Shadowing Practice: Meeting My Girlfriend's Parents for the First Time - Learn English Speaking with Video
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29 sentences
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1
You must be Tom. Come in, then.
2
Um, good evening, Mr Hughes. These are for your wife.
3
Very kind. Emily's told us a lot about you.
4
Oh, really? Only the good things, I hope!
5
So, Tom, what do you get up to at the weekends?
6
Well... I read a bit, I go to the gym, I...
7
Are you an outdoors man at all? I'm mad about fishing, myself.
8
Fishing? Oh, I absolutely love fishing!
9
Really? Well, that's wonderful news!
10
What do you go for? Trout? Carp? Pike?
11
Er, all of them, really. The... big ones.
12
Ha! A man after my own heart.
13
Right, that settles it. You're coming with me on Saturday.
14
We'll leave at four in the morning. Bring your own rod.
15
Four in the morning? Wow... that's early!
16
I'm afraid my rod is, um, at my brother's house.
17
No problem at all. I've got a spare one.
18
Mr Hughes... can I be honest with you?
19
Oh dear. What's the matter?
20
I've never been fishing in my life. Not once.
21
I just really wanted you to like me.
22
Not even once?
23
Ha! Emily told me last week, you know.
24
She what? So you knew all along?
25
I did. I wanted to see how long you'd last.
26
Look, honesty matters far more to me than fish.
27
But the invitation stands. I'll teach you myself.
28
Really? Thank you, sir. I'd honestly love that.
29
Good lad. Four o'clock sharp, mind. Don't be late!
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “Meeting My Girlfriend's Parents for the First Time”. This video has 29 sentences and 241 words to shadow. The speech runs for 1:52. The speaker talks at a steady 129 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 81% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding. 16 of its 29 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 |
|---|---|---|
| sharp adjective | /ʃɑɹp/ | Terminating in a point or edge, especially one that can cut or pierce easily; not dull, obtuse, or rounded. |
| settle verb | /ˈsɛtəl/ | To determine (something which was exposed to doubt or question); to resolve conclusively; to set or fix (a time, an order of succession, etc). |
| spare adjective | /spɛɚ/ | Being more than what is necessary, or what must be used or reserved; not wanted, or not used; superfluous. |
| outdoor adjective | /aʊtˈdɔː/ | Situated in, designed to be used in, or carried on in the open air. |
| invitation noun | /ɪnvɪˈteɪʃən/ | The act of inviting; solicitation; the requesting of a person's company. |
| honesty noun | /ˈɑ.nɪ.sti/ | The act, quality, or condition of being honest. |
| teach verb | /ˈtiːt͡ʃ/ | To pass on knowledge to. |
| fish noun | /ˈfɪʃ/ | A typically cold-blooded vertebrate animal that lives in water, moving with the help of fins and breathing with gills; any vertebrate that is not a tetrapod. |
| absolutely adverb | /ˌæb.səˈlut.li/ | In an absolute or unconditional manner; utterly, positively, wholly. |
| weekend noun | /ˈwiˌkɛnd/ | The break in the working week, usually two days including the traditional holy or sabbath day. Thus in Western countries, Saturday and Sunday. |
| wonderful adjective | /ˈwʌndəfl̩/ | Tending to excite wonder; surprising, extraordinary. |
| dear adjective | /dɪɹ/ | High in price; expensive. |
| honest adjective | /ˈɑ.nɪst/ | Scrupulous with regard to telling the truth; not given to swindling, lying, or fraud; upright. |
| afraid adjective | /əˈfɹeɪd/ | Impressed with fear or apprehension; in fear. |
| honestly adverb | /ˈɑ.nɪst.li/ | In an honest manner. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| get up to verb | To do something, especially something that is forbidden or improper. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Emily's told us a lot about you.
- Are you an outdoors man at all?
- I'm mad about fishing, myself.
- What do you go for?
- We'll leave at four in the morning.
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 10 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, I've, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: sharp /ʃɑɹp/, invitation /ɪnvɪˈteɪʃən/, fish /ˈfɪʃ/
- Long words — get the stress right: invitation /ɪnvɪˈteɪʃən/, absolutely /ˌæb.səˈlut.li/
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 sharp, settle, spare.
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.