Shadowing Practice: Olivia Sui Gets Offended | Awkward Puppets - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Okay.
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Hello.
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Welcome.
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Welcome to another episode of the Diego show.
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That is the best podcast in the whole wide Mexico.
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Let's try that again.
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Hello.
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Welcome to the Diego show.
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Today we have a very special guest.
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She's an actress, comedian, writer, director, one of the funniest people on the Internet.
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Welcome.
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Welcome to the show.
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Olivia.
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So how do you pronounce the last name?
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Sway.
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Sway.
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Sway.
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What's that?
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What's that?
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Where's the last name come from?
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My dad.
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What is the origin of the last name?
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Oh, I'm Chinese, so it's from China.
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Oh, you're from China?
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Mm -hmm.
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I've actually always wanted to go to Hawaii for vacation.
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You should.
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I love Hawaii.
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It's like one of my favorite places to vacation.
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It's nice, right?
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I did bring you a gift.
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What is it?
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It's green tea.
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Green tea?
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Yeah.
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Look, there's a panda on it.
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Does it have alcohol in it?
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No, it's tea.
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I appreciate it.
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Thank you.
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That's very nice.
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You can put it down to the side.
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You can put it to the side.
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Yeah.
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Olivia, do you know Kung Fu?
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Um, no. That's not, that's not, by the way, that's not, I don't want anybody accusing me of like, that's not a racist thing.
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I ask all of my, all of my Asian guests.
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What did you eat for breakfast today?
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I haven't had breakfast yet.
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Okay.
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So no breakfast, but what about, what did you have for dinner last night?
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I went to a restaurant called Felix in Venice.
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Wow.
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I ordered a glass of wine.
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Like rice wine?
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What?
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What? Because I'm Asian.
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It literally has nothing to do with that.
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Why did you?
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I said I went to an Italian restaurant.
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It has nothing to do with how you look are you a bad driver
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you should have never come here why
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because I'm just getting warmed up you still haven't told me what you ordered last night
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because you talked about rice wine I had a borolo okay
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then I shared a pasta with my friend
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I didn't have dessert no no you weren't you didn't have a craving for like a little mochi
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or something like that I'm curious like what so growing up
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Like, were your parents super strict?
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My dad was pretty lenient.
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My mom was super strict.
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But do they, like, support your career and comedy and acting?
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They do.
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Yes.
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My dad doesn't really know what I do.
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I don't think he cares that much about what I do.
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My mom is really invested and is so supportive and loves me and everything that I do.
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Right, right.
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I feel like
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Mexicans and Chinese people are probably pretty similar.
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You think?
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Well, I mean like our parents like worked super super hard.
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Yeah.
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Only for us to disappoint them.
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Yeah.
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You know, do you speak Chinese?
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I speak Mandarin.
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What's that?
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The fruit?
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It's not Chinese.
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It's Mandarin.
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Mandarin is the language.
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Is everything in China confusing?
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I would say it's pretty confusing, but it's efficient.
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Can you teach me how to say something in Mandarin?
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Yes.
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我喜欢喝酒 That's it.
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I feel like I'm at P .F.
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Chang's.
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I'm not very good at this.
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Let's do something else.
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Do you believe in generational trauma?
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No. Yes.
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Some people.
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I don't know if I carry generational trauma.
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You answered with every possible...
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I did.
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I did.
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That was confusing.
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It's like if you're taking a multiple choice and you circled A, B, C, and D.
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That's true.
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What's like something that happened when you were a kid that traumatized you?
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When I was little, my mom used to take me to the mall or the grocery store and she would disappear.
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And I would freak out and try to find my mom.
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Literally so terrifying as a little kid.
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And then 15 minutes later, she would appear and she would be like, that was a test.
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One time my dad brought me to the mall and then he actually disappeared.
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I'm sorry, maybe you didn't look hard enough
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but instead instead of instead of coming back 15 minutes later and loving me he just stayed
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what's something americans always get wrong about chinese people
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that we are really good at math what's seven times three 21
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i feel like your math is probably better than mine really yeah test me
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uh six times six i don't give a shit let's talk let's talk about your career for me
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because you're so many things.
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You're so talented.
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You started by making like videos right on the internet.
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Yeah.
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What was the do you miss that era?
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No. Cool.
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Um, who, who, who would you say like your biggest influence is?
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Chloe Zhao.
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She directed
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some of my favorite movies what are you working on right
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now i am writing my feature to the short film
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that i put out a couple months ago away yeah
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so writing that feature and i am developing a tv series
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that i'm really excited about really yes that's so cool yeah how much money do you make
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that's a pretty personal question what's the most money you've ever spent on something stupid
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I bought a jacket for like a month's salary.
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Whose salary are we talking about?
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Like an actor in Hollywood salary?
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No, no, no. Or like a factory worker in China salary?
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Very different.
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Well, like an actor in Hollywood salary, sometimes they're not making any money.
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That's true.
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I would say like maybe like a person who works at a store.
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Got it.
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If that makes any sense.
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No. What's your biggest red flag?
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My biggest red flag.
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You're literally wearing a red flag, so I figured it was appropriate.
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I think when a guy doesn't know directions or where he parked his car, I think that gives me the ick.
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What's your love language?
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My love language is...
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Mine is Spanish.
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Mine is Mandarin.
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I would like to play a little game called The Worst Audition.
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Okay.
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I'm going to describe a role that you have to play.
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Okay.
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And I'll do the first line, and then you got to take it from there.
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okay so you're right now you're a doctor delivering the devastating news
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that I have three three months to live okay ready yeah it's weird
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that the first thing you do is laugh at that
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but okay here we go and action
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so doc how are my test results sorry can we take
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it one more time give me a beat hey doctor why are you laughing
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you must have good news no I'm so sorry I that
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That was really misleading.
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I have some horrible news.
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Oh no. No, I shouldn't say this.
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Let me start over.
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Okay, I'm a doctor.
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I'm a doctor.
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Okay.
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Hey.
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Yeah, so test results came back.
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I wish I had better news to tell you, but you have three months to live.
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I'm sorry.
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What?
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I'm sorry.
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You have three months to live.
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I have what?
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You have three months to live.
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That's not...
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Why are you smiling?
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I'm sorry.
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It just sucks.
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Oh, you're kidding.
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It's a joke.
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No, it's not a joke.
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Listen.
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It's a good thing you're not a doctor because this is horrific.
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What?
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Sometimes you want to deliver news and like...
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Okay, and cut. And scene.
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Okay.
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Let's do another one.
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You're a Chinese immigrant who speaks zero English trying to order coffee at Starbucks.
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Here we go. And action.
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Welcome to Starbucks.
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What can I get you?
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I can't.
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Oh, 我要, 我要, 我要.
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Yeah, what can I get you?
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你好.
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What?
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你好.
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Okay, yeah, what would you like to order?
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你好, 我要喝一杯咖啡.
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What the hell is going on?
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Ma 'am, would you like a coffee?
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Would you like a black coffee?
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我要喝咖啡. And scene.
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Very good.
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Okay, let's do another, speaking of racism, let's do another game.
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Okay.
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The name of this game is How Racist Are You?
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Okay.
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Close your eyes.
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You're talking to a professional basketball player.
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Okay.
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What race is he?
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Kind of just like immediately went to Yao Ming.
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You get inside your Uber.
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What does the driver look like?
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She's a woman.
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And she has like a bunch of studs on her ears.
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Your cleaning lady comes to your house to clean your house.
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What does she sound like?
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I don't have a cleaning lady.
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All right.
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Open your eyes.
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How did I do?
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Turns out you're like 13 % racist.
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What part was racist?
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The fact that you were thinking about a workaround to not say the obvious thing.
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I didn't do that.
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That's a little racist.
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I didn't do that.
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All right.
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Are you ready for rapid fire questions?
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Yes.
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Okay.
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Here's rapid fire questions with Olivia.
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Olivia.
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Sway.
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Sway.
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Chinese food or Mexican food?
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Chinese food.
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Sorry.
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Strict parents or absent parents?
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Strict parents.
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Money or love?
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Love.
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Money or family?
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Family.
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Improv or scripted?
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Both.
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YouTube or real acting?
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Both.
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You can't just say both for everything.
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Well, I like both.
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Marriage or single forever?
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Marriage.
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What's your biggest insecurity?
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That I'm not living up to my highest potential.
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Jesus.
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Sorry.
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I just got so sad.
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Do you think you're funny?
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Yeah.
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Do you think you're attractive?
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Yeah.
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Do you think you're smart?
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Yeah.
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You do so many things.
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You act, you write, you direct.
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You're probably going to do all at the same time.
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You're comedy, you do improv.
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I'm very excited to see what you do.
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Really?
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Yeah.
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You're so nice.
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You're funny.
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A little bit racist.
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Small.
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Aren't we all a little bit?
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You're so tiny.
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I think it's time to wrap this up.
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In a tiny body.
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I'm going to do a little outro.
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Okay.
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Right?
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And then I'm going to ask if you can do an outro in Mandarin.
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Okay.
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Okay?
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Mm -hmm.
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All right.
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There we go.
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Olivia, thank you so much for being here.
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You heard it here.
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You saw it here if you're going to like, you're going to like, you're going to like,
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subscribe, because I get a little nervous in the end every time.
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It happens every single time, but I got, you do it in, you do it in Mandarin.
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Yeah.
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Okay, ready?
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Okay, action.
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谢谢你. That means thank you.
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You didn't prepare me for this.
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谢谢大家看我们的Diego show.
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下次再见. That was really cool.
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You don't know what I said.
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No. Did you talk shit?
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Maybe.
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Ask me one question.
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What's your dream day?
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That's all the time we have for today, but I really appreciate you coming.
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Olivia Suay.
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This has been fantastic.
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You're lovely.
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You're so talented.
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We all look forward to what you do next.
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Thank you.
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Thank you.
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Whatever.
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Oh, gracias.
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Now who's the racist one?
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Yeah, I'm learning your language.
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You're learning my language.
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It's good.
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How do I say thank you in Mandarin?
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Xie xie.
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Xie xie.
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Great.
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Xie xie.
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Yes.
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Yeah, I don't give a xie xie.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Olivia Sui Gets Offended”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: xie, Mandarin, chinese, racist. This video has 334 sentences and 1830 words to shadow. The speech runs for 11:24. The speaker talks at a natural 161 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 83% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 72 of its 334 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 |
|---|---|---|
| racist noun | /ˈɹeɪ.sɪst/ | A person who believes in or supports racism; a person who believes that a particular race is superior to others, or who discriminates against other races. |
| salary noun | /ˈsæləɹi/ | A fixed amount of money paid to a worker, usually calculated on a monthly or annual basis, not hourly, as wages. Implies a degree of professionalism and/or… |
| sway verb | /ˈsweɪ̯/ | To move or swing from side to side; or backward and forward; to rock. |
| strict adjective | /stɹɪkt/ | Strained; drawn close; tight. |
| confuse verb | /kənˈfjuːz/ | to puzzle, perplex, baffle, bewilder (somebody); to afflict by being complicated, contradictory, or otherwise difficult to understand |
| vacation noun | /veɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/ | An extended trip or journey away from home for rest or pleasure. |
| rapid adjective | /ˈɹæp.ɪd/ | Very swift or quick. |
| talented adjective | /ˈtæləntɪd/ | Endowed with one or more talents. |
| mall noun | /mɔːl/ | A pedestrianised street, especially a shopping precinct. |
| mathematics noun | /mæθ(.ə)ˈmæt.ɪks/ | An abstract representational system studying numbers, shapes, structures, quantitative change and relationships between them. |
| trauma noun | /ˈtɹɔm.ə/ | Any injury to the body of a living thing. |
| disappear verb | /dɪsəˈpɪɹ/ | To vanish. |
| actress noun | /ˈæk.tɹɪs/ | A female who performs on the stage or in films. |
| curious adjective | /ˈkjʊɹ.i.əs/ | Tending to ask questions, or to want to explore or investigate; inquisitive; (with a negative connotation) nosy, prying. |
| horrible adjective | /ˈhɔɹ.ɪ.bəl/ | Causing horror; terrible; shocking. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| come back verb | To return to a place. | |
| grow up verb | To mature and become an adult. | |
| look forward to verb | To anticipate, expect, or wait for, especially with a feeling of approval or pleasure; to be excited or eager to. | |
| put out verb | To blind (eyes). | |
| start over verb | to begin again; to return to the beginning | |
| turn out verb | To end up; to result. | |
| warm up verb | /ˌwɔː(ɹ)m ˈʌp/ | To become warmer. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- What's your biggest red flag?
- Do you think you're funny?
- Do you think you're attractive?
- Do you think you're smart?
- Aren't we all a little bit?
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 72 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, I'm, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: vacation /veɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/, efficient /ɪˈfɪʃənt/
- Long words — get the stress right: mathematics /mæθ(.ə)ˈmæt.ɪks/, comedian /kəˈmiː.di.ən/
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 racist, salary, sway.
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.