Shadowing Practice: SPEAK With Me: English Speaking Practice - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
B2
She seems so nice.
255 sentences
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She seems so nice.
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Did you hit it off immediately?
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If I asked you this,
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would you know how to respond or would your heart start to beat fast?
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Would your palms start to get sweaty?
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If that's the case, never fear.
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In today's lesson, I'm going to help you learn how to speak about friendship in English.
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And you better listen up because at the end of today's lesson,
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you're going to have the chance to speak with me about everything that you are about to learn.
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So listen up.
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If you're new here, hi, I'm Vanessa from SpeakEnglishWithVanessa.com.
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And for over the past 10 years,
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I have been teaching now more than 7 million of you real life English that real speakers use in everyday conversations.
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And for each new free English lesson here on my YouTube channel,
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I create for you a free PDF worksheet.
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This is to help you learn everything that you are about to see in today's lesson.
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It includes all of the important vocabulary, some extra sample sentences.
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Plus in this worksheet, I have included for you a bonus quiz so that you can test yourself.
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See if you really understand everything you're about to learn.
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Plus on the last page,
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you can answer Vanessa's challenge question.
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This is your chance to be able to use the vocabulary
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and make sure that you can take it out into the real world and include it in your conversations.
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That's the goal, right?
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So how can you get this free PDF worksheet?
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All you need to do is click on the link in the description,
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enter your name and email address, and voila.
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Just like that, you will get this PDF worksheet plus bonus quiz and challenge question in your email inbox.
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It is my gift to you.
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So click on the link in the description to get this worksheet right now.
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Well, before we have our conversation about friends in English,
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you need to learn some key vocabulary to talk about friendship, right?
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So we're going to learn first some phrases to talk about those really close,
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really special best friends in our lives.
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And then you're going to learn some vocabulary to talk about friends who are friends,
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but they're not the closest friends.
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Let's start with those close friends though.
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My go-to person.
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You are my go-to person whenever I need relationship and advice.
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This is the person who you trust the most to get advice from.
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My go-to person.
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You can also be a go-to person for things beside advice.
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You are my go-to person whenever I want to eat something delicious because you're always cooking something great.
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To bond over something.
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My best friend and I bonded over our love of reading.
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Here we are talking about connecting and deepening your relationship because you have some kind of common interest.
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You might say, we bonded over music.
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Well, if you have the same taste in music,
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you might say, we bonded over music.
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We go way back.
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My best friend and I were in high school together.
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We go way back.
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If you've known someone for a long time,
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this is the perfect phrase to use.
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You have experienced a lot of life together.
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We go way back.
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We've been friends since the diaper days.
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Quirks.
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I like this phrase.
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Quirks.
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He is my friend, even though he knows all of my quirks.
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Quirks are those strange little things that maybe annoy some people,
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but other people who truly love you can still be your friend.
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So maybe if you really don't like vegetables,
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one of your quirks might be,
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I don't like to eat anything green.
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It's one of my quirks,
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but I hope you can still be my friend.
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It's not true for me though.
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I love most things that are green.
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To hit it off.
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This is the phrase I used at the very beginning of this lesson.
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We hit it off immediately because we bonded over our love of music.
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When you have an instant connection with someone, you hit it off.
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To look out for someone.
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In elementary school, I used to look out for my friends.
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When they forgot their lunch at home, I would share mine.
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This is what friends do, right?
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We try to care for someone or protect them.
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We are trying to help them,
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especially when they need it.
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So when I had each of my children,
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my neighbors looked out for me and they were constantly bringing us dinner and trying to help us.
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This is what good friends do.
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To be a listening ear.
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You need all parts of this phrase in order for it to be grammatically correct.
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You might say something like this,
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my sister is a listening ear for me.
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Whenever I'm going through a difficult time or just want to talk something through to understand what I should do,
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she is a good listening ear.
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She doesn't respond immediately.
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She doesn't try to be judgmental.
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She is just simply listening to me.
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And that's what good friends do, right?
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All right.
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We have two final phrases to talk about those really good friends.
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This is the next one,
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to go out of your way.
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I always go out of my way to make sure that my friends feel cared for when they're having a hard time.
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This is something that good friends do.
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We go out of our way.
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We do something that's a little bit more than is necessary.
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So when one of my friends is feeling sick,
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I don't just text her and say,
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hey, I hope you're feeling better.
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I'll make a meal and go bring it to her house.
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This is something that is extra above what is necessary for being just a friend.
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I want to do something to make her feel cared and loved.
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So I will go out of my way to help my friends.
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It's what good friends do.
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And our final phrase for good friends is a very fun one,
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to be attached at the hip.
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Your hip bone is right on your side.
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If you are attached at the hip, you are always together.
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This is a phrase that I like to use for my kids.
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For better or for worse,
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my kids are always attached at the hip.
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They're always playing together, sometimes fighting together,
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but they are attached at the the hip.
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They can't do anything without each other.
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They have to be together.
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They want to be together most of the time.
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They are attached at the hip.
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They can't do anything without each other.
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They have to be together.
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They want to be together most of the time.
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They are attached at the hip.
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All right.
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Now let's go on to some phrases that you can use for people who are friends.
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It's important to have these acquaintances in your life,
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but they're not the best of friends.
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How could you use to describe these people?
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You might use this phrase, see each other around see each other around work,
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but we don't really hang out after work.
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Okay.
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So maybe when you're at work,
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you would say that person is a close person to you at work,
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but they're not a close friend.
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We see each other around work, but that's about it.
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To lose touch.
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We're not talking about a physical touch.
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We're talking about that connection and communication.
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So you might say, after college,
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we just lost touch because we moved to different cities.
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This happens.
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You can't stay best friends long distance with everyone,
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so you might easily lose touch with most people.
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To drift apart.
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This is talking about this slow process of becoming less good friends.
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Nothing in particular happened to hurt our friendship, we just drifted apart.
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I would say this is especially true for childhood friends.
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For me, the best friends that I had in childhood were so special.
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We were attached at the hip as kids.
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And then as we got older, we just drifted apart.
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Our adult selves were not as close as our childhood selves were.
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We just drifted apart.
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Do you have a work buddy or a gym buddy.
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This phrase buddy is already very casual,
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but when we add another word to the front,
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we are specifying this person is my casual friend in a specific situation.
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Yeah, he's just my work buddy.
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We hang out during our lunch breaks, but that's it.
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We've never gone out after work or done anything outside of the workplace.
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He's my work buddy.
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We could say the same for gym buddy.
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If you happen to go to the gym every Friday at the same time as someone else,
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maybe eventually you start to wave.
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You might introduce yourself.
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You're not a close friend,
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but you could say, oh yeah, she's my gym buddy.
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I see her every Friday.
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And our final phrase to talk about friends that are not the closest friends is one that I actually already used.
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Did you pick it up?
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It is the word acquaintance.
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Practice this pronunciation with me.
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Acquaintance.
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Acquaintance.
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This is someone who you're kind of friends with,
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but you don't really rely on them.
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You haven't really bonded with them deeply.
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So you might say, yeah,
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I have a bunch of acquaintances,
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but they're not really close friends.
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I only have a couple close friends and a lot of acquaintances, pretty common.
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Okay.
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Now that you have a great vocabulary foundation to talk about friendship,
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it's time to take it up a level.
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We're going to see a sample conversation between my husband, Dan, and I.
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We're going to use a bunch of the vocabulary that you just heard.
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I want you to pay attention because after this,
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it's going to be your turn to speak with me using all of these phrases.
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Are you ready?
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Let's watch.
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Hey, Dan.
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Hey, Vanessa.
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Guess what?
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I ran into an old friend at the grocery store the other day.
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We go way back, but we just lost touch over time.
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That's so cool.
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Did you two hit it off when you started talking?
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We actually did.
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It was like no time had passed.
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That's so nice.
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Yeah.
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Well, what about you?
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You've been friends with Brad for a long time, right?
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Yeah, actually we were work buddies for about two years
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and then one day we hung out and we really bonded over heavy metal music.
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I love that for you.
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You never know when your quirks are going to make you a good friend.
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That's so true.
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Okay.
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Now that you've seen this sample conversation,
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it's our turn to speak together.
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I'm going to ask you a question and then I will pause.
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During that pause, I want you to speak out loud.
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Try to use the vocabulary that you've learned today.
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If you need to pause this video and have a little more time to think about it,
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totally fine and you're welcome to review this section as many times as you need to.
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Are you ready?
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Let's do it.
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Tell me about a time that you hit it off with someone instantly.
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Oh, that's so interesting.
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Do you bond over anything in particular?
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That's so great.
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I'm glad you have a good friend.
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But sometimes friendships don't always stay close.
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Have you ever had a friend that you drifted apart from?
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Yeah, I think that's happened to everyone.
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Well thank you for telling me about your friendships.
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I'll talk to you later.
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Well, great work practicing speaking with me today about friendships.
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I want to remind you that you can download the free PDF worksheet.
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It includes all of today's vocabulary,
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the sample conversation, a chance for you to write out your answers to the conversation as well,
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plus a bonus quiz so that you can test yourself.
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See if you can remember these phrases so that when you go out into the real world,
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you can use them yourself.
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How can you get this free worksheet?
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All you have to do is click on the link in the description,
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enter your name and email address and voila,
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just like that, I will send this and the quiz to your email inbox.
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It is my gift to you.
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Well thank you so much for learning English with me.
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Now I have a question for you.
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Let me know in the comments,
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what is something that you love to do with your best friend?
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I can't wait to see what you have to say
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and I'll see you again next Friday for a new lesson here on my YouTube channel.
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Bye.
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But wait, do you want more?
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I recommend watching this video next where you will practice speaking with me about technology.
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What can you say if you are addicted to your phone,
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but you want to stop?
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Well, I've got a great phrase for you in that lesson and I'll see you there.
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About This Lesson
In this engaging lesson, you will dive into the fascinating topic of friendship in English. You will learn how to express thoughts and feelings about your friends using real-life conversational phrases. By the end of this lesson, you’ll not only grasp essential vocabulary related to friendship, but you'll also have the opportunity to practice speaking with me directly, allowing you to apply what you've learned in a supportive environment. This is a perfect opportunity for those preparing for IELTS speaking practice or anyone eager to improve their everyday English communication skills.
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
- My go-to person - This phrase indicates someone you trust for advice or support.
- To bond over something - Used to describe how people connect through shared interests.
- We go way back - A way to express a long friendship or history with someone.
- Hit it off - To become friends quickly and easily upon meeting.
- Close friend - A person with whom you share a deep and trusting relationship.
- Extra support - Refers to being there for someone when they need help.
- Friendship dynamics - The different types of relationships that can exist between friends.
- Common interests - Activities or topics shared between friends that strengthen the bond.
Practice Tips
To maximize your English speaking practice, I recommend employing the shadowing technique while engaging with this lesson. To effectively use shadowspeak:
- As you listen to the video, pause after phrases and repeat exactly what has been said. Focus on mimicking the speaker's intonation and rhythm.
- Choose a clip of around 30 seconds and repeat it several times at a slower pace before attempting it at regular speed.
- Pay attention to expressions and vocabulary related to friendships, as they are often used in casual conversations.
- Use the vocabulary list provided above in your own sentences after shadowing. This ensures retention and provides a richer speaking practice experience.
- Practice regularly with different phrases and contexts to build confidence for your upcoming IELTS speaking practice or everyday conversations.
Utilize these strategies consistently, and you’ll not only improve your speaking abilities but also feel more comfortable engaging in discussions about friendships in English.
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.
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