Shadowing Practice: It's rude AND strange in English - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
1
I want a coffee.
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Now, this sounds a little bit rude.
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Try these instead.
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Can I get a coffee?
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Can I get a coffee, please?
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I'd like a coffee, please.
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Thank you.
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I'm really glad that Claire made this video because
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when I talked about how we don't order food like this in the U .S., well, typically, as mature, polite adults, we don't order food like,
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hi, I want a burger.
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When I said that, I got some pushback.
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People saying, no, it exists.
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It's fine.
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Look, it's not just that it sounds a little bit rude, as Claire said.
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It's just strange.
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It's something you would expect from a kid, like a five -year -old.
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They don't really know what they're doing and they go, I want an ice cream.
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Like, it sounds childish.
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It's just weird.
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Personally, I will always order food in English by asking a question.
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I think that's the best way.
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Can I have, can I get, whatever, but a question.
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All right, have a fabulous day.
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Bye.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “It's rude AND strange in English”. This video has 24 sentences and 174 words to shadow. The speech runs for 1:02. The speaker talks at a natural 168 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. Only 77% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| rude adjective | /ɹuːd/ | Lacking in refinement or civility; bad-mannered; discourteous. |
| mature adjective | /məˈt͡ʃʊ(ə)ɹ/ | Fully developed; grown up in terms of physical appearance, behaviour or thinking; ripe. |
| fabulous adjective | /ˈfæbjʊləs/ | Of or relating to fable, myth or legend. |
| burger noun | /ˈbɝ.ɡɚ/ | A hamburger. |
| polite adjective | /pəˈlaɪt/ | Well-mannered, civilized. |
| childish adjective | /ˈt͡ʃaɪldɪʃ/ | Immature in thought or behaviour. |
| pushback noun | The act of repelling an enemy, etc. | |
| strange adjective | /stɹeɪnd͡ʒ/ | Not normal; odd, unusual, surprising, out of the ordinary, often with a negative connotation. |
| cream noun | /kɹiːm/ | The butterfat or milkfat part of milk which rises to the top; this part when separated from the remainder. |
| typically adverb | /ˈtɪp.ɪ.kli/ | In a typical or common manner. |
| personally adverb | /ˈpɜː.sə.nə.li/ | In a personal manner. |
| coffee noun | /ˈkɑfi/ | A beverage made by infusing the beans of the coffee plant in hot water. |
| glad adjective | /ɡlæd/ | Pleased; happy; gratified. |
| weird adjective | /ˈwiɚd/ | Having an unusually strange character or behaviour. |
| adult noun | /ˈæd.ʌlt/ | An animal that is full-grown. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Can I get a coffee?
- Can I get a coffee, please?
- I'd like a coffee, please.
- I think that's the best way.
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 6 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, I'd, I'm. 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.
- 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 rude, mature, fabulous.
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.