Shadowing Practice: TOEFL Speaking | Listen & Repeat Practice #334 - Learn English Speaking with Video

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12 sentences
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1
Welcome to the TOEFL Speaking Listen and Repeat Practice.
2
You'll hear seven sentences once.
3
After the beep, repeat within 8 to 12 seconds.
4
Let's begin.
5
Choose a lump of clay from the work table.
6
Place the clay on the pottery wheel.
7
Wet your hands before shaping the clay.
8
Press gently as the wheel begins to spin.
9
Slowly pull the clay upward to form the sides of the bowl.
10
Smooth the surface with a damp sponge before removing the bowl from the wheel.
11
Place the finished bowl on a drying shelf, then clean your tools before leaving the studio.
12
Thank you.

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This speaking lesson is built on the video “TOEFL Speaking”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: clay, wheel, bowl. This video has 12 sentences and 98 words to shadow. The speech runs for 2:30.

Key vocabulary in this video

15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:

WordPronunciationMeaning
clay noun/kleɪ/A mineral substance made up of small crystals of silica and alumina, that is ductile when moist; the material of pre-fired ceramics.
smooth adjective/smuːð/Having a texture that lacks friction. Not rough.
spin verb/spɪn/To rotate, revolve, gyrate (usually quickly); to partially or completely rotate to face another direction.
gently adverb/ˈd͡ʒɛntli/Without strong force or quickness: softly, lightly.
shelf noun/ʃɛlf/A flat, rigid structure, fixed at right angles to a wall or forming a part of a cabinet, desk, etc., and used to display, store, or support objects.
lump noun/lʌmp/Something that protrudes, sticks out, or sticks together; a cluster or blob; a mound or mass of no particular shape.
upward adverb/ˈʌpwɚd/In a direction from lower to higher; toward a higher place; in a course toward the source or origin.
pottery noun/ˈpɑtəɹi/Fired ceramic wares that contain clay when formed.
damp adjective/ˈdæmp/In a state between dry and wet; moderately wet; moist.
sponge noun/spʌnd͡ʒ/Any of various marine invertebrates of the phylum Porifera, that have a porous skeleton often of silica.
beep noun/biːp/The sound produced by the horn of a car, or any similar sound.
bowl noun/boʊl/As much as is held by a bowl.
wheel noun/ˈwiːl/A circular device capable of rotating on its axis, facilitating movement or transportation or performing labour in machines.
repeat verb/ɹɪˈpiːt/To do or say again (and again).
studio noun/ˈstudi.oʊ/An artist’s or photographer’s workshop or the room in which an artist works.

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

StructureIn the video
Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or predictionYou'll hear

How to practise with this video

  1. Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
  2. Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
  3. Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like clay, smooth, spin.

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.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →