Shadowing Practice: Screaming in Stores Prank - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Screaming in Stores Prank”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: store, sir, bro, Pat, horny. This video has 586 sentences and 2955 words to shadow. The speech runs for 19:22. The speaker talks at a natural 153 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 84% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 90 of its 586 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 |
|---|---|---|
| scream verb | /skɹiːm/ | To cry out with a shrill voice; to utter a sudden, sharp outcry, or shrill, loud cry, as in fright or extreme pain; to screech, to shriek. |
| horny adjective | /ˈhoɹni/ | Hard or bony, like an animal's horn. |
| belly noun | /ˈbɛli/ | The abdomen (especially a fat one). |
| scare verb | /skɛɚ/ | To frighten, terrify, startle, especially in a minor way. |
| prank noun | /pɹæŋk/ | A practical joke or mischievous trick. |
| finale noun | /fəˈnɑli | The grand end of something, especially of a show or piece of music. |
| threaten verb | /ˈθɹɛt.n̩/ | To make a threat against someone; to use threats. |
| sack noun | /sæk/ | A bag; especially a large bag of strong, coarse material for storage and handling of various commodities, such as potatoes, coal, coffee; or, a bag with… |
| yell verb | /jɛl/ | To shout; holler; make a loud sound with the voice, especially to express intense emotions such as anger or excitement. |
| knock verb | /nɑk/ | To rap one's knuckles against something, especially wood. |
| pregnancy noun | /ˈpɹɛɡnənsi/ | The condition of being pregnant; an instance of this. |
| slam verb | /ˈslæm/ | To shut with sudden force so as to produce a shock and noise. |
| dial noun | /ˈdaɪ.əl/ | A graduated, circular scale over which a needle moves to show a measurement (such as speed). |
| dough noun | /doʊ/ | A thick, malleable substance made by mixing flour with other ingredients such as water, eggs, or butter, that is made into a particular form and then baked. |
| shave verb | /ˈʃeɪ̯v/ | To make (the head, skin etc.) bald or (the hair) shorter by using a tool such as a razor or electric clippers to cut the hair close to the skin. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| get out of verb | To leave, exit or escape from; to become free of. | |
| shut up | /ʃʌt ʌp/ | Stop talking (usually in the form of making annoying, irrelevant, or false comments, during a period of peace and quiet, or when one is not allowed to talk)… |
| get out verb | To leave or escape. | |
| come back verb | To return to a place. | |
| come out verb | /ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/ | To be discovered; to be revealed. |
| go out verb | To leave, especially a building. | |
| go over verb | To look at carefully; to scrutinize; to analyze. | |
| close in on verb | To enclose around; to tighten or shrink; to collapse. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Can you go out of store?
- Miss, can you hear me?
- You ready to send it off on the finale?
- I'm going to call police?
- Miss, you see what you're doing?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect continuous have/has been + -ing — an action that started earlier and is still going on | have been asking · you've been doing |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | i've seen · has mailed · has talked |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | have been filled · is goaded · are not authorized |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 206 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: threaten /ˈθɹɛt.n̩/, throat /ˈθɹoʊt/, authorize /ˈɔθəɹaɪz/, threesome /ˈθɹi.səm/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: shave /ˈʃeɪ̯v/, shout /ʃaʊt/, dash /ˈdæʃ/, distraction /dɪsˈtɹæk.ʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: ridiculous /ɹɪˈdɪk.jə.ləs/, technically /ˈtɛk.nɪˌkəl.i/, locomotive /ˌloʊkəˈmoʊtɪv/, chameleon /kəˈmi.li.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 scream, horny, belly.
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.












