Shadowing Practice: The Longevity Effects Of Psilocybin - 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
Recommend Video
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “The Longevity Effects Of Psilocybin”. This video has 414 sentences and 4466 words to shadow. The speech runs for 34:31. The speaker talks at a steady 129 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 79% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| dose noun | /ˈdəʊ̯s/ | A measured portion of medicine taken at any one time. |
| mushroom noun | /ˈmʌʃˌɹuːm/ | Any of the fleshy fruiting bodies of fungi typically produced above ground on soil or on their food sources (such as decaying wood). |
| experiment noun | /ɪkˈspɛɹ.ə.mənt/ | A test under controlled conditions made to either demonstrate a known truth, examine the validity of a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of… |
| inflammation noun | /ɪnfləˈmeɪ̯ʃən/ | The state of being inflamed. |
| measurement noun | /ˈmɛʒ.ə.mənt/ | The act of measuring. |
| marker noun | /ˈmɑː(ɹ)kə(ɹ)/ | A felt-tipped pen, a marker pen. |
| glucose noun | /ˈɡluː.kəʊz/ | A simple monosaccharide (sugar) with a molecular formula of C₆H₁₂O₆; a principle source of energy for cellular metabolism. |
| reset verb | /ɹiːˈsɛt/ | To set back to the initial state. |
| align verb | /əˈlaɪn/ | To form a line; to fall into line. |
| longevity noun | /lɒnˈd͡ʒɛv.ɪ.ti/ | The quality of being long-lasting, especially of life. |
| observe verb | /əbˈzɜːv/ | To notice or view, especially carefully or with attention to detail. |
| hormone noun | /ˈhoɹmoʊn/ | Any substance produced by one tissue and conveyed by the bloodstream to another to effect physiological activity. |
| gram noun | /ˈɡɹæm/ | A unit of mass equal to one-thousandth of a kilogram. Symbol: g. |
| biological adjective | /ˌbaɪ.əˈlɑ.d͡ʒɪ.kəl/ | Of or relating to biology. |
| protocol noun | /ˈpɹoʊtəˌkɑl/ | An amendment to an official treaty. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| come back verb | To return to a place. |
| check out verb | To record the departure or withdrawal of someone or something (such as guests, employees, books, etc.). |
| come across verb | To change sides; to cross over to work for the opposition. |
| come up verb | To emerge or become known, especially unexpectedly. |
| find out verb | To discover, as by asking or investigating. |
| get off verb | To move from being on top of (something) to not being on top of it. |
| go off verb | To explode. |
| go out verb | To leave, especially a building. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- I thought, why would this be happening?
- What if my values changed?
- For example, what if I experienced psychological instability?
- What if I disrupted my motivation for this project?
- How do we extend healthy human life?
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 | they've been looking · phone's been blowing |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has measured · I've spent · have been |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | could be measured · was built · be aligned |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | people who have · people who pull · one that can |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 87 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, didn't, wasn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: thermal /ˈθɜːməl/, thread /ˈθɹɛd/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: mushroom /ˈmʌʃˌɹuːm/, inflammation /ɪnfləˈmeɪ̯ʃən/, measurement /ˈmɛʒ.ə.mənt/, perception /pɚˈsɛpʃ(ə)n/, trash /tɹæʃ/
- Long words — get the stress right: experiment /ɪkˈspɛɹ.ə.mənt/, inflammation /ɪnfləˈmeɪ̯ʃən/, longevity /lɒnˈd͡ʒɛv.ɪ.ti/, biological /ˌbaɪ.əˈlɑ.d͡ʒɪ.kəl/, continuous /kənˈtɪn.juː.əs/
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 dose, mushroom, experiment.
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.















