Shadowing Practice: Matilda Learns To Control Her Powers | Matilda - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
1
Baby face, I'm starved.
2
Hi, Harry. Who are you?
3
What is this, a hot tub party?
4
Get the hell out of here.
5
I slave all day I come home, you're entertaining a couple of surfer dude bodybuilders.
6
They're cops, Dad.
7
You interested in timeshare?
8
Get out.
9
You don't let me talk to people!
10
I am in a cage, Harry.
11
I need to talk to somebody besides us stupid kids.
12
Oh, yeah?
13
Well, a man is entitled to come home
14
and find dinner on the table without having to wade through a convention of male strippers!
15
Dad?
16
What do you want?
17
Yell at me, okay?
18
Shut up and leave us alone!
19
Yell at me again!
20
Yell at you?
21
I'll come in there and pound your miserable high!
22
What do I have to do to gain respect around here?
23
I'm gonna give you a tan like you never heard in your life!
24
My word is my law!
25
You're the worst law!
26
No kid likes being yelled at, but it was precisely Harry's ranting and raving that gave Matilda the key to her power.
27
To unlock that power, all she had to do was practice.
28
You're a little cheap.
29
You're a Walmart.
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It's time you started acting like one.
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I'm smart, you're dumb.
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I'm big, you're a little.
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I think there's something wrong to break up.
34
I'm right, you're wrong.
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And there's nothing you can do about it.
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You're a worm word.
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It's time you started acting like one.
38
It's time you started acting like one.
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I'm going
40
to go to the next episode.
41
Lovey-dovey, lovey-one Comes out on my knees
42
Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Tell you a story
43
Half a long time ago Little,
44
bitty, pretty one I'm out of watching you grow up That was one of my personal favorites, played especially for all you little bitty pre-runs.
45
Moving and grooving on this sunny afternoon.
46
Playing music to make you smile, so you'd better not touch that...
47
Shouldn't we have a search warrant to do this?
48
Nah, this guy's dirty.
49
Once we show this tape in court, Wilmot's goose is cooked.
50
I'm sure that box is full of stolen car parts.
51
You've been taping all week.
52
How about letting me handle that camera for a while?
53
You know how to use it?
54
You know about the zoom and the white balance?
55
You know how to adjust the eyepiece?
56
I can handle it.
57
Besides, it's my turn.
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Yeah.
59
Your turn to drop it.
60
I won't drop it.
61
Come on.
62
You two men are gonna be in a lot of trouble very soon.
63
It's the female minor.
64
Aren't you supposed to be in school, young lady?
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I really hope you have a search warrant.
66
According to a constitutional law book I read in the library, if you don't have one, you can lose your job or even go to federal prison.
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It's your father who's going to federal prison.
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And you know where you'll end up?
69
In a federal orphanage.
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If you cooperate, we'll make sure it's a nice orphanage.
71
The kind with food.
72
Teeny-weeny cockroaches.
73
What do you say?
74
There's another crime in the making.
75
Your car is about to run a stop sign.
76
So she bought a little time for her dad to come to his senses.
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But now Matilda had bigger fish to fry.
78
Much bigger.
79
Hey, stiff-fish.
80
Where are you going?
81
Out.
82
Hey, Dipface, how about Carrie?
83
Thank you.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B1 speaking lesson is built on the video “Matilda Learns To Control Her Powers”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: yell, acting, dad, federal. This video has 83 sentences and 598 words to shadow. The speech runs for 5:41. The speaker talks slowly, about 105 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 83% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 19 of its 83 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| yell verb | /jɛl/ | To shout; holler; make a loud sound with the voice, especially to express intense emotions such as anger or excitement. |
| bitty adjective | /ˈbɪti/ | Containing bits; fragmented. |
| lovey noun | /ˈlʌvi/ | An informal mode of address (associated most often with actors and the like). |
| orphanage noun | /ˈɔː(ɹ)fənɪd͡ʒ/ | A residential institution for the care and protection of orphans. |
| warrant noun | /ˈwɔɹənt/ | Authorization or certification; a sanction, as given by a superior. |
| bodybuilder noun | /ˈbɑ.diˌbɪl.dəɹ/ | A person who uses diet and exercise to build an aesthetically muscular physique, in order to compete in bodybuilding. |
| eyepiece noun | The lens (or the component containing a combination of lenses) at the eye end of a microscope or telescope by which the image is viewed. | |
| stripper noun | /stɹɪpɚ/ | A chemical or tool used to remove paint, sheathing, etc. from something. |
| surfer noun | /ˈsɜː(ɹ)fə(ɹ)/ | A person who rides a surfboard. |
| starve verb | /stɑɹv/ | To die because of lack of food or of not eating. |
| rave verb | /ɹeɪv/ | To be mentally unclear; to be delirious; to talk or act irrationally; to be wild, furious, or raging. |
| rant verb | /ɹænt/ | To speak or shout at length in uncontrollable anger. |
| groove noun | /ɡɹuv/ | A long, narrow channel or depression; e.g., such a slot cut into a hard material to provide a location for an engineering component, a tire groove, or a… |
| worm noun | /wɝm/ | A generally tubular invertebrate of the annelid phylum; an earthworm. |
| cooperate verb | /kəʊˈɒp.ə.ɹeɪt/ | To work or act together, especially for a common purpose or benefit. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| break up verb | To break or separate into pieces. | |
| end up verb | To bring to a conclusion. | |
| get out verb | To leave or escape. | |
| grow up verb | To mature and become an adult. | |
| shut up | /ʃʌt ʌp/ | Stop talking (usually in the form of making annoying, irrelevant, or false comments, during a period of peace and quiet, or when one is not allowed to talk)… |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Shouldn't we have a search warrant to do this?
- You know how to use it?
- You know about the zoom and the white balance?
- You know how to adjust the eyepiece?
- Aren't you supposed to be in school, young lady?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | is entitled · being yelled · is cooked |
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | started acting |
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | I'll come · won't drop · you'll end |
| Obligation: must / have to / need to saying that something is necessary | need to talk · having to wade · have to do |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 29 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, you're, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- Long words — get the stress right: bodybuilder /ˈbɑ.diˌbɪl.dəɹ/, cooperate /kəʊˈɒp.ə.ɹeɪt/, miserable /ˈmɪz(ə)ɹəbəl/
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 yell, bitty, lovey.
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.