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 11 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, wanna, can't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: shine /ʃaɪn/, shelter /ˈʃɛltə/
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 demon, greed, breed.
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.
































