What are Vocabulary Questions Like on the TOEFL Test?

Improve your score with vocabulary

On the TOEFL test, you must know your English vocabulary. You will need a deep knowledge of English vocabulary for every section of the test: Listening, Reading, Speaking, and Writing. So, I’ve provided this lesson with an audio version and video version in addition to simply reading.

Listen to this English vocabulary lesson…

What are Vocabulary Questions Like on the TOEFL Test?

by Andrea Giordano

Watch this English vocabulary lesson…

What Do Vocabulary Questions Look Like in the TOEFL Test Reading Section?

You will be asked to identify the meaning to words and phrases from reading passages. There are a few different ways you will be tested on your vocabulary knowledge. Here is what vocabulary questions look like:

• The word “X” in the passage is closes in meaning to…


• The phrase “X” in the passage is closest in meaning to…


• In stating “X”, the author means that…

In those example questions, “X” represents the vocabulary word or phrase you are being tested on.

What Are Some Key Strategies for the TOEFL Reading section?

Here are 4 key strategies to knowing how to answer vocabulary questions:

#1 – Look at context clues

Look at the sentences around the word to help you identify the meaning of a single word. This is called looking for “context clues”. You want to notice what part of speech (i.e. noun, adjective, adverb, etc…) the word is. You will also want to notice what the general tone and topic is of the passage. If it’s a scientific topic, you won’t likely have a word with an informal meaning. If it’s a conversation about family, it’s probably won’t have a formal meaning.

#2 – Break long words into small pieces

Have you ever seen a word like “desertification”, and thought, “What in the world does that mean?!”? The good news is that long words can usually be divided into small parts.

Desert = Dry, hot place with lots of sand
ific = making into
tion = the act of

Desertification = The act of making something into a desert

It’s important to know the root words, suffixes, and prefixes. If you know those going into the TOEFL exam, you will be successful. Then, when you are in the test, just break big words into small pieces.

#3 – Eliminate answer options that are definitely wrong

If you cross out words that you know aren’t synonyms for the vocabulary word, you will only have left 2 or 3 likely answers. This increases your percentage chance that you will get the question correct.

#4 – Substitute answer options in the sentence to see which one sounds right

Once you have narrowed down your answer options to 2 or 3 responses, read the original sentence with each answer option. That will help you identify which answer is the correct one.

Let’s try an example here:

Passage excerpt: Emily issued a reciprocal invitation to lunch to be polite.

The word “reciprocal” is closest in meaning to

a. mutual
b. model
c. academic
d. specific

If I was not sure what reciprocal was, I would substitute each possible answer in the original sentence, like this:

a. Emily issued a mutual invitation to lunch to be polite.
b. Emily issued a model invitation to lunch to be polite.
c. Emily issued an academic invitation to lunch to be polite.
d. Emily issued a specific invitation to lunch to be polite.

Which of these sentences makes the most sense to you? Hopefully, you’ve chosen option “a”.

What is an easy way to learn TOEFL vocabulary quickly?

Enroll now in my TOEFL Advanced Vocabulary course! It gives you the high-scoring vocabulary that you need for the TOEFL test. Plus, you’ll get a PDF download and audio files so you can practice on the go!

Happy learning, 

Andrea 

About Andrea

Andrea Giordano is the founder of StudyWithAndrea.com and has taught more than 1,000,000 students from 180 countries. Andrea holds a Master of Education (TESOL) from Shenandoah University, and is the former Executive Director of TESOL and ESL programs at Campbellsville University. Andrea is a proven leader in online English teaching and is driven by her passion to help you speak English clearly.

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