Shadowing Practice: Top 10 Small Talk Questions and Answers - Learn English Speaking with Video

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There is one thing that Americans are really good at, and that is small talk conversations.

Are you good at small talk in English?

Well, never fear.

In today's lesson, you are going to learn the top 10 most common small talk questions and how to answer them,

plus three bonus questions at the end of today's lesson.

You will never be stuck frozen with nothing to say in a small talk conversation in English again.

And like always, I have created a free PDF worksheet for you with all of today's 10 plus three bonus small talk questions

and answers so that you're never frozen and not knowing what to say the next time that you have a conversation.

It's going to be no problem for you.

Plus, to help you really master these small talk questions and answers,

I have included inside the PDF worksheet a free speaking practice.

You can download this speaking practice, listen to my voice saying these questions and answers, and repeat them out loud with me.

This is the number one way to be able to actually improve your pronunciation and your speaking skills.

When you are repeating or shadowing with someone else, It is a lot easier to speak like them, to remember what you're saying,

and to actually master the phrases that you want to learn.

So how can you get this free PDF worksheet plus bonus speaking practice?

All you have to do is click on the link in the description, enter your name and email address, and voila, just like that,

the free worksheet and bonus speaking practice will land in your email inbox.

And something even cooler is that you never need to sign up for my free PDF worksheets again.

You just sign up one time and I will continue to send them to you every single week.

It is my gift to you.

So click on the link in the description to get the worksheet and the speaking practice and get started.

All right, let's start with today's lesson.

The first three small talk questions are just general, the most commonly used.

Let's imagine the scenario you are walking through your neighborhood and your neighbor is watering her plants.

You want to say something to her.

What should you say?

Here you go.

How's it going?

Great.

This is an excellent question and extremely commonly used with all ages.

And your neighbor might say, pretty good.

How about you?

Or maybe your neighbor will add a little more and say something like, Pretty good, just trying to keep these plants alive.

How about you?

Or you could ask, Hey, what have you been up to?

And your neighbor might reply, Oh, not much, mostly working and spending time with the kids.

What about you?

This final question that is often asked in return could be asked two ways.

They might ask, What about you?

Or how about you?

and it is really just returning the question to you.

It's bouncing the ball back in your court and making you have to answer the same question.

So that's why I want you to practice these answers as well.

Or our third question you might ask your neighbor as they're watering their plants is, how's everything been?

How's everything been?

Now, there doesn't have to be a big to-do in their life like a new wedding

or going on a big trip in order for you to ask this question.

It just means How is your life going?

How's everything been?

And your neighbor might say, it's been good.

Busy as always, but no complaints.

How about you?

And here it's your turn to answer.

All right, the next two small talk questions have to do with your health.

This is a common small talk question.

So let's imagine the scenario where you're going to meet a friend at a cafe

and you knew that your friend had a cold recently and so you're just trying to make some small talk.

You might ask, are you feeling any better today?

Now notice in a lot of these questions the g at the end of ing, feeling, is cut off.

Are you feeling any better today?

This just makes it more personal, more relatable.

It's not rude to use this type of pronunciation with all ages.

You're welcome to use this and it's just a comfortable way to speak with other people.

And your friend might say, yeah, much better.

I just have a little cough now, but I'm feeling much better.

Thanks for asking.

This final phrase, thanks for asking, is a really kind way to show the other person that you appreciate that they remember,

you appreciate that they care.

Thanks for asking.

Let's imagine that instead of your friend having a cold, it was your friend's son who had a cold.

You might ask instead, how's your son doing?

And your friend might say, oh yeah, he had a cold for forever, but he's finally getting better.

I'm so glad.

Thanks for asking.

You could use this question in a more general sense if you asked, how's your family doing?

And this could be just generally asking, how are your family doing?

What are they up to these days?

It's not necessarily about their health, but if you said, how's your son doing in the context of him previously being sick, it's about his health.

But you're welcome to also use this generally.

How's your family doing?

Great question.

The next two small talk questions are about work and daily life.

Let's imagine the scenario that you're at the grocery store

and you run into a co-worker who hasn't been at the office lately because they've been on a trip.

Well, what can you say in this scenario?

You might ask about their trip and ask, when did you get back into town?

Now, this is just a logistics question.

It's not saying, how was your trip?

Tell me all about it.

Maybe you have a formal relationship together and you don't want to get into the details,

but asking this type of question just acknowledges that you knew they were gone and you want to make small talk.

So you could ask that, when did you get back into town?

And your coworker might say, oh, I just got back a couple days ago.

The jet lag has been really tough this time.

Okay, great answer.

And because your coworker hasn't been in the office lately or been at work lately, your coworker might ask you, how's work going?

How's work going?

And you might reply, it's been such a busy week, but I had a really relaxing weekend, so I feel much more refreshed now.

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This is a common small talk question.

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How's work going?

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And if you don't want to talk about work, you could just say, it's going fine.

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It's fine.

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Nothing much to report.

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You can answer in kind of that evasive way if you want.

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That's part of small talk as well, but you're welcome to share a couple more details.

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How's work going?

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Oh yeah, I just finished up this really big project.

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It was so cool and I'm really glad that we finished it on the deadline.

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Okay, well that kind of gives the other person an in to be able to ask questions about it

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if they want and it could start a bigger conversation. Who knows?

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Or it might just be small talk.

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The next two small talk questions are about weekends and free time.

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So let's imagine that it is Monday morning

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and you're at the office getting a cup of coffee at your office's coffee station, coffee pot, and your colleague walks up.

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What should you say?

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Freeze and panic?

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Nope.

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Because of this lesson, you're going to know exactly what to say.

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You could say something like this.

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Hey, what'd you do this weekend?

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Great question.

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And your colleague might answer, oh, not too much.

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I just saw some friends and then caught up on all the chores I needed to do.

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What about you?

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Here they're throwing the question back at you.

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What about you?

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How about you?

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So make sure that you are prepared to answer.

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If this scenario happens later in the week, let's say a Friday, you might ask your colleague this.

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Got any plans for the weekend?

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Got any plans for the weekend?

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This is a tricky question to ask.

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You need to make sure that you ask it in this casual way.

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Notice that I kind of abbreviated the beginning of this question.

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I didn't say, do you have any plans for this weekend?

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Instead, I said, got any plans for this weekend?

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Got any plans for the weekend or this weekend?

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This is important because if you said this a little more seriously, a little more formally, do you have any plans for this weekend?

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How does that feel to you?

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Do you think the other person would think, is Vanessa asking me if I want to spend time with her this weekend?

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This could be a little complicated.

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So make sure when you ask this question, you ask it in this informal way.

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Hey, got any plans this weekend?

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Really casual, maybe a little shrug.

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You're not seriously asking them, do you have any plans for this weekend?

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Just got any plans for the weekend?

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and you could answer or your colleague might answer, not really, my mom's coming into town on Sunday, but I don't have any plans for the rest of the weekend.

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Probably just take it easy.

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Great.

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Okay.

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This is a casual way to answer.

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And of course, if you feel like the other person is being a little bit too uncomfortable asking you directly,

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do you have any plans for the weekend?

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And you don't want to tell them, you don't have to tell them anything.

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You could just say, not really.

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How about you?

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You can just throw it right back at them if you don't feel like sharing anything personal.

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Our final small talk question plus three bonus questions are all about the most common small talk topic ever.

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It is the weather.

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No matter who you're talking to, a random person you don't know, a colleague, a friend, a neighbor, the weather is a safe topic and it affects everybody, right?

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So it's not extremely boring.

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It could be boring, but we can make it interesting with these questions.

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These are questions I use all the time, so I want to make sure that you can use them as well.

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So let's imagine this scenario.

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Let's imagine you're waiting at the bus stop and there's someone beside you who you don't know, and it is extremely cold.

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It is unusually cold for this time of year.

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What can you say?

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Can you believe this weather?

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And the other person might say, I know, it just seems like winter is never going to end.

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Can you believe this weather?

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Wonderful question.

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Or you might say, the weather has been so unpredictable lately.

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It's hot one day, cold the next.

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What am I supposed to wear?

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I don't know.

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And the other person might say, I know, I just wear my winter coat in the morning and by the afternoon I only have a t-shirt on.

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This is something that affects us all.

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Well, let's imagine that the weather is actually okay.

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Good-ish weather.

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What can you say?

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Oh, it's such a nice day today, isn't it?

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And here this question at the end, we call that a tag question because you're just tagging it on at the end

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and you're hoping that the other person will give some kind of reply.

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Oh, it's such a nice day today, isn't it?

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Maybe the other person will say, I know it is.

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I can't believe it.

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or maybe the other person will just say, yeah, okay, maybe they didn't want to have a conversation.

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But this type of small talk back and forth is really common in the U.S.

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Let's imagine you're at the bus stop and it is pouring down rain.

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It's kind of an inconvenient type of weather to have when you're waiting for the bus.

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Hopefully there's a little shelter you can wait under.

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You might say something like this, I heard it's supposed to rain all weekend.

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unfortunate.

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Maybe you need rain where you live, or maybe it's just too much rain.

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If you said this to someone, or if someone said this to you, how can you reply?

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I heard it's supposed to rain all weekend.

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Well, you can probably commiserate with them.

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This word commiserate means you're going to complain together.

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So you might say, oh, it's been raining for so long.

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I wish it would just stop.

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you are commiserating together about the bad weather.

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Well, there you have it.

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10 common small talk questions and answers that I use all the time and you can too.

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Oh, plus three bonuses.

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I hope you enjoyed those.

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Don't forget to download the free PDF worksheet for today's lesson.

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This includes all of today's important small talk questions and answers plus the bonus speaking practice.

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In this speaking practice, I'm going to be saying out loud each of the questions and answers,

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and then I'm going to be pausing to give you a chance to repeat exactly what I said.

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This type of repeating practice is the best way to remember what you've learned.

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You're using it right away.

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So don't miss out on this speaking practice.

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All you need to do is click on the link in the description, enter your name and email address, and voila, just like that,

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the free PDF worksheet and speaking practice will land 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 and don't wait.

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Start speaking.

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Use this.

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Have small talk conversations wherever you go or even just with me in the speaking practice.

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And now I have a question for you.

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I want to know, got any plans for this weekend?

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Let me know in the comments what your plans are.

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I can't wait to read them and learn more about you.

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Thank you so much for learning English with me

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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 learn 10 everyday expressions that I use about my evening routine,

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including what to say when you come home from work completely tired.

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What should you say?

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Well, I'll see you in that video to find out.

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This video has 232 sentences and 2474 words to shadow. The speech runs for 14:16. The speaker talks at a natural 173 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 90% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.

Key vocabulary in this video

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

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
bonus noun	/ˈbəʊ.nəs/	Something extra that is good; an added benefit.
neighbour noun	/ˈneɪbɚ/	A person living on adjacent or nearby land; a person situated adjacently or nearby; anything (of the same type of thing as the subject) in an adjacent or…
lesson noun	/ˈlɛs.ən/	A section of learning or teaching into which a wider learning content is divided.
scenario noun	/sɪˈnɛəɹioʊ/	An outline or model of an expected or supposed sequence of events.
colleague noun	/ˈkɒliːɡ/	A fellow member of a profession, staff, academic faculty or other organization; an associate, a workmate.
lately adverb	/ˈleɪt.li/	Recently; not long ago; of late; not long since.
casual adjective	/ˈkæʒ(u)əl/	Happening by chance.
freeze verb	/ˈfɹiːz/	Especially of a liquid, to become solid due to low temperature.
topic noun	/ˈtɑpɪk/	A subject; a theme; a category or general area of interest.
commonly adverb	/ˈkɑmənli/	As a rule; frequently; usually.
phrase noun	/ˈfɹeɪ̯z/	A short written or spoken expression.
bore verb	/boɹ/	To inspire boredom in somebody.
inbox noun	/ˈɪnbɑks/	A container in which papers to be dealt with are put.
pronunciation noun	/pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/	The formal or informal way in which a word is made to sound when spoken.
necessarily adverb	/ˌnɛs.əˈsɛɹ.ə.li/	Inevitably; of necessity.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
cut off verb	/ˌkʌt ˈɔf/ [ˌkɐɾ ˈɔf]	To remove by cutting.
find out verb		To discover, as by asking or investigating.
finish up verb		To complete the last details of a task.
get back verb		Return to where one came from.
sign up verb		To add a name to the list of people who are participating in something.
talk back verb		To reply impertinently or rudely; to answer in a cheeky or rude manner.
walk through verb		To explain (something) to (someone), step by step.

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 52 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, don't, I'm. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “sh” and “zh” sounds: casual /ˈkæʒ(u)əl/, pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, shadow /ˈʃædəʊ̯/, shelter /ˈʃɛltə/, unusually /ʌnˈjuːʒuəli/
Long words — get the stress right: pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, necessarily /ˌnɛs.əˈsɛɹ.ə.li/, complicated /ˈkɑm.plɪˌkeɪ.tɪd/, uncomfortable /ʌnˈkʌm.fɚ.tə.bl̩/, unfortunate /ʌnˈfɔː.t͡ʃə.nɪt/

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 bonus, neighbour, lesson.

Grammar in this video

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

Structure	In the video
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	have created · have included · have you been
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it	be stuck · is often asked · is cut
Possibility with “might / may” might/may + verb — something that is possible but not certain	might say · might reply · might ask
Advice with “should” should + verb — saying what is a good idea	should you say

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 →

Shadowing Practice: Top 10 Small Talk Questions and Answers - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

Key vocabulary in this video

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Pronunciation to watch

How to practise with this video

Grammar in this video

What is the Shadowing Technique?

2 Tips For Improving Your Listening Skills