Shadowing Practice: Repeat After Me + Shadowing Practice | English Pronunciation Training - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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Repeat after me.
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Let's shadow real-life English situations while practicing the words that are difficult to pronounce.
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I asked you guys on Instagram to send me the words you struggle with the most in English.
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So if you'd like to be a part of the next video, then follow me on Instagram.
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Now, let's start.
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The day I missed my bus in Mountain Town,
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I woke up at 6.30 in a small mountain town.
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I looked outside and saw an eagle flying above the mountains.
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The view was literally incredible.
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I thought to myself,
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I think this is one of the coolest places in the world the coolest places in the world
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all right if you had trouble pronouncing think versus this remember think you blow
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and you put your tongue in between your teeth.
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Think.
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Now for this we blow and vibrate the same position of our tongue.
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this feel your throat and say think no vibration now vibrates this
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Perfect.
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Another good word to practice is mountain.
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Because we don't always pronounce mountain as mountain.
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When we're speaking quickly, we can say mountain.
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Mountain.
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Mountain.
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Mountain.
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It's like you're cutting out the T.
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Mountain.
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That's a beautiful mountain over there.
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I live in mountain town.
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Last one.
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Literally.
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The T sounds more like a D.
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Literally.
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Literally.
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Literally.
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And the A is a, a.
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Literally.
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All right, next part.
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I walked through the town and stopped at a small coffee shop.
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The woman working there smiled and said,
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Good morning.
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Are you visiting these mountains for the first time?
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I said, yes, I thought I would stay for two days.
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But now I think I might stay longer.
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She laughed and said, those are usually the first words visitors say.
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All right, let's practice some words here.
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Visiting.
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Visiting sounds like a Z, not an S.
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Not visiting.
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Visiting.
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Now we have another word there.
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Laughed.
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Laughed has two things I want to mention.
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G-H in English makes the F sound.
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Laugh, cough, rough, tough, G-H.
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And in this particular E-D ending, we pronounce it T.
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any ending of a verb with the sound sounds like
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when we add ed so laugh present left in the past When we add ED,
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it can either make the T, D, or ED sound.
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In this case, it's T.
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And let's practice one more.
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Visitors.
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V-Z-T-R-S.
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Visitors.
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Not visitors.
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Visitors.
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even though it looks like it would sound like or.
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It's er.
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All right, next part.
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A few minutes later, an older man sat next to me.
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He started showing me the yarn he uses to knit.
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He explained for so long that I started to yawn.
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When someone talks about yarn, I yawn.
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All right, let's go through these two words.
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Yarn versus yawn.
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Yarn.
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Yarn.
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Yarn.
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So we roll the tongue.
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Yarn. And yawn.
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It's like saying aww.
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Yarn.
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And remember, the K is silent in knit.
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Just like no. Alright, next page.
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After we finished talking, I walked through the town again.
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I passed a bookstore and saw a sign that said,
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One word can change your world.
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I stopped and read it twice.
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One word can change your world.
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I really liked that.
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All right, we have some big ones here, starting with town.
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Town.
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Out.
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Town.
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Word.
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Word.
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Like nerd.
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Heard.
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Word.
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Not ward, word and world.
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World.
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Like twirl, curl, world.
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One word can change your world.
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Practice this one.
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It's important.
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All right, next page.
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Later that afternoon, I climbed a nearby mountain trail.
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At the top, I saw another eagle flying across the sky.
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I literally stood there for 10 minutes watching it.
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The air was cool.
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Everything was quiet.
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And for a moment, I forgot about work, deadlines, and my phone.
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All right? So, trail.
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Trail.
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It's difficult to pronounce the T.
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Trail.
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So say trail.
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It sounds more natural.
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Trail.
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Now next one, eagle.
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It's not the same as ego.
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Eagle. And literally.
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Also, something someone mentioned on Instagram.
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cool.
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Maybe you're pronouncing it cool.
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If you want to sound more natural, you could say cool.
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It's like adding a woe at the end.
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Cool.
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Cool.
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It sounds more like a native would say cool.
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But I think that it doesn't matter.
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I think an accent is what makes you unique,
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and it's what connects you to your native language.
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It doesn't matter if you have an accent.
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Accents are beautiful, in my opinion.
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But if you want to sound native, that's how So you can say, cool.
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All right, our last page.
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As the sun started to set,
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I sat on a bench and thought about something.
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Would I rather live in a place like this or leave and continue traveling?
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I wasn't sure, but I knew one thing.
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This was a day I would remember for a very long time.
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All right, we have actually three big ones here.
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I wanted to mention one I didn't say.
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Live.
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So there's live and live.
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The same spelling, different pronunciation.
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Live.
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I live in Mexico.
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Live.
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I am going live on YouTube.
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Leave.
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I will leave tomorrow.
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Live.
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Live.
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Leave.
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Leave.
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All right, that's our story for today, guys.
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If you want extra practice for my videos, then be sure to click the link in my description
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where I post activities for every video and there's conversation clubs every day.
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Join my English community for more.
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If you liked this video, be sure to like it so that I can make more in the future.
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And subscribe to practice English with me every day.
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And remember, never stop learning.
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I'll see you guys next week.
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Bye.
About This Lesson
Welcome to today's English pronunciation practice session! In this lesson, you'll engage in a shadowing technique designed to help you improve your English pronunciation and fluency. Using real-life scenarios, you'll listen to sentences and repeat them, mimicking the tone, speed, and intonation of native speakers. This method, known as shadowspeak, allows you to gain confidence in speaking and fine-tune your ability to articulate challenging words. Get ready to tackle frequently mispronounced vocabulary while enjoying a journey through a picturesque mountain town!
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
- Think - Pay close attention to the /θ/ sound, placing your tongue between your teeth.
- This - Note the vibration in your throat when pronouncing this word.
- Mountain - Practice dropping the T sound in faster speech; it can sound like "moun'in."
- Literally - The T sound resembles a soft D; hear it as "lid'rally."
- Visiting - Remember to pronounce it with a Z sound, not an S. It should sound like "viz-it-ing."
- Laughed - This word ends with a soft consonant that can be tricky; focus on the subtle sound transition.
Practice Tips
To make the most of this shadowing practice, consider the following tips:
- Listen Carefully: Before you start pronouncing, listen attentively to each sentence. Notice the rhythm and flow of the words.
- Start Slow: Repeat the phrases at a slower pace if necessary. Gradually increase your speed as you become more comfortable with articulation.
- Focus on Intonation: Pay attention to how the speaker uses tone and stress to convey meaning; try to replicate this in your practice.
- Record Yourself: Use your phone or a recording device to capture your pronunciation. Compare it to the original audio to identify areas for improvement.
- Daily Practice: Engage in daily shadowspeaks for at least 10-15 minutes. Consistent practice will help solidify your skills and boost your confidence.
By incorporating these practice techniques, you will significantly improve your English pronunciation and speak more naturally over time. Happy practicing!
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.