Shadowing Practice: Language Review: Romanian - Learn English Speaking with Video
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “Language Review: Romanian”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: Romanian, language, sound, word. This video has 327 sentences and 4339 words to shadow. The speech runs for 24:44. The speaker talks at a natural 175 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. Only 76% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| noun noun | /naʊn/ | A word that functions as the name of a specific object or set of objects, such as person, animal, place, word, thing, phenomenon, substance, quality, or idea… |
| masculine adjective | /ˈmæskjələn/ | Of or pertaining to the male gender. |
| singular adjective | /ˈsɪŋ.ɡjə.lɚ/ | Being only one of a larger population; single, individual. |
| feminine adjective | /ˈfɛmɪnɪn/ | Of or pertaining to the female gender. |
| cone noun | /ˈkoʊn/ | A surface of revolution formed by rotating a segment of a line around another line that intersects the first line. |
| lingo noun | /ˈlɪŋ.ɡoʊ̯/ | Language, especially language peculiar to a particular group, field, or region; jargon or a dialect. |
| subjunctive adjective | /səbˈd͡ʒʌŋktɪv/ | Inflected to indicate that an act or state of being is possible, contingent or hypothetical, and not a fact. |
| vocab noun | [ˈvoʊ.kæb] | Vocabulary, especially that acquired while learning a language. |
| plural noun | /ˈplʊəɹəl/ | The plural number. In English, referring to more or less than one of something. |
| alphabet noun | /ˈæl.fəˌbɛt/ | The set of letters used when writing in a language. |
| conjugation noun | /ˌkɑnd͡ʒəˈɡeɪʃən/ | The coming together of things; a union. |
| gigachad noun | An extremely admirable man; a Chad among Chads. | |
| ooze verb | /uːz/ | To be secreted or slowly leak. |
| plec noun | pleco (tropical fish) | |
| aura noun | /ˈɔːɹə/ | A subtle emanation or exhalation of any substance, such as an aroma or odour. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| check out verb | To record the departure or withdrawal of someone or something (such as guests, employees, books, etc.). | |
| come together verb | /ˈkʌm tʊˈɡɛðɚ/ | To assemble; to congregate; to combine. |
| go through verb | To travel from one end of something to the other. | |
| have over verb | To host (a visiting guest) at one's house. | |
| hold up verb | To wait or delay. | |
| run off verb | To flee or depart quickly. | |
| use up verb | To consume, deplete, expend, or exhaust. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- It's my dream to visit that city!
- It's stupid and I do not like that.
- How do you go from the simple, informal tu, to dumnea vostra?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| “Used to” used to + verb — a past habit or state that is no longer true | used to have · used to write · used to make |
| Conditional sentences if + clause, will/would + verb — a condition and its result | if someone called me that, I'd be |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | is also spoken · was called · were separated |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | Rome, which is · Napoca, which is · manele, which is |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 81 contractions and reduced forms, such as they're, don't, you'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: conjugation /ˌkɑnd͡ʒəˈɡeɪʃən/, distinguish /dɪˈstɪŋ.ɡwɪʃ/, socially /ˈsoʊʃəli/, isolation /ˌaɪsəˈleɪʃən/, fusion /ˈfjuː.ʒən/
- Long words — get the stress right: conjugation /ˌkɑnd͡ʒəˈɡeɪʃən/, underrated /ʌn.dɚˈɹeɪ.təd/, accusative /əˈkjuzətɪv/, infinitive /ɪnˈfɪnɪtɪv/, monolingual /ˌmɒ.nəʊˈlɪŋ.ɡwəl/
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 noun, masculine, singular.
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.











