Shadowing Practice: Lana Del Rey || Off to the Races || (Lyrics) - Learn English Speaking with Video

This video has 35 sentences and 591 words to shadow. The speech runs for 4:24. The speaker talks at a steady 134 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 79% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.

Key vocabulary in this video

15 less common words from the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

• coin /ˈkoɪ̯n/ (noun) — A piece of currency, usually metallic and in the shape of a disc, but sometimes polygonal, or with a hole in the middle.
• scarlet /ˈskɑɹlɪt/ (noun) — A brilliant red colour sometimes tinged with orange.
• swim /swɪm/ (verb) — To move through the water, without touching the bottom; to propel oneself in water by natural means.
• gate /ˈɡeɪ̯t/ (noun) — A doorlike structure outside a house.
• chase /t͡ʃeɪs/ (verb) — To follow at speed.
• crystal /ˈkɹɪstəl/ (noun) — A solid composed of an array of atoms or molecules possessing long-range order and arranged in a pattern which is periodic in three dimensions.
• pray /pɹeɪ/ (verb) — To direct words, thoughts, or one's attention to a deity or any higher being, for the sake of adoration, thanks, petition for help, etc.
• deny /dəˈnaɪ/ (verb) — To disallow or reject.
• polish /ˈpɑ.lɪʃ/ (verb) — To shine; to make a surface very smooth or shiny by rubbing, cleaning, or grinding.
• chaos /ˈkeɪˌɑs/ (noun) — The unordered state of matter in classical accounts of cosmogony.
• breathe /bɹiːð/ (verb) — To draw air into (inhale), and expel air from (exhale), the lungs in order to extract oxygen and excrete waste gases.
• nail /neɪl/ (noun) — The horny plate or appendage at the ends of the digits of various animals, including most reptiles, birds, and mammals (both nonhuman and human).
• basement /ˈbeɪsmənt/ (noun) — A floor of a building below ground level.
• casino /kəˈsiːnəʊ/ (noun) — A public building or room for gambling.
• lip /lɪp/ (noun) — Either of the two fleshy protrusions around the opening of the mouth.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

• get out (verb) — To leave or escape.
• break down (verb) — To stop functioning.
• fall down /fɔl ˈdaʊn/ (verb) — To fall to the ground. To collapse.
• go down (verb) — To descend; to move from a higher place to a lower one.
• put up with (verb) — To endure, tolerate, suffer through, or allow, especially something annoying.
• watch over (verb) — To guard and protect.

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 34 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, won't, doesn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

• The “th” sounds: breathe /bɹiːð/, thief /ˈθiːf/
• The “sh” and “zh” sounds: polish /ˈpɑ.lɪʃ/, shameless /ˈʃeɪ̯mlɪs/

How to practise with this video

1. Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
2. Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
3. Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like coin, scarlet, swim.