LessonCues

For language learners

Hear the phrase again. And again. Then say it back.

Clip a sentence from a film, a vlog or a lesson, loop it with a pause after each repeat, and shadow it until the rhythm sticks.

Keyboard shortcuts

Shortcuts work when you’re not typing in a field. If you clicked the video, click anywhere on the page first — the YouTube player keeps its own keys.

Play / pause
SpaceK
Seek 1s (hold Shift for 5s)
←→
Seek 0.1s
,.
Set start at the playhead
I
Set end at the playhead
O
Move start 0.1s earlier / later
[]
Move end 0.1s earlier / later
{}
Preview clip
P
Toggle loop
L
Save clip
Enter
Show this help
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  • Free, no sign-up to try
  • Nothing downloaded
  • Plays in YouTube’s own player

How it works

How to practise shadowing with a YouTube clip

  1. 1

    Clip one phrase

    Paste the video link and trim tightly around one sentence. Nudge the start and end by a tenth of a second so no words are cut off.

  2. 2

    Add a pause after each loop

    In Practice, set a pause of a few seconds between loops, long enough to repeat the phrase aloud. Slow it a little if you need to.

  3. 3

    Write it down

    Put the sentence, a translation or new words in the clip notes. Sign in to keep your phrases in folders by topic.

Shadowing without touching the controls

Shadowing works best when you can listen and repeat many times in a row. With a looped clip and a pause after each repeat, the video plays the phrase, waits while you say it, and plays it again, hands free.

Ways to use it

  • Build a set of everyday phrases from vlogs and interviews.
  • Slow a fast speaker to 0.8× until you can follow, then return to 1×.
  • Teachers can make a lesson of clips with a text block of questions between them.
  • Print a handout with a QR code for each phrase.

Questions

Can I see subtitles?

Yes, where the video has captions: turn them on with the CC button in YouTube’s player.

What’s a good pause length for shadowing?

Start with about the length of the phrase itself, often 2–4 seconds, and shorten it as you get faster.

Do I need an account?

No. Clips made without an account are deleted after 30 days; sign in with Google to keep them.

Related

Try it with your own video

Paste a YouTube link at the top of this page. It takes less than a minute.

Paste a link to start