Shadowing Practice: Selena Gomez - Slow Down (Official) - Learn English Speaking with Video
Choose a practice mode
Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.
Download App
Everything you need to speak fluently
Same Channel
A2Selena Gomez - Souvenir (Lyric Video)
A2Selena Gomez - Feel Me (Lyric Video)
B1Selena Gomez, benny blanco - Don’t Wanna Cry (Official Lyric Video)
B1Selena Gomez - The Heart Wants What It Wants (Official Video)
B2Selena Gomez - My Mind & Me (Film Version)
Recommend Video
A2Paparazzi (Lyrics ) - Lady Gaga
A2Low - Flo Rida (Lyrics)
A2JISOO - ‘ADDICTED’ DANCE PERFORMANCE VIDEO
A2The 1975 - I'm In Love With You (Official Video)
A2Sweet Vibe
A2Beautiful (feat. Camila Cabello)
A2Meghan Trainor - NO (Official Video)
B1Gigi Perez - Sailor Song (Lyrics)
A2Shawn Mendes - Treat You Better (Live from New York)
B1Joji - SLOW DANCING IN THE DARK
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Selena Gomez - Slow Down”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: slow, breathe, song, baby, rewind. This video has 38 sentences and 361 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:15. The speaker talks at a steady 111 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 87% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| breathe verb | /bɹiːð/ | To draw air into (inhale), and expel air from (exhale), the lungs in order to extract oxygen and excrete waste gases. |
| neon noun | /ˈniˌɑn/ | The chemical element (symbol Ne) with an atomic number of 10. The second of the noble gases, it is a colourless, odorless inert gas. |
| capture verb | /ˈkæp.(t)ʃɚ/ | To take control of; to seize by force or stratagem. |
| steal verb | /stiːl/ | To take illegally, or without the owner's permission, something owned by someone else without intending to return it. |
| impression noun | /ɪmˈpɹɛʃn̩/ | The indentation or depression made by the pressure of one object on or into another. |
| intervention noun | /ɪntɚˈvɛnʃən/ | The action of intervening; interfering in some course of events. |
| inspection noun | /ɪnˈspɛkʃən/ | The act of examining something, often closely. |
| rotation noun | /ɹoʊˈteɪʃən/ | The act of turning around a centre or an axis. |
| rhythm noun | /ˈɹɪð.əm/ | The variation of strong and weak elements (such as duration, accent) of sounds, notably in speech or music, over time; a beat or meter. |
| rewind verb | /ɹiːˈwaɪnd/ | To wind (something) again. |
| resuscitation noun | The act of resuscitating. | |
| drop noun | /dɹɑp/ | A small quantity of liquid, just large enough to hold its own rounded shape through surface tension, especially one that falls from a source of liquid. |
| mouth noun | /maʊθ/ | The front opening of a creature through which food is ingested. |
| till | /tɪl/ | Until; to, up to; as late as (a given time). |
| application noun | /ˌæp.lɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/ | The act of physically applying or laying on. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| slow down verb | To decelerate. |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 14 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, wanna, can't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: breathe /bɹiːð/, rhythm /ˈɹɪð.əm/, mouth /maʊθ/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: capture /ˈkæp.(t)ʃɚ/, impression /ɪmˈpɹɛʃn̩/, intervention /ɪntɚˈvɛnʃən/, inspection /ɪnˈspɛkʃən/, rotation /ɹoʊˈteɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: intervention /ɪntɚˈvɛnʃən/, application /ˌæp.lɪˈkeɪ.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 breathe, neon, capture.
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.