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Shadowing practice: WHAT DOES THE WORD 'DOGMA' MEAN? - English words and phrases (vertical) #englishaddictwithmrduncan

Listen to the line, then say it out loud
Line 1

Full transcript

  1. Here's an interesting word that I've heard used recently by one or two political commentators.0:00
  2. The word is dogma.0:09
  3. Oh, Mr Duncan, does it have anything to do with dogs?0:11
  4. Well I can safely say the word dogma has nothing to do with dogs whatsoever.0:15
  5. Dogma is a noun.0:25
  6. It is an official system of principles or tenets concerning faith, morals, behavior, and so on.0:27
  7. For example, those of the church.0:37
  8. So we often see dogma as maybe a set of rules or principles that are put forward by a certain group or organization.0:41
  9. Dogma, quite often something that is accepted as being part of that particular thing.0:54
  10. Normally in the form of rules, things that have been laid down as rules, we might also say it is prescribed doctrine, proclaimed as unquestionably true by a particular group.1:03
  11. So again, when we look at dogma, we are talking about rules, things that are put forward.1:24
  12. Also, it is something that generally is accepted by a group of people as well.1:31
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  1. A settled or established opinion, belief or principle is often referred to as dogma.1:43
  2. Interestingly enough.1:52
  3. Interestingly enough.1:56
  4. Nothing to do with dogs is not amazing.2:01
  5. Dogmatic is the adjective form of the word.2:04
  6. So if you are holding dogma as one's belief or direction, we can say that person is dogmatic.2:09
  7. They will often follow rules or principles as their guide in life.2:18
  8. And this of course can refer to many things, not only religion, but it can be anyone's principles, any thing or their direction, the direction of a person, how they2:25
  9. see themselves and the rules that bind their existence or life.2:41
  10. So it can also exist, I suppose, in politics as well.2:48
  11. You can have dogma in politics.2:52
  12. A person can be dogmatic with their principles.2:56
  13. And the word originates, by the way, for those wondering.3:04
  14. The word dogma originates from Greek to mean what seems good or the way to think.3:10
  15. So dogma itself is just way of thinking.3:19
  16. What appears to be the best way to think, and that is how that particular word evolved over the year.3:24
  17. So there it is today's interesting word, dogma.3:34
  18. And as I said, it has absolutely nothing, nothing at all to do with dogs.3:37

British english pronunciation practice on Mr Duncan explaining the word dogma

This is british english pronunciation practice on a single word. Mr Duncan announces a word he has heard from political commentators, denies that it has anything to do with dogs, and then defines it for thirty lines. There is no scene and no second voice. One native speaker, one topic, camera straight on.

The pace is 111 words per minute, slower than most of the catalogue, and the delivery is a teacher's delivery. He pauses at his commas, restates the same idea in fresh words, and lands the key term at the end of the sentence. The vocabulary is B2 and heavier than the speed suggests: tenets, doctrine, prescribed, unquestionably, proclaimed. That mismatch is what makes the clip useful. The words are difficult, the tempo is not, so you can attempt sentences that would normally outrun you. It works as english listening practice as well, because half the job is hearing where his voice drops before he starts the thought again.

Dogma, dogmatic and doctrine: shadowing english speaking practice b2 on definition sentences

The value here for shadowing english speaking practice b2 is the shape of a definition said out loud. Three lines carry most of it.

  • "The word is dogma." Four words and a full stop. Say it as one falling line, with the weight on the first syllable, DOG-ma, and almost nothing on the or is. Get that vowel right and every later line is easier.
  • "Oh, Mr Duncan, does it have anything to do with dogs?" Here he plays the imagined student, so the voice lifts and stays light. The middle of the question is squeezed: does it have anything to do with runs fast and flat, and only dogs is given room. Give every word equal time and you will sound nothing like him.
  • "prescribed doctrine, proclaimed as unquestionably true by a particular group" Four heavy words in a row, the hardest few seconds in the recording. Find the stressed syllable before you open your mouth: presCRIBED, DOCtrine, proCLAIMED, unQUEStionably. The British vowels are audible here, particularly in doctrine, where the second syllable is barely pronounced at all.

How to shadow this line by line, from the dog joke to the Greek origin

Shadow this line before anything else, then build outwards from it. The order below follows the recording and takes about ten minutes.

Five lines done properly is a session. Practise english speaking on the ones that scored red, not on the ones that felt good, and come back to the same six tomorrow rather than opening a new clip.

  • Play "The word is dogma." three times, then say it three times with the audio off. It is two seconds of work and it fixes the sound you will repeat all session.
  • Move to "Oh, Mr Duncan, does it have anything to do with dogs?" and copy the tone, not only the words. It is the one question in the clip, so it is the one place your pitch has to rise.
  • Take "Well I can safely say the word dogma has nothing to do with dogs whatsoever." in two halves, splitting after say. Repeat each half until it scores clean, then run the whole sentence once.
  • Use "Interestingly enough." as a rest between the hard lines. He says it twice in a row, so the second attempt is already waiting for you.
  • Attempt the definition line about principles or tenets last. By then your mouth knows the rhythm and the long words are the only new thing.
  • Finish on "it has absolutely nothing, nothing at all to do with dogs" and listen to how the repeated word changes weight the second time. That is the line to record and keep.
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