Shadowing Practice: Seinfeld: The Contest (Clip) | TBS - Learn English Speaking with Video
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97 sentences
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1
Hey, Georgie.
2
Hi.
3
Hi.
4
What's the matter?
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My mother caught me.
6
Caught you?
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Doing what?
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You know.
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I was alone.
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You mean?
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She caught you? Where?
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I stopped by the house to drop the car off and I went inside for a few minutes.
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Nobody was there.
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They're supposed to be working.
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My mother had a glamour magazine.
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I started leaving for it.
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Glamour?
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So one thing led to another.
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So what did she do?
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First she screams, George, what are you doing?
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My God!
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Then it looked like she was gonna faint.
23
She started clutching the wall, trying to hang on to it.
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I didn't know whether to try and keep her from falling or zip up.
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What did you do?
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I zipped up. So she fell?
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Yeah.
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Well, I couldn't run over there the way I was.
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No, I guess you couldn't.
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I wouldn't think so.
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So she fell, and then she starts screaming, My back!
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My back!
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So I picked her up, I took her to the hospital.
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Oh.
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How is she?
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She's in traction.
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Sorry.
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It's not funny, Elaine.
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I know, I'm fine.
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Her back went out.
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She's got to be there for a couple of days.
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All she said on the way over in the car was, Why, George?
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Why?
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I said, because it's there.
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Glamour?
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I'll tell you this, though.
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I am never doing that again.
48
What?
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You mean in your mother's house or all together?
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All together.
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Oh, give me a break.
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Right.
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You don't think I can?
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No chance.
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You think you could?
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Well, I know I could hold out longer than you.
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Care to make it interesting?
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Sure.
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How much?
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$100.
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You're on.
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Wait a second.
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Wait a second.
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Count me in on this.
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You?
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Yeah.
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You'll be out before we get the check.
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I want to be in on this, too.
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Oh, no. Oh, no. Why?
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Oh, that oranges.
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What?
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Why?
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Why?
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Because you're a woman. So what?
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It's easier for a woman not to do it than a man.
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We have to do it.
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It's part of our lifestyle.
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It's like, uh, shaving.
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Oh, that is such a baloney.
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I shave my legs.
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Not every day.
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All right, look, you want to be in?
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Yeah.
84
You got to give us odds.
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At least two to one.
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You got to put up $200.
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No, a thousand.
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Yeah, I'll put up $150.
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All right, you're in for $150.
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Okay, $150.
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All right, now, how are we going to monitor this thing?
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Well, obviously, we all know each other very well.
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I'm sure we'll all feel comfortable within the confines of the honor system.
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All right.
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Come on.
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Get it.
97
Yeah!
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Seinfeld: The Contest”. This video has 96 sentences and 444 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:09. The speaker talks at a steady 141 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 86% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 29 of its 96 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.
Key vocabulary in this video
12 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| glamour noun | /ˈɡlæmɚ/ | Originally, enchantment; magic charm; especially, the effect of a spell that causes one to see objects in a form that differs from reality, typically to make… |
| 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. |
| 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. |
| odd adjective | /ɑd/ | Differing from what is usual, ordinary or expected. |
| monitor noun | /ˈmɑ.nɪ.tɚ/ | Someone who watches over something; a person in charge of something or someone. |
| lifestyle noun | /ˈlaɪfˌstaɪl/ | A style of living that reflects the attitudes and values of a person or group. |
| clutch noun | /ˈklʌt͡ʃ/ | The claw of a predatory animal or bird. |
| zip verb | /zɪp/ | To close with a zip fastener. |
| faint adjective | /feɪnt/ | Lacking strength; weak; languid; inclined to lose consciousness |
| traction noun | /ˈtɹæk.ʃən/ | The act of pulling something along a surface using motive power. |
| baloney noun | /bəˈləʊni/ | A type of sausage; bologna. |
| confine verb | /ˈkɑnfaɪn/ | To restrict (someone or something) to a particular scope or area; to keep in or within certain bounds. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| put up verb | To place in a high location. |
| go out verb | To leave, especially a building. |
| hold out verb | To hold (something) out; to extend (something) forward. |
| run over verb | To exceed the allotted time. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- What did you do?
- No, I guess you couldn't.
- You mean in your mother's house or all together?
- You don't think I can?
- All right, look, you want to be in?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | started leaving · started clutching · starts screaming |
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | I'll tell · You'll be · I'll put |
| Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around now | are you doing · am never doing |
| Future with “going to” be going to + verb — a plan or something you can see coming | gonna faint · are we going to monitor |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 16 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, couldn't, I'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: shave /ˈʃeɪ̯v/, traction /ˈtɹæk.ʃən/
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 glamour, scream, shave.
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.