Shadowing Practice: Simple Present Tense - Questions And Answers | English Conversation Practice - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Simple Present Tense - Questions And Answers”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: eat, visit, clothes, wear. This video has 1163 sentences and 6181 words to shadow. The speech runs for 58:09. The speaker talks slowly, about 106 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 84% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 577 of its 1163 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 |
|---|---|---|
| cloth noun | /klɒθ/ | A fabric, usually made of woven, knitted, or felted fibres or filaments, such as used in dressing, decorating, cleaning or other practical use. Sometimes… |
| mathematics noun | /mæθ(.ə)ˈmæt.ɪks/ | An abstract representational system studying numbers, shapes, structures, quantitative change and relationships between them. |
| cousin noun | /ˈkʌz(ə)n/ | Chiefly with a qualifying word: Any relation (especially a distant one) who is not a direct ancestor or descendant but part of a person's extended family; a… |
| relax verb | /ɹɪˈlæks/ | To make something loose. |
| habit noun | /ˈhæb.ɪt/ | An action performed on a regular basis. |
| laptop noun | /ˈlæp.tɑp/ | A laptop computer. |
| vegetable noun | /ˈvɛd͡ʒ.tə.bəl/ | A plant raised for some edible part of it, such as the leaves, roots, fruit or flowers, but excluding any plant considered to be a fruit, grain, herb, or spice… |
| groceries noun | /ˈɡɹoʊ.s(ə.)ɹiz/ | Retail foodstuffs and other household supplies; the commodities sold by a grocer or in a grocery store. |
| mall noun | /mɔːl/ | A pedestrianised street, especially a shopping precinct. |
| homework noun | /ˈhoʊmˌwɝk/ | Exercises assigned by a teacher to a student which review concepts studied in class. |
| hobby noun | /ˈhɑ.bi/ | An activity that one enjoys doing in one's spare time. |
| supermarket noun | /ˌsupɚˈmɑɹkət/ | A large self-service store that sells groceries and, usually, medications, household goods, and/or clothing. |
| bedroom noun | /ˈbɛdˌɹum/ | A room in a house, apartment, hotel, or other dwelling where a bed is kept for sleeping. |
| wash verb | /wɑʃ/ | To clean with water. |
| formal adjective | /ˈfɔɹməl/ | In accordance with established forms. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| wake up verb | /ˌweɪk ˈʌp/ | To stop sleeping; to awake. |
| take out verb | To remove. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- What do you do every morning?
- Where do you eat breakfast?
- When do you go to school?
- What do you drink when it's hot?
- What do you call your mother's brother?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Superlatives the -est / the most … — the top or bottom of a group | the best · your best |
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | enjoy singing |
Pronunciation to watch
- The “th” sounds: cloth /klɒθ/, mathematics /mæθ(.ə)ˈmæt.ɪks/, grandmother /ˈɡɹæn(d)ˌmʌðɚ/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: wash /wɑʃ/, trash /tɹæʃ/, vacation /veɪˈkeɪ.ʃən/, occasion /əˈkeɪ̯ʒən/, celebration /ˌsɛl.ɪˈbɹeɪ.ʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: mathematics /mæθ(.ə)ˈmæt.ɪks/, supermarket /ˌsupɚˈmɑɹkət/, celebration /ˌsɛl.ɪˈbɹeɪ.ʃən/, motorcycle /ˈmoʊtɚˌsaɪkəl/
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 cloth, mathematics, cousin.
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.






















