Shadowing Practice: What Fluency Feels Like - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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Hey, what's up?
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Stephanie, the English coach here from EnglishFullTime.com.
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In this video, I want to talk to you guys about what fluency feels like, what it feels like physically in your body and what it feels like emotionally.
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Now, I need to say the only reason I can even make this video
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and talk about this is because I have learned a foreign language and I am fluent in a foreign language.
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So I learned Spanish.
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I talk about that a little bit on my channel and I have a video, I will link it up here, about my journey learning Spanish.
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And you guys can actually hear me speak in Spanish.
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I speak in this video in Spanish.
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So yeah, that's pretty much the reason why I can make this video.
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If someone's not fluent in a foreign language, they really can't tell you what it feels like to be fluent because they don't know, right, from experience.
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This is something you only know through experience.
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So I'm going to share my experience with you guys.
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I'm going to tell you guys what it felt like for
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me to feel to get to a point where I finally felt fluent and what that meant for me.
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And I actually need your help with this video because just because fluency feels a certain way for me,
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it might feel a little bit different for you or for other people.
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So in the comments, if you guys could just start a discussion about what fluency feels like for you, for those of you who are fluent,
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that would be awesome because then people could learn not just from my experience, but also from your experience.
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And I always learn so much from you guys in the comments when you share your experiences.
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So with that said, I want to say that describing fluency is not easy.
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Okay.
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It actually took me a little while to think about this.
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So when I tried to think of one word that described the feeling of fluency.
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The word that I thought of was effortless, right?
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When you don't have to put effort into something, it's easy.
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It comes to you naturally.
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It's intuitive.
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It's comfortable.
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It's just effortless.
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And I remember the first time that I caught myself speaking fluently in Spanish.
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So here's the story.
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I was living in Argentina.
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I was talking with a neighbor and I was really enjoying the conversation.
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We were talking about something that was super interesting
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and I had a lot to share about my ideas and opinions and stuff like that.
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And so I just started going off and talking and sharing.
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And I remember feeling like my tongue was just flying around in my mouth.
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And I was like, how is this possible?
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It's almost like as I was speaking and as I was being present in the conversation, there was another version of me that was outside of myself observing,
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noticing what was going on.
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And I just remember that feeling where my tongue was just flying around in my mouth.
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Everything was coming out so perfectly, so effortlessly.
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I had easy access to whatever word I was looking for or I needed.
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I was able to speak automatically.
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I was able to match my emotions,
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feelings, intonation, etc. perfectly and just communicate in a way that felt so authentic.
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I didn't feel like I was pretending to be anybody.
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I didn't feel uncomfortable
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and I think really my interest in the conversation just took over my whole body
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and allowed me to produce the language so easily.
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Okay, I was in a very comfortable environment, a comfortable situation.
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And I remember during this conversation, I was having this realization like, oh my gosh, I don't think I've ever spoken this fluently before.
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It was crazy.
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And my friend stopped me in the middle of whatever I was saying.
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And she put her hand on me and she was like, Stephanie, do you hear yourself?
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You sound just like me.
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You're, you're speaking so fluently.
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You're one of us now it was
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so funny I was like yeah I actually feel it it was a crazy experience
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that was probably the first time that I ever felt fluent
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when I was speaking however that's kind of like a transition phase right
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when you go from that struggling intermediate learner to finally speaking fluently
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but after you become a fluent speaker in a language and you're able to just use the language automatically, it becomes not that exciting, right?
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It's just normal, right?
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In the beginning, when you're fluent, it feels like, wow, I can't believe it.
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And the emotions that come with that, there's so much excitement.
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And then when you've been fluent for a while, it's just like, eh, no big deal.
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I speak the language, no problem.
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And that's it.
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Okay.
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So a couple other things, when you speak fluently words just roll off of your tongue
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right it just like I said feels effortless I'm probably going to repeat
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that word too many times during this video
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because that's really how it feels another thing is you don't
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get exhausted you can talk with somebody for an hour
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or for two hours and it feels great and you enjoy the conversation
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and when the conversations over you just move on with your day
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and you're fine right but when you are an intermediate learner
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and you're not quite there yet talking in English
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or a foreign language for 15 minutes or half an hour
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or one hour it can be so mentally exhausting because there's
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so much that your brain has to focus on and
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so after a conversation you might feel completely depleted no energy exhausted etc and
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if you're in an environment where you have to use English
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let's say for a week let's say you travel to the US for business
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or something like that you might feel so mentally exhausted during
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that week because of the amount of communication you're doing in English.
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Whereas when you are fluent, you don't really go through that.
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You can use the language, you can switch it on and off, you can use it for as long as you need,
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and you don't really go through those periods of absolute mental exhaustion because of using the language.
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Another thing about fluency and how it feels is it feels very intuitive, okay?
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It just comes
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out of you and sometimes you're like I didn't even know
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that I knew how to say that or Wow
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that just feels right I don't know how to explain the grammar I don't know why that's correct
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but it feels right
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and it feels good maybe your grammar is actually not correct I don't know
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but it just feels like the right thing to say okay also when you're fluent everything just clicks in your mind,
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you don't have to put your sentences and ideas together before you say them, right?
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You just react the same way you react in your native language.
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And the words, like I said, they just fall out of your mouth.
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They roll off of your tongue.
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Again, when that first happens to you, it's real exciting.
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But when that's your reality, it's just normal.
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Does this mean that when you're fluent in a language, you are going to be confident in this language 100% of the time?
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No. No, absolutely not.
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Just because you're fluent doesn't mean you will always be confident.
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Think about it in your native language.
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Are you always confident?
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No, right?
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Let's say you have a business meeting or an interview or a phone call or a date with somebody who knows,
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but just because you speak a language fluently doesn't mean you're always going to be confident
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because you might be in certain environments that make you nervous and that's normal.
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And it's really important to recognize that because some people think that because they lack some confidence, that means they also lack fluency,
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but it's not always the case.
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And another thing to really realize is that when you are nervous, you are going to make more mistakes.
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You are probably going to have a heavier accent and you might forget words.
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You might clam up and not be able to express yourself well.
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But again, that is a result often of nervousness and lack of confidence.
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And it's often unrelated to your fluency and your ability,
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because when you are in an environment that makes you feel safe and comfortable and when you're enjoying yourself, the words just, you know,
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fall out of your mouth and you don't have those problems with fluency.
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Okay, so just really important to recognize that.
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And I wanted to say that because some people feel like, oh, well, you know, it's not always effortless when I speak.
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Sometimes it's effortless and sometimes it's not.
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You really have to identify what is making you feel uncomfortable.
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What is it about the environment?
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Because again, it might be about the environment
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and how you are emotionally responding to it and not necessarily about your communication skills and your level of English.
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Okay, and the other thing I want to say about fluency is you can be fluent,
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you can speak effortlessly, but that doesn't mean that you won't still make mistakes, occasionally lack vocabulary, mess up your grammar,
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etc. I think I said some of that earlier,
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but I just want to be clear on that because fluency is really the ability to communicate continuously and effortlessly.
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So if you're able to have a conversation in English with someone for an hour
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and it feels pretty effortless and you're able to communicate continuously and you're not exhausted at the end of it, then yeah, that's fluency.
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And you don't have to have advanced vocabulary in order to
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be fluent think about this five-year-olds are fluent in english they're fluent in the language
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but is their level you know do they have a high level of vocabulary no
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but they're still fluent they're able to share their ideas effortlessly continuously
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so think about that when you are speaking
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and learning etc on your journey because you might be fluent already
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and just not realize it and i know
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that as a language learner myself it's always so empowering
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when you can realize oh my gosh i'm fluent and having
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that realization builds tons of confidence okay sometimes it takes one
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conversation for you to have where you realize i didn't know i was capable of talking for two hours
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and i've gotten so many messages from my students where they said just
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that they said stephanie i joined one of your programs i ended up completing this assignment
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or talking to this person and i couldn't believe it.
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We talked for a whole hour or two hours or three hours at this point.
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I don't remember what the record is, but I think I'm pretty sure some of my students have had conversations that were four hours or possibly longer.
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And if you are one of my students who has had a conversation that's longer than four hours with somebody else,
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go ahead and let me know in the comments because I'd love to hear more about that.
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Okay, and if you are interested in learning more about my programs, I will leave some links in the description.
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One that I recently launched is called the Daily English Program, and this program is already a huge success.
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Every week I give a new lesson and task to my students, and the lessons are designed to teach you advanced English.
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We actually focus on improving every aspect your english
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and then the tasks are designed to get you to use your english
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and then analyze your english so you can start self-correcting
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and of course we have an awesome community that you can interact with
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so if you're interested in learning more about
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that i will put the link in the description okay
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and my last example of fluency is it's just like turning on a light switch right
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when you go into a room
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and the room is dark you just switch on the light
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and the light is on
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and that's it there's no fireworks it's not magical it's not like wow it's just you needed light
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so you turned on the switch and you made the light happen that's like fluency
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when you're fluent in a language and then someone starts speaking to you in
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that language you're like oh okay i have to use this language now
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and you start communicating with them it's not exciting or wow
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or anything it's just normal
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and yeah it's just easy it's not like you're sitting there cranking out the electricity generating it yourself
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and if you stop the lights gonna go off
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or something right that's what it's like in the beginning
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when you're still not fluent
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so anyhow this video is my ramblings about what fluency feels like physically in the body and emotionally
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and i went all over the place you're welcome no i'm
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just kidding i hope it wasn't too hard to get through
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and i look forward to hearing your comments and feedback in the description.
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What does fluency feel like to you?
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And if you feel like you're not fluent, describe that to me.
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Thank you so much, you guys.
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Oh, if you are not subscribed to my channel and you enjoy rambling type videos like this, feel free to subscribe.
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I have a lot of fun making these videos.
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And yes, if you guys want more from me, definitely check the links in the description where I share more about my programs to help you improve your English
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and really get some transformational experiences.
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Okay.
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That is it.
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I'll see you guys in the next video.
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Bye.
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It becomes, what's the word I'm looking for?
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They roll off of your tongue and, um, yes.
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Having a conversation that's an hour or two hours.
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How do I say this?
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What does it feel like to not quite be fluent? Because
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no
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that sounds stupid hang on I can't do this sorry my
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nose is like I need to take care of this it's not exciting
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or wow or anything it's just normal
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and um what else was I gonna say I was talking
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with a neighbor I was living in a okay wait let me start over in your native language Are you always confident?
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No, right?
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We get in, we can hang on.
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And so I actually run lots of, well, not lots.
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Hang on.
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I just realized I have these shadows on my shoulder and they look like tiger stripes.
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That is so weird.
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Oh, if you are not subscribed to my channel and you enjoy rambling type videos like this, feel free to just, can't talk, feel free.
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Let me try again.
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Can't stop laughing at myself.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “What Fluency Feels Like”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: fluent, language, fluency, hour, english. This video has 212 sentences and 2519 words to shadow. The speech runs for 14:24. The speaker talks at a natural 175 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 86% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| fluent adjective | /ˈfluənt/ | That flows; flowing, liquid. |
| fluency noun | /ˈfluːənsi/ | The quality of smoothness of flow. |
| effortless adjective | /ˈɛfə(ɹ)tlɪs/ | Without effort. |
| fluently adverb | In a fluent manner, as expressing oneself easily, especially in a foreign language. | |
| exhaust verb | /ɪɡˈzɔst/ | To draw or let out wholly; to drain completely. |
| effortlessly adverb | /ˈɛf.ɚt.ləs.li/ | Without effort; without difficulty or struggle. |
| excite verb | /ɪkˈsaɪt/ | To stir the emotions of; to cause to feel excitement. |
| learner noun | /ˈlɜɹnəɹ/ | One who is learning; one receiving instruction. |
| vocabulary noun | /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/ | A usually alphabetized and explained collection of words e.g. of a particular field, or prepared for a specific purpose, often for learning. |
| continuously adverb | /kənˈtɪnjuəsli/ | Without pause. |
| subscribe verb | /səbˈskɹaɪb/ | To write (one’s name) at the bottom of a document; to sign (one's name). |
| emotionally adverb | /ɪˈməʊʃənəli/ | In an emotional manner; displaying emotion. |
| grammar noun | /ˈɡɹæm.ə(ɹ)/ | A system of rules and principles for the structure of a language, or of languages in general. |
| ramble verb | /ˈɹæmbəl/ | To move about aimlessly, or on a winding course. |
| intuitive adjective | /ɪnˈtjuːɪtɪv/ | Spontaneous, without requiring conscious thought. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| go off verb | To explode. | |
| go through verb | To travel from one end of something to the other. | |
| come out verb | /ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/ | To be discovered; to be revealed. |
| end up verb | To bring to a conclusion. | |
| get through verb | /ɡɛt ˈθɹu/ | To overcome; to endure. |
| go ahead verb | /ˌɡoʊ əˈhɛd/ | To proceed with; to begin. |
| look forward to verb | To anticipate, expect, or wait for, especially with a feeling of approval or pleasure; to be excited or eager to. | |
| mess up verb | To make a mess of; to untidy, disorder, soil, or muss. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- You're, you're speaking so fluently.
- Are you always confident?
- What does fluency feel like to you?
- It becomes, what's the word I'm looking for?
- How do I say this?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | is called · are designed · are not subscribed |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | have learned · I've ever spoken · you've been |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | somebody who knows · students who has |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 70 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: emotionally /ɪˈməʊʃənəli/, realization /ˌɹɪə.laɪˈzeɪ.ʃən/, gosh /ɡɑːʃ/, emotion /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/, intonation /ɪntəˈneɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: effortlessly /ˈɛf.ɚt.ləs.li/, vocabulary /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/, continuously /kənˈtɪnjuəsli/, emotionally /ɪˈməʊʃənəli/, intuitive /ɪnˈtjuːɪtɪv/
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 fluent, fluency, effortless.
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.