Shadowing Practice: Making an international standard cup of tea - Learn English Speaking with Video
Choose a practice mode
Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.
47 sentences
If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.
1
Loads of people have talked about the International Standard Cup of Tea, and there are hundreds of clickbait articles describing it, or ranting about how it's the wrong way to make tea,
2
and there are lengthy infographics videos talking about it.
3
But, as far as I can tell, no -one has actually made a standard cup of tea for the internet before.
4
And there are a couple of reasons for that.
5
One, you have to either buy a copy of the standard, or visit a library that subscribes to the standards online,
6
so you can write down the details and two, it requires specialist equipment.
7
Most people in Britain make their tea by putting a teabag in a mug and then pouring boiling water on it.
8
If you want to be fancy, then you take a pre -warmed teapot and you put some loose -leaf tea in it, like this stuff, and then you brew the tea in there, and then you pour the results through a strainer into a cup.
9
It's fancy.
10
But the standard, ISO 3103, doesn't ask for any of that.
11
Instead, it uses a bit of equipment that most people won't even have heard of, which is a professional tea -tasting set.
12
Now, the standard describes it in more technical terms, diagrams and requirements of construction and weight and size and volume, but fortunately I could just buy a set that matched the standard.
13
And the instructions for it are actually pretty simple.
14
You measure out 2 grams of tea per 100 millilitres of water, plus or minus 2%.
15
So for this, that means 2 .8 grams plus or minus 0 .05 grams, which I've worked out in advance because it took ages to get it
16
that precise and then you combine that with either local or standardised water, depending on what you're testing,
17
by filling this little mug to the bottom of those serrations.
18
Also, you let it steep for six minutes, which seems a bit long, but hey, that's the standard.
19
Once your six minutes are up, you separate the liquor, as it's called, from the tea leaves by pouring it through the little serrations here into this cup.
20
Let's see if I can do it.
21
No, I can't.
22
But close enough.
23
They say that if you're adding milk, you should put it in first.
24
But this is green tea, so I'm not getting involved in that debate.
25
You drain it through there, most of the leaves stay in the cup, and once it's drained, you can inspect the tea leaves.
26
And then you drink it, not from the traditional cup, but from the bowl.
27
There is a separate standard ISO 1839 on how you actually sample it and what you report out,
28
and it tastes, er.. tastes okay.
29
It's just okay.
30
Because the standard isn't meant to make the perfect cup of tea or the most British cup of tea.
31
Every time the fact that there's a standard for tea does the rounds of the internet, loads of people misunderstand it as being prescriptive and saying everyone should make their tea this way,
32
and they really shouldn't.
33
ISO 3103 is meant to make an okay but reproducible cup of tea.
34
It sets out instructions so that whoever and wherever you are, you can create the same cup of tea as someone else in another time and place.
35
For regular tea at home, make it however you want.
36
Stick a teabag in a mug.
37
Put the milk in first or last.
38
Use fancy china if you want.
39
Make your tea days in advance and then warm it up again in the microwave.
40
Don't do that.
41
But it doesn't matter.
42
There is no perfect cup of tea.
43
There is only the right one for you.
44
This here?
45
This isn't perfect.
46
Definitely isn't perfect but as far as I can tell, this is the first international standard cup of tea on the internet.
47
I don't actually like tea.
Download App
Everything you need to speak fluently
AI PronunciationScore every sentence
IPA PracticeMaster every sound
VocabularyBuild your word bank
Vocab GameLearn while playing
Same Channel
B21
Do The Numbers On Toaster Dials Mean Minutes?
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B24
The secret underground pipeline across Britain
British AccentDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B23
Why robots still can't pick strawberries
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B23
How much helium does it take to lift a person?
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B24
The world's most frustrating work of art
British AccentDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B25
How many robots does it take to run a grocery store?
British AccentBusiness EnglishUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B21
Will YouTube Ever Run Out Of Video IDs?
British AccentBusiness EnglishUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B23
The US-Canada border splits this road down the middle
British AccentTravel EnglishUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B12
This 1970s tank simulator drives through a tiny world
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B22
How can you legally fly a plane designed in 1910?
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B13
The never-used road where the BBC crash cars
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B22
Why California's musical road sounds terrible
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B23
If Educational Videos Were Filmed Like Music Videos
British AccentUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B23
This Video Is 2D And 3D Simultaneously: the Pulfrich Effect
British AccentUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B24
Why Britain Uses Separate Hot and Cold Taps
British AccentCambridge Exam PrepUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B23
This 100-year-old ride must never change again.
British AccentDaily ConversationHigh School StudentsUniversity Students
B21
I get excited about &.
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
C11
Flying a plane badly, on purpose.
British AccentBusiness EnglishUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B2Testing the world's longest echo
British AccentIELTS PrepTOEFL PrepUniversity Students
B2Thomas, a tank engine, is not Thomas the Tank Engine.
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
FOR YOU
Recommend Video
B11
439 sentences
Making the perfect cup of tea | English Right Now Podcast
British AccentDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B225 sentences
Do these Viral Recipes Really Work? Let’s Test Them
Business EnglishDaily ConversationUniversity Students
B23
38 sentences
The Book of Tea
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B22
188 sentences
15 Things British People Secretly Judge You For 🇬🇧
British AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B23
148 sentences
The Assassin's Teapot Is Weird
British AccentDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B215
145 sentences
SPEAK BETTER ENGLISH! ⭐| Improve your FLUENCY!! | British English 🇬🇧
British AccentIELTS PrepDaily ConversationUniversity Students
B231
110 sentences
B1/B2 Intermediate English listening practice 🇬🇧 English Conversation about British Stereotypes
British AccentDaily ConversationHigh School StudentsUniversity Students
B21
40 sentences
Chai Latte Recipe (Better than Starbucks!)
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B21
187 sentences
How To Bake Sourdough Like A Pro
Business EnglishDaily ConversationUniversity Students
B21
196 sentences
Something Weird Happens When You See How Connected Everything Is
Daily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B22
365 sentences
Learn English without even studying
British AccentDaily ConversationHigh School StudentsUniversity Students
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 47 sentences and 652 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:26. The speaker talks fast, about 190 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 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
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| leaf noun | /lif/ | The usually green and flat organ that represents the most prominent feature of most vegetative plants. |
| fancy noun | /ˈfæn.si/ | The imagination. |
| pour verb | /poɹ/ | To cause (liquid, or liquid-like substance) to flow in a stream, either out of a container or into it. |
| gram noun | /ˈɡɹæm/ | A unit of mass equal to one-thousandth of a kilogram. Symbol: g. |
| instruction noun | /ɪnˈstɹʌkʃən/ | The act of instructing, teaching, or providing with information or knowledge. |
| drain noun | /dɹiːn/ | A conduit allowing liquid to flow out of an otherwise contained volume; a plughole (UK) |
| minus | /ˈmaɪ.nəs/ | Made less or reduced by (followed by an expression of number or quantity). |
| whoever | /huˈɛvɚ/ | Who ever: an emphatic form of who. |
| specialist noun | /ˈspɛʃəlɪst/ | Someone who is an expert in, or devoted to, some specific branch of study or research. |
| wherever | /(h)wɛɹˈɛvɚ/ | Regardless of the place in, at or to which. |
| requirement noun | /ɹɪˈkwaɪɹmənt/ | A necessity or prerequisite; something required or obligatory. Its adpositions are generally of in relation to who or what has given it, on in relation to whom… |
| depend verb | /dɪˈpɛnd/ | To be contingent or conditioned; to have something as a necessary condition |
| combine verb | /kəmˈbaɪn/ | To bring (two or more things or activities) together; to unite. |
| precise adjective | /pɹɪˈsaɪs/ | Both exact and accurate. |
| subscribe verb | /səbˈskɹaɪb/ | To write (one’s name) at the bottom of a document; to sign (one's name). |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| set out verb | /ˈsɛt‿aʊt/ | To explain something, or give exact details, usually in writing. |
| write down verb | To produce or set (something) down in writing; to record something. |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 14 contractions and reduced forms, such as isn't, doesn't, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: instruction /ɪnˈstɹʌkʃən/, specialist /ˈspɛʃəlɪst/
- Long words — get the stress right: fortunately /ˈfɔɹ.t͡ʃə.nɪt.li/, misunderstand /mɪs.ʌn.də(ɹ)ˈstænd/
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 leaf, fancy, pour.
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 | have talked · has actually made · have heard |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | isn't meant · is meant |
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.