Walk through the updated 2025 TOEFL iBT exactly as it is in the official ETS overview. All four sections — Reading, Listening, Writing, Speaking — with real sample tasks, real scoring, and real rubrics. By the end of 90 minutes you will know what each task wants from you, what the examiner is scoring, and where to start your preparation.
The updated TOEFL iBT assesses the four language skills — reading, listening, writing, speaking — and gives universities a reliable picture of your English in academic and campus-life contexts. Tasks are drawn from textbooks, newspapers, websites, lectures, announcements, emails and online discussions — short but authentic.
The test takes under two hours in total. It can be taken at home or at a test centre. Official scores arrive within 72 hours.
Numbers and task types straight from the ETS overview table.
Short academic texts and everyday written sources — posters, menus, news, social media, schedules, invoices, emails. The questions check vocabulary, sentence-level form and overall comprehension.
Short spoken exchanges, full conversations, public announcements and academic talks. Speakers have accents from North America, the UK and Australia. The test checks both literal understanding and inference.
Three task types reproduce real-world writing situations: assembling cued sentences, drafting a polite email, and posting in an online academic discussion.
Comes last. Two task families: a controlled Listen and Repeat drill that measures pronunciation and rhythm, and a free Interview where you describe experiences and defend opinions.
16 essential exam-specific words. Tap each card to see the meaning and an example. We'll use these terms throughout the lesson.
Paragraph-length academic text (~70–100 words). After the intact first sentence, the second half of every second word is deleted. Restore the missing letters.
Fill in the missing letters in the paragraph below. The first sentence is given intact.
Short non-academic text (15–150 words) from everyday life — notice, advert, menu, email, receipt — followed by 2–3 multiple-choice questions.
Read the notice, then answer the question.
~200-word expository text from history, art, science, business, etc. Five multiple-choice questions on factual detail, vocabulary, inference, and rhetorical structure.
Very young children cannot recognize themselves in a mirror; they usually achieve this milestone around 18 months of age. The ability to recognize oneself in the mirror is considered to be a key component of self-awareness and consciousness for humans. But what about animals?
For many years, scientists have known that members of the great ape family could recognize themselves in mirrors. They measured this by the "mirror test," which involved putting a colored mark on an ape's body, and then showing the ape its reflection in a mirror. If the ape tried to remove the mark on its own body, the scientists knew that the ape was recognizing its reflection.
Apes are close relatives of humans, but in recent years, scientists have discovered that other animals also pass the "mirror test." Elephants and dolphins have shown signs of self-recognition. These, like apes, are highly intelligent animals. But in a more recent experiment, a type of fish called the cleaner fish tried to scrape a mark off its body when it saw itself in the mirror. This suggests that even less intelligent animals may possess more self-awareness than previously suspected.
You hear a short question or statement. You read four possible responses. Pick the most appropriate one — testing both literal and implied meaning.
You hear: "Didn't I just see you in the library an hour ago?"
A short conversation between two speakers. Listen for main idea, key details, inferred meaning and speaker purpose. Two questions follow.
Tap ▶ to listen. Try the question below first — only then open the script to verify.
Woman: Need anything from the supermarket?
Man: Huh? Aren't we getting ready to go see that play in a few minutes?
Woman: That's tomorrow.
Man: Oh. Wow, I'd forget my head if it wasn't screwed on… Guess I don't need to change my clothes after all.
Woman: So, you weren't planning to prepare dinner?
Man: No, but I can. What do you want?
Woman: Just something light and healthy. So, can you go shopping instead?
Man: Yeah, sure. How about salmon and salad? Want anything else?
Woman: No, that's good. Thanks!
Short academic-related announcement (~40–85 words) — classroom, event, schedule, rule. Questions test main idea, detail and speaker purpose.
Good afternoon, everyone. I am excited to inform you that Dr. Cynthia Palmer, a renowned expert in environmental science, will be giving a guest lecture next Monday at 2 P.M. in Waldman Auditorium. Dr. Palmer will discuss the latest advancements in sustainable energy solutions and their impact on global climate change. Due to her popularity and the high interest in her work, I highly recommend arriving early to secure a seat.
~100–250-word academic talk on art, history, science, business etc. Four questions on main and supporting ideas, organisation, inference, vocabulary.
Did you see that new thriller movie that came out last week? I did and loved it. The action, the plot twists… I was totally captivated. Time just flew by. Not a single thought occurred to me that was unrelated to the movie. What I experienced is what psychologists call hard fascination. Hard fascination means intense focus and concentration. Whether it's TV programs, video games… hard fascination is all too easy to come by in this modern world.
There's another type of fascination — soft fascination. There's still effortless attention, meaning that no special effort is required for you to stay focused, but there's still room for other thoughts. When I take a walk in the park and look at the flowers and trees, for example, I might be thinking in the back of my mind about my dinner plans.
Now, one thing to know is hard fascination causes mental fatigue. The mind is so intensely focused that it gets tired fast. What follows mental fatigue? You might find yourself easily distracted, irritable, and stressed. Soft fascination, in contrast, engages a different part of the brain — the DMN, or Default Mode Network, which soothes the mind and helps combat mental fatigue. So next time you feel like your mind is on overload, turn off the TV, put down your phone. Take a walk, or simply sit and stare at the clouds.
You see one intact sentence followed by a sentence with words in scrambled order. The two sentences form an exchange. Reorder the words to make a grammatical reply that fits the context.
A scenario in academic or social setting. Write a multi-sentence email that achieves a clear communicative goal — recommend, invite, propose, request. 7 minutes.
A new poetry magazine has asked its readers for submissions, and you decided to submit two of your poems. However, you had a problem using the online submission form, and you are not certain that your submissions were received.
Write an email to the editor. In your email:
To: editor@sunshinepoetrymagazine.com · Subject: Problem using submission form
Online class forum: a professor opens a topic and asks a question; two students reply with different positions; you add your own substantial response. 10 minutes · at least 100 words.
Volunteerism refers to the act of offering your time and service without financial compensation to benefit a community, organization, or cause. While many people volunteer mainly to help others, some institutions have mandatory volunteer programs. High schools are one example, where students may be required to complete a certain number of volunteer hours to graduate. What do you think? Should high school students be required to do volunteer work? Why or why not?
Yes, I think high schools should require volunteer hours because it helps students build a sense of civic responsibility. Many teenagers don't naturally think about helping others, and this requirement can introduce them to the idea that their time and effort can make a real difference in the lives of others.
I don't think volunteer hours should be required because many students already have limited free time. Some have part-time jobs or take care of younger siblings after school. Adding a mandatory volunteer requirement could create extra stress and make it harder for those students to balance their existing responsibilities.
You hear seven sentences in a scenario. You repeat each one exactly. Sentences get longer and more complex. 8–12 seconds per response. Mic drill below uses your browser's speech recognition — it shows you what was heard.
"You are learning to welcome visitors to the zoo. Listen to your manager and repeat what she says. Repeat only once."
Mic-drill works in Chrome / Edge. Allow microphone access on first record.
A simulated interview with a pre-recorded researcher. Four questions on factual/personal experience and opinion. 45 seconds per answer.
"You have agreed to take part in a research study about urban life. You will have a short online interview with a researcher. The researcher will ask you some questions."
Think back to the last time you visited a city in your country — a city that you didn't live in. Why did you travel to that city? What did you like about that city?
Cities affect people in different ways. Some people find cities dynamic and exciting. Others find that cities are overwhelming and drain them of energy. What kind of reaction do you have to cities? Why do you think you react in this way?
Some people believe that those who live in cities lead more interesting lives. They would argue, for example, that people who live in cities have more access to professional opportunities and interesting leisure activities. Do you agree that people who live in cities lead more interesting lives? Why or why not?
For some time now, researchers have been interested in whether green spaces, such as parks, make people who live in cities happier. Do you think that city governments should create more parks in urban areas to promote a general sense of happiness and life satisfaction? Why or why not?
How scoring works. Auto-tasks (MCQ, gap-fill, builder, mic-drill) count each correct as 1 point. Tutor-tasks (email, discussion, interview) — Maria fills the score 0–5 / 0–4 by rubric. The total maps to the band 1–6 and CEFR level by Table 2 from sec 15. Auto-saved. ↺ Reset progress button at bottom-right.
From 2025, TOEFL replaces the old 0–30 / 0–120 scale with a banded 1–6 scale aligned to CEFR. The overall score is the average of the four section bands.
| CEFR | Reading | Listening | Writing | Speaking | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C2 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| C1 | 5 – 5.5 | 5 – 5.5 | 5 – 5.5 | 5 – 5.5 | 5 – 5.5 |
| B2 | 4 – 4.5 | 4 – 4.5 | 4 – 4.5 | 4 – 4.5 | 4 – 4.5 |
| B1 | 3 – 3.5 | 3 – 3.5 | 3 – 3.5 | 3 – 3.5 | 3 – 3.5 |
| A2 | 2 – 2.5 | 2 – 2.5 | 2 – 2.5 | 2 – 2.5 | 2 – 2.5 |
| A1 | 1 – 1.5 | 1 – 1.5 | 1 – 1.5 | 1 – 1.5 | 1 – 1.5 |
| Band | R (0–30) | L (0–30) | W (0–30) | S (0–30) | Overall (0–120) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 29 – 30 | 28 – 30 | 29 – 30 | 28 – 30 | 114+ |
| 5.5 | 27 – 28 | 26 – 27 | 27 – 28 | 27 | 107+ |
| 5 | 24 – 26 | 22 – 25 | 24 – 26 | 25 – 26 | 95+ |
| 4.5 | 22 – 23 | 20 – 21 | 21 – 23 | 23 – 24 | 86+ |
| 4 | 18 – 21 | 17 – 19 | 17 – 20 | 20 – 22 | 72+ |
| 3.5 | 12 – 17 | 13 – 16 | 15 – 16 | 18 – 19 | 58+ |
| 3 | 6 – 11 | 9 – 12 | 13 – 14 | 16 – 17 | 44+ |
| 2.5 | 4 – 5 | 6 – 8 | 11 – 12 | 13 – 15 | 34+ |
| 2 | 3 | 4 – 5 | 7 – 10 | 10 – 12 | 24+ |
| 1.5 | 2 | 2 – 3 | 3 – 6 | 5 – 9 | 12+ |
| 1 | 0 – 1 | 0 – 1 | 0 – 2 | 0 – 4 | 0+ |
Both Write an Email and Write for an Academic Discussion are scored 0–5 with parallel rubrics. Here's what the examiner is looking for.
Effective, clearly expressed, consistent facility with language.
Mostly effective and easily understood. Adequate language facility.
Generally accomplishes the task. Limitations may prevent parts of the message from being fully clear.
Attempts the task but is mostly ineffective. Message limited or hard to interpret.
Ineffective attempt; message may be unintelligible.
Blank · rejects the topic · not in English · entirely copied from the prompt · arbitrary keystrokes.
Same 0–5 banding. A band-5 response shows relevant, well-elaborated explanations, exemplifications or details · effective syntactic variety · precise, idiomatic word choice. The discussion is judged on contribution to the forum, not on agreement with the professor.
Эта секция собрана по результатам прошедшей самостоятельной работы. Три маркерные конструкции, в которых чаще всего возникают ошибки в Past, плюс мини-карточки неправильных глаголов. Цель — автоматизация в продуктивной речи.
Наречие ago однозначно требует Past Simple. Сочетание ago + Present Perfect грамматически некорректно.
Союз while требует Past Continuous (was / were + V-ing) для длительного фонового действия. Прерывающее действие — Past Simple.
Если контекст описывает завершённый отрезок прошлого («когда я был студентом», «в школе я…»), используется Past Simple, а не Present.
Карточная отработка форм V2 / V3. Прорабатывать ежедневно 8–10 минут до устойчивого автоматизма.
| V1 · base | V2 · Past Simple | V3 · Past Participle |
|---|---|---|
| meet | met | met |
| find | found | found |
| leave | left | left |
| bring | brought | brought |
| teach | taught | taught |
| think | thought | thought |
| choose | chose | chosen |
| break | broke | broken |
| build | built | built |
| catch | caught | caught |
| cost | cost | cost |
| hold | held | held |
| speak | spoke | spoken |
| drive | drove | driven |
| write | wrote | written |
| take | took | taken |
| give | gave | given |
| begin | began | begun |
| become | became | become |
| grow | grew | grown |
told требует прямое дополнение (told me / told him); said используется без дополнения или с to (said to me, said it).
Три функции -ing: (a) gerund — V-ing работает как существительное (Reading is fun); (b) participle — V-ing в роли причастия (the man reading the book); (c) continuous — V-ing в составе времени (is reading).
Шесть предложений в смешанном порядке. Определи: Past Simple · Past Continuous · Past Perfect.
Прочитай определение и впиши слово. Без вариантов. Это зона воспроизведения без опор.
Длинные предложения с придаточными who / which / that. Структура: [N] + [who/which + V + …] + V + [complement]. Подбери правильный порядок мысленно, затем нажми «Show answer».
Деловой регистр — фразы, которые ожидают на IELTS Writing Task 1 (General Letter) и в деловой переписке.