Shadowing Practice: Lesson 2 - Speak English Clearly! The Imitation Technique - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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Hi!
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Welcome to the second imitation training video lesson.
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It's going to help you reduce your accent and pronunciation problems quickly and become a clearer, more confident English speaker.
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Now, do you remember the three steps that we need to follow when we're doing an imitation exercise?
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The first step is to listen to me and read the text at the same time.
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Then it's your turn.
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You're going to hear me read each sentence and there will be a pause after.
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So you can copy my pronunciation, stress, pause and intonation exactly.
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Then you're going to try the bigger challenge of shadowing me without looking at the text.
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Ready?
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Small talk is such an important part of socialising.
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When you're at work, or at university, or when you're travelling.
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Any time that you're meeting new people.
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It's those first few questions or conversation topics that we use to introduce ourselves to a stranger.
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Small talk helps us to introduce ourselves to people
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that we've never met before and it helps us to ease into more detailed conversation.
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Now small talk can make or break your future relationships with people that you meet so it's important to get it right.
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The main idea with small talk is to make
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that other person feel as comfortable as possible and really enjoy speaking with you.
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Some of my favourite small talk questions are What's your dream job?
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Now this is a really fun way to get a conversation started
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because the person that you're talking to can give any answer that they want.
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Another one is If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?
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Now not everyone gets to travel
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So it can be a really fun way of starting a conversation with someone about travel
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and adventures and visiting new places even if they haven't done much travel themselves.
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Do you like to cook?
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Asking about your favourite dishes and culinary adventures sparks delicious conversation.
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It's easy to keep talking about food and eating for hours.
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Hey, I really like your t -shirt.
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A genuine compliment is always going to get a good reaction from someone.
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Just try not to make it too sleazy.
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Now these questions are guaranteed to help you enjoy small talk and have some interesting conversations with new people that you meet.
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Okay, now for step number two.
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You're going to imitate exactly what I say, The pronunciation, the stress, the pause.
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Ready?
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Small talk is such an important part of socialising.
38
When you're at work or at university or when you're travelling.
39
Anytime that you're meeting new people.
40
It's those first few questions or conversation topics that we use to introduce ourselves to a stranger.
41
Smalltalk helps us to introduce ourselves to people that we've never met before.
42
And it helps us to ease into more detailed conversation.
43
Now small talk can make or break your future relationships with people that you meet.
44
So it's important to get it right.
45
The main idea with small talk is to make that other person feel as comfortable as possible
46
and really enjoy speaking with you.
47
Some of my favourite small talk questions are...
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What's your dream job?
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Now this is a really fun way to get a conversation started
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because the person that you're talking to can give any answer that they want.
51
Another one is If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
52
Now, not everyone gets to travel.
53
So it can be a really fun way of starting a conversation with someone about travel and adventures and visiting new places
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even if they haven't done much travel themselves.
55
Do you like to cook?
56
Asking about your favourite dishes and culinary adventures sparks delicious conversation.
57
It's easy to keep talking about food and eating for hours.
58
Hey, I really like your t -shirt!
59
A genuine compliment is always going to get a good reaction from someone.
60
Just try not to make it too sleazy.
61
Now these questions are guaranteed to help you enjoy small talk and have some interesting conversations
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with new people that you meet.
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This is step three where you're going to shadow exactly what I've said as I'm saying it.
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So you'll be listening to me and speaking at the same time.
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Ready?
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Small talk is such an important part of socialising when you're at work or at university or when you're travelling,
67
any time that you're meeting new people.
68
It's those first few questions or conversation topics that we use to introduce ourselves to a stranger.
69
Small talk helps us to introduce ourselves to people
70
that we've never met before and it helps us to ease into more detailed conversation.
71
Now small talk can make or break your future relationships with people that you meet so it's important to get it right.
72
The main idea with small talk is to make the other person feel as comfortable as possible
73
and really enjoy speaking with you.
74
Some of my favourite small talk questions are What's your dream job?
75
Now this is a really fun way to get a conversation started
76
because the person that you're talking to can give any answer that they want.
77
Another one is, If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
78
Now, not everyone gets to travel,
79
so it can be a really fun way of starting a conversation with someone about travel and adventures and visiting new places,
80
even if they haven't done much travel themselves.
81
Do you like to cook?
82
Asking about your favourite dishes and culinary adventures sparks delicious conversation.
83
It's easy to keep talking about food and eating for hours.
84
Hey, I really like your t -shirt!
85
A genuine compliment is always going to get a good reaction from someone.
86
Just try not to make it too sleazy.
87
Now these questions are guaranteed to help you enjoy small talk and have some interesting conversations with new people that you meet.
88
See you tomorrow!
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 88 sentences and 999 words to shadow. The speech runs for 9:43. The speaker talks slowly, about 103 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 89% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 less common words from the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
- adventure /ədˈvɛn.t͡ʃə/ (noun) — A feeling of desire for new and exciting things.
- introduce /ˌɪntɹəˈdus/ (verb) — To cause (someone) to be acquainted (with someone else).
- topic /ˈtɑpɪk/ (noun) — A subject; a theme; a category or general area of interest.
- guarantee /ˌɡæɹ.ənˈtiː/ (noun) — Anything that assures a certain outcome.
- genuine /ˈd͡ʒɛn.juˌɪn/ (adjective) — Belonging to, or proceeding from the original stock; native.
- delicious /dɪˈlɪ.ʃəs/ (adjective) — Pleasing to the sense of taste; tasty.
- ease /iz/ (verb) — To free (something) from pain, worry, agitation, etc.
- dish /dɪʃ/ (noun) — A vessel such as a plate for holding or serving food, often flat with a depressed region in the middle.
- pause /pɔːz/ (noun) — A temporary stop or rest; an intermission of action; interruption; suspension; cessation.
- spark /ˈspɑɹk/ (noun) — A small particle of glowing matter, either molten or on fire, resulting from an electrical surge or excessive heat created by friction.
- compliment /ˈkɑmpləmənt/ (noun) — An expression of praise, congratulation, or respect.
- culinary /ˈkʌlɪˌnɛɹi/ (adjective) — Relating to the practice of cookery or the activity of cooking.
- pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/ (noun) — The formal or informal way in which a word is made to sound when spoken.
- shadow /ˈʃædəʊ̯/ (noun) — A dark image projected onto a surface where light (or other radiation) is blocked by the shade of an object.
- distress /dɪˈstɹɛs/ (noun) — Physical or emotional discomfort, suffering, or alarm, particularly of a more acute nature.
Phrasal verbs you will hear
- talk about (verb) — Used to draw attention to the speaker's characterization of someone or something.
- look at (verb) — To observe or watch.
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 26 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, haven't, we've. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: delicious /dɪˈlɪ.ʃəs/, dish /dɪʃ/, pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, shadow /ˈʃædəʊ̯/, imitation /ɪmɪˈteɪ̯ʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: culinary /ˈkʌlɪˌnɛɹi/, pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, imitation /ɪmɪˈteɪ̯ʃən/, intonation /ɪntəˈneɪʃən/
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 adventure, introduce, topic.
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 | we've never met · haven't done · I've said |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | are guaranteed |
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | enjoy speaking · keep talking |
| Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around now | we're doing · you're travelling · you're meeting |
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.