Shadowing Practice: Spend the day with me, (thrift, coffee, girl talk) 💗✨🌸 - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “Spend the day with me, (thrift, coffee, girl talk) 💗✨🌸”. This video has 660 sentences and 7790 words to shadow. The speech runs for 44:22. The speaker talks at a natural 176 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. Only 80% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| anyways adverb | /ˈɛn.iˌweɪz/ | Anyway, anyhow, in any case. |
| makeup noun | /ˈmeɪkʌp/ | An item's composition. |
| bubble noun | /ˈbʌbəl/ | A spherically contained volume of air or other gas in a liquid, commonly a soapy liquid. |
| sushi noun | /ˈsuːʃi/ | A Japanese dish made of small portions of sticky white rice flavored with vinegar, usually wrapped in seaweed and filled or topped with fish, vegetables or… |
| brush noun | /bɹʌʃ/ | An implement consisting of multiple more or less flexible bristles or other filaments attached to a handle, used for any of various purposes including… |
| nail noun | /neɪl/ | The horny plate or appendage at the ends of the digits of various animals, including most reptiles, birds, and mammals (both nonhuman and human). |
| stomach noun | /ˈstʌmək/ | An organ in animals that stores food in the process of digestion. |
| trash noun | /tɹæʃ/ | Useless physical things to be discarded; rubbish; refuse. |
| bother verb | /ˈbɑðɚ/ | To annoy, to disturb, to irritate; to be troublesome to, to make trouble for. |
| awkward adjective | /ˈɔk.wɚd/ | Lacking dexterity in the use of the hands, or of instruments. |
| outfit noun | /ˈaʊtfɪt/ | A set of clothing (with accessories). |
| spray noun | /spɹeɪ/ | A fine, gentle, dispersed mist of liquid. |
| lip noun | /lɪp/ | Either of the two fleshy protrusions around the opening of the mouth. |
| genuinely adverb | /ˈd͡ʒɛn.ju.ɪn.li/ | In a genuine manner; truthfully, truly. |
| jeans noun | /d͡ʒiːnz/ | A pair of trousers made from denim cotton. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| go in with verb | To commit to something with; to partner with. | |
| work out verb | /ˌwɝk ˈaʊt/ | To calculate. |
| go through verb | To travel from one end of something to the other. | |
| check out verb | To record the departure or withdrawal of someone or something (such as guests, employees, books, etc.). | |
| come out verb | /ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/ | To be discovered; to be revealed. |
| end up verb | To bring to a conclusion. | |
| grow up verb | To mature and become an adult. | |
| come up with verb | To manage to produce, deliver, or present (something) by inventing, creating, thinking of, or obtaining it. |
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 | I've been covering · i've been wearing · i've been growing |
| “Used to” used to + verb — a past habit or state that is no longer true | used to be · used to work · used to have |
| Conditional sentences if + clause, will/would + verb — a condition and its result | if you're from waterloo you would know · if anyone wears press -ons they would know · if i was in school i'd be |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | i've been · there's been · i've settled |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 310 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, gonna. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: bother /ˈbɑðɚ/, clothing /ˈkloʊðɪŋ/, bath /bɑːθ/, worthy /ˈwɝ.ði/, breathe /bɹiːð/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: sushi /ˈsuːʃi/, brush /bɹʌʃ/, trash /tɹæʃ/, shade /ʃeɪd/, sharp /ʃɑɹp/
- Long words — get the stress right: genuinely /ˈd͡ʒɛn.ju.ɪn.li/, adorable /əˈdoɹ.əˌbəl/, practically /ˈpɹæk.tɪ.k(ə.)li/, primarily /ˈpɹaɪ.mə.ɹə.li/, evolution /ˌiːvəˈluːʃ(ə)n/
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 anyways, makeup, bubble.
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.












