Shadowing Practice: Meet the Dinosaurs 1: Stegosaurus - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This A1 speaking lesson is built on the video “Meet the Dinosaurs 1: Stegosaurus”. This video has 35 sentences and 171 words to shadow. The speech runs for 2:47. The speaker talks slowly, about 61 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 77% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 7 of its 35 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| whoa | /woʊ/ | Stop (especially when commanding a horse or imitative thereof); calm down; slow down. |
| lizard noun | /ˈlɪzɚd/ | Any reptile of the order Squamata that is not a snake or mosasaur—typically characterised by a rounded torso, a short neck with an elevated head, a long tail… |
| sharp adjective | /ʃɑɹp/ | Terminating in a point or edge, especially one that can cut or pierce easily; not dull, obtuse, or rounded. |
| reporter noun | /ɹɪˈpoɹ.tɚ/ | Someone or something that reports. |
| tail noun | /ˈteɪ̯l/ | An object or part of an object resembling a tail in shape, such as the thongs on a cat-o'-nine-tails; a strand of material hanging from something. |
| nope | /noʊp/ | No. |
| leaf noun | /lif/ | The usually green and flat organ that represents the most prominent feature of most vegetative plants. |
| scientist noun | /ˈsaɪəntəst/ | One whose activities make use of the scientific method to answer questions regarding the measurable universe. A scientist may be involved in original research… |
| meter noun | /ˈmitəɹ/ | A device that measures things. |
| scare verb | /skɛɚ/ | To frighten, terrify, startle, especially in a minor way. |
| stack noun | /stæk/ | A large pile of hay, grain, straw, or the like, larger at the bottom than the top, sometimes covered with thatch. |
| spike noun | /spaɪk/ | A sort of very large nail. |
| tile noun | /ˈtaɪ.əl/ | A regularly-shaped slab of clay or other material, affixed to cover or decorate a surface, as in a roof-tile, glazed tile, stove tile, carpet tile, etc. |
| allosaurus noun | A large, carnivorous dinosaur, of genus Allosaurus, that lived in the Jurassic period. | |
| brachiosaurus noun | A large herbivorous sauropod dinosaur, Brachiosaurus altithorax, which lived during the Late Jurassic in North America. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| stand up verb | To rise from a lying or sitting position. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Why are you called a roof lizard?
- How big are you?
- I'm about nine meters long.
- Do you eat meat?
- I'm a peaceful plant eater.
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 3 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
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 whoa, lizard, sharp.
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.