Shadowing Practice: Matthew Perry Talks About Going To Rehab | Letterman - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Our first guest is one of the Friends on the wildly popular program Friends.
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He also stars in a new motion picture entitled Serving Sarah, which opens August 23rd.
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Ladies and gentlemen, here's Matthew Perry.
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Welcome back to the show.
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Thank you.
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Haven't seen you in a long time.
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I appreciate you coming by, and especially because today is your birthday.
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Ah, yes.
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Congratulations.
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Thank you very much.
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I'm pretty excited.
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How old are you?
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I am, uh, I'm 33.
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What are you going to do?
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Well, you know, I had a plan to kind of go out i always love
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when i come into new york and you know but i'm starting to starting to realize that
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i can't i can't really walk around manhattan without people recognizing me right away you know
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and just kind of noticing me and staring at me you know
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and it seems like as soon as i walk out of the hotel people are like whoa that's you know
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so it gets kind of tough
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and i'm not really sure what to do about i mean
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i could just be kind of a recluse you know
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and just like stay in my hotel
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or you know maybe i could stop walking out of my hotel
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and screaming hey it's chandler from friends oh so that's that's part of the problem yeah
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so i may i may have to rethink
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that now uh congratulations you received a an emmy nomination for
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your work on the series friends good for you thank you very much is that
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now what how does it how does a deal like
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that work because you're you're probably in the in the category with the the people
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that you work with on the show yeah well is
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that a problem is there a lot of tension for something like
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that no not really i mean matt leblanc is nominated in my category
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and he's so terrific you know and it we've been
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so close over the years that you know it's kind of he's like a brother
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and i kind of kind of feel like
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if he wins you know it's kind of like me winning too
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so it's it's a really supportive well that's a nice attitude
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to have yeah have you not been nominated before in this category i actually no this is my first oh really Really?
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Well, they must be terribly excited then.
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Yeah, pretty...
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I mean, I...
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Now that I think about it, I'm not sure how great Madeleine Blanc really is.
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Well, it'll still be exciting one way or the other, don't you think?
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I mean, he's kind of just playing himself, really.
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You know?
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Well, that's a form of acting, I guess.
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I suppose.
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He's actually not that nice a guy.
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Really?
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I don't think that should be considered in the voting for the Emmy, though.
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That really has nothing to do with his skills as an actor.
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I know, but, I mean, let's face it.
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You know, everything counts.
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Well, yeah, in the big picture, sure.
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Sort of mean to children.
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Really?
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Yeah.
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You may have something there.
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Yeah, but, you know, he's like a brother, and I wish him the best.
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Yeah, sure.
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How many years have you been on the air with the show?
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Well, this is, we just started our ninth season.
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Oh, my God, congratulations.
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That's crazy, isn't it?
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Wow.
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And it's, uh, it seems like instead of a lot of shows that are on the air for a long time, like this one, instead of losing popularity,
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your show has only actually risen in popularity.
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I mean, it's just stronger now than ever, isn't it?
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It's been really amazing.
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I mean, the writing has been so good, and last year was actually our most successful year in the eighth season
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and will you go 10 years you think you know i i i don't i don't think
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so i mean everybody's kind of looking at this as being the last year
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and you know you know it's pretty interesting though there's some stories in the paper of uh of lisa saying
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that it may go on and then a couple of weeks ago jennifer was saying
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that it won't go on right i just feel like i'm to sit back and watch that cat fight yeah
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now if it does come back though they have a new name for the show
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which is uh law
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and order special friends unit well that's good now well what let's just for the sake of the discussion say
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that it doesn't come back after nine years and there's nothing embarrassing about that for for God's sakes, what might you do?
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Would you concentrate more on the films?
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Would you look for another television show?
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Well, you give it, obviously, a lot of thought because it's been so long.
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I mean, for me, you know, the film stuff is going well.
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You know, I'm very proud of this movie that I have coming out and, uh...
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Serving Sarah?
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Serving Sarah at a theater near you.
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And it's a question of, you know, it's a question really of, you know, developing more movies or, you know, getting back to my ice dancing.
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I'm sorry, you said ice dancing?
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yeah I actually think I did yeah I gotta get back
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on the skate Steve now there were there was a time
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in my life in your life where it seemed like we heard a lot about you
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and read a lot a lot about you crashing cars
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and turning things over and stuff like that is was there a reason or did am I
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misremembering this it seemed like there was a period of time when you were having some trouble
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some trouble driving well yeah let's start there you were having some trouble driving
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how's that going I am very proud to say
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that I have not had a car accident in over a year
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and a half thank you sometimes you're driving around
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and those trees will jump right out I see
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but you you actually had uh you you were in treatment
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for something some substance abuse well it's actually happened during during this movie um
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while we're shooting this movie you know it's been pretty well documented
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that i had some i had some problems with alcoholism and
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and addiction and before this movie was over i i left the film to go get help you know
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and it's kind of how are you doing now i'm doing great i'm doing really great and this is
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did you and this is certainly none of my business
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but was there some kind of a moment where this coalesced
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and you you realized you know what i'm doing here for recreation or
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or other reasons i may not have any control over this
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evaluating this is certainly not worth what i'm risking over here
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did you have one of those well absolutely i mean that's that's that's what happened you You know, while I was shooting this movie, you know, something kind of, in a way, just bigger than you, kind of takes over for a moment,
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and you kind of get a clear view of everything.
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And you kind of instantly prioritize, you know, I'm not going to be able to be in movies, I'm not going to be on the show and have a life unless I fix this problem, you know.
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And the great thing for me was that everybody was really, I was just so grateful that everybody on the film was understanding and everybody was patient.
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And you know, what I got to do was I got to go face some of these things
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and then come back and finish the work you know
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and the only real frustrating thing about it is
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that kind of the tabloids still you know i i i happen to be a target of the tabloids
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and you know just i'm you know dating aliens
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and doing all this crazy stuff
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which i've dated aliens i guess some of the stories are true though
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but you know when they
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when they talk about there was a story in one of these one of these things
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that i was that i was drinking again uh you know about about a month ago
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and that of got the hair on the back of my neck up
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because for better or for worse you know i'm doing this in the public eye
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so i'm kind of an example to other people who may be struggling with this uh
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and you know for some jerk to just write something mean like
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that it may make people think that it's not possible
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but my true message is that you know
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if you face this then sobriety is possible
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and i've never been happier in my whole life good for you that's a lovely thing
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tell me about your uh your father was an actor still is an actor is
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that right and what kind work did he do and is
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that what got your attention when you were a kid i think
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so you know uh my my father's been working forever john bennett perry is his name
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and uh john bennett john bennett perry and uh i lived in canada
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and and he lived in los angeles
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because that's where the work was he would i think i
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generated a respect for the business kind of this way where he would call me and
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the way i would see my father is he'd call me and say okay i'm getting shot on mannix
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friday night you know uh you know and
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so that's kind of how i saw my father and i went down to to Los Angeles, he did a show called 240 Robert around 1980
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and it was kind of like a chips kind of show
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and I was on the set and it was a big day
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and this is how I kind of learned about acting and he had to, the shot that he had was he had to lean out of a helicopter and then fire a gun.
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He had to lean out and go, hey, and then fire a gun.
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So he has the fake gun with the blanks and everything.
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But he doesn't really do it right and he makes kind of the sound with his mouth.
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So, he leans, they say, action, and he goes, hey, poof.
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Well, you can do that if you want.
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Yeah.
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And the producer was like, uh, John, we're gonna put that sound in later.
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You can't move your mouth that way.
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That's pretty funny, but to see your dad when you were a little kid, to see your dad on television, I mean, that must have been, like, amazingly exciting, huh?
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Yeah, I think that's probably why I went into it.
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I would guess so, yeah, absolutely.
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I mean, I know I didn't go into acting for money,
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or, you know, I think primarily I went into it for the attention.
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Well, pleasure to see you again, Matthew.
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Thank you, Dave, great to be here.
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Enjoy yourself, have a good season on Friends.
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We'll be right back, everybody, with The Vines.
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We'll be right back.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 165 sentences and 1891 words to shadow. The speech runs for 9:40. The speaker talks fast, about 196 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 86% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| congratulations | /kənˌɡɹæt͡ʃəˈleɪʃ(ə)nz/ | Expressing praise and approval, expressing approbation. |
| perry noun | /ˈpɛɹ.i/ | A fermented alcoholic beverage made from pears, similar to hard apple cider. |
| lean verb | /ˈliːn/ | To incline, deviate, or bend, from a vertical position; to be in a position thus inclining or deviating. |
| sake noun | /ˈseɪ̯k/ | Cause, interest or account. |
| popularity noun | /ˌpɑ.pjəˈlæɹ.ə.ti/ | The quality or state of being popular; especially, the state of being widely liked or in favor with the people at large. |
| nominate verb | /ˈnɑ.mɪ.neɪt/ | To name someone as a candidate for a particular role or position, including that of an office. |
| primarily adverb | /ˈpɹaɪ.mə.ɹə.li/ | Of a primary or central nature, first and foremost. |
| producer noun | /pɹəˈdjuːsə/ | An individual or organization that creates goods and services. |
| skill noun | /skɪl/ | A capacity to do something well; a technique, an ability, usually acquired or learned, as opposed to abilities that are regarded as innate. |
| grateful adjective | /ˈɡɹeɪtf(ə)l/ | Of a person or their actions, feelings, etc.: expressing gratitude or appreciation; appreciative, thankful. |
| theater noun | /ˈθi(ə)tɚ/ | A place or building, consisting of a stage and seating, in which an audience gathers to watch plays, musical performances, public ceremonies, and so on. |
| chip noun | /t͡ʃɪp/ | A small piece broken from a larger piece of solid material. |
| instantly adverb | /ˈɪnstəntli/ | At once; without delay. |
| substance noun | /ˈsʌbstəns/ | Physical matter; material. |
| generate verb | /ˈd͡ʒɛn.ə.ɹeɪt/ | To bring into being; give rise to. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| come back verb | To return to a place. | |
| come out verb | /ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/ | To be discovered; to be revealed. |
| get back verb | Return to where one came from. | |
| get back to verb | Return to (an activity) | |
| go out verb | To leave, especially a building. | |
| sit back verb | To recline while still in a seated position, with one's back on the frame of the seat. | |
| walk around verb | To walk with no planned destination; to meander. |
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 | Haven't seen · we've been · has only actually risen |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | is nominated · been nominated · should be considered |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 46 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, can't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: theater /ˈθi(ə)tɚ/, eighth /eɪtθ/, ninth /naɪnθ/, rethink /ɹiːˈθɪŋk/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: congratulations /kənˌɡɹæt͡ʃəˈleɪʃ(ə)nz/, tension /ˈtɛnʃən/, addiction /əˈdɪkˌʃən/, nomination /ˌnɑmɪˈneɪʃən/, recreation /ɹiːkɹiˈeɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: congratulations /kənˌɡɹæt͡ʃəˈleɪʃ(ə)nz/, popularity /ˌpɑ.pjəˈlæɹ.ə.ti/, primarily /ˈpɹaɪ.mə.ɹə.li/, helicopter /ˈheliːˌkɔptə(ɹ)/, nomination /ˌnɑmɪˈneɪʃən/
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 congratulations, perry, lean.
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.