What is on the listening section of the TOEFL Ibt?
During the test, the listening section will include 3-4 lectures, and 2-3 conversations.
The long form listening is 4 lectures and 3 conversations, while the short form is 3 lectures and 2 conversations. If you get the long form, one of the lectures and one of the conversations will not be scored.
Lectures have six questions, and conversations have five questions.
Each conversation is three or four minutes long, and attempts to include the elements of a typical conversation. For instance, one speaker might interrupt the other. There may also be verbal sounds such as “uhh.. or “umm….” From the speakers. Students may ask questions during the lectures. Professors may even digress and go off topic – for instance, they might mention something that happened in their personal lives. The goal of the listening is to sound like a natural conversation or lecture you would hear on a campus.
You can and SHOULD take notes. You will be given paper and several pencils. If you need more, raise your hand EARLY so that the proctor will have time to bring these items.
There are two types of conversations:
- Office hours. This simply means a student is visiting the professor during his or her “office hours,” the time professors give for students to come to them personally with any concerns or questions.
- Service encounters. This means a student is talking to a university employee; for example, a librarian, housing advisor, administrator, and so on.
Lectures are around five minutes long, and are meant to be a first-year, introductory lecture. Some lectures include questions asked by students. Some are only the professor talking. You do not need any background knowledge in the subject, although I find it sometimes is helpful.
Let’s go through the types of questions that are asked in the TOEFL listening section.
- GIST-PURPOSE QUESTIONS
Understanding the gist or purpose means the general topic of the lecture or conversation. This is ALMOST ALWAYS the first question. The question may look like this:
Why does the student go see the professor?
What is the main topic of the conversation?
Why does the student talk to the librarian?
Why does the professor explain Y?
Why does the student visit the admissions office?
…. And so on.
The answer to these questions can actually be quite difficult. Remember, in the conversation, it is NOT always what is mentioned first. Sometimes people exchange pleasantries when they first meet. Here is an example of what I mean. The student here is named Amber.
Please use this link to listen to the audio, although the audio script is also available below if you need it.
TOEFL Listening: Gist-Purpose Questions – YouTube
Professor: Hi Amber. Nice to see you. So how are you enjoying my class so far?
Amber: It’s pretty great! Actually, you have made me interested in plant biology. I’m so surprised… it was my least favorite subject in high school. But the way you teach is so dynamic…
Professor: Thanks! You know, even professors who have been doing this a long time love compliments.
Amber: Of course. Well professor, I don’t know if you remember…. But I didn’t do very well on the mid-term.
Professor: I don’t remember, actually… sorry. I have a lot of students this term. What happened?
Amber: I don’t know. I guess I was distracted… I thought I had done better on the mid-term, though. I was a little surprised when I saw my grade.
Professor: Okay, maybe not your best effort, Amber. But you’re in no danger of failing. You still have the final, plus the report due in two weeks.
Amber: I’m actually not worried about failing, professor…. I’m on a scholarship. It’s called the McKinley Scholarship of Excellence. I was offered it because I was one of the top students in my high school… I’m just finding college a bit more challenging.
Professor: Oh, I’ve heard of it! It pays your tuition, doesn’t it?
Amber: Yeah, which is great, but… well, I need an average of B+ in all my classes to keep it… so I was just wondering… is there any extra work I can do to raise my grade? I don’t know, maybe an extra report, or another oral presentation…
Professor: Well, normally I say no to these types of requests, but you may be in luck. My lab assistant, Anthony, has to go home to Chicago to help his grandmother. She’s been sick… but if you take his place, I’ll give you an A in the class. But it’s going to be a lot of work.
Amber: Wow, really? That’s amazing! What do you need me to do?
Professor: Meet me at the lab at eight am tomorrow, and I’ll tell you what your responsibilities will be.
Why does the student go to see the professor?
- To tell him about a scholarship she was offered
- To see if she can do extra work to boost her grade in the class
- To offer the professor a compliment on his teaching style
- To complain about her grade on the mid-term
The answer here is B. She says, “I was just wondering… is there any extra work I can do to raise my grade?” Note she doesn’t say this immediately. Many conversations include “warm ups,” or some chit-chat before they get to the point. Of course, this is not always the case and is only meant to be an example.
2. GIST-CONTENT QUESTIONS: These questions ask you to understand the gist of a lecture or conversation and your ability to recognize it as the topic. They may look like this:
What is the main topic of the lecture?
What is the woman’s problem?
What are the speakers mainly discussing?
What is the student trying to find out?
What is the lecture mainly about?
…. And so on.
Lectures, of course, can be trickier. I call the correct answer the “X FACTOR.” It sounds silly, but what I mean is that without X, there would be no lecture. That X is the right answer. Look for little clues throughout the lecture that show you what the main point is. Ask yourself, why is this lecture happening?
Here is the link to the YouTube video:
TOEFL Lecture: Gist-Content Questions – YouTube
Here is the audio script:
“A major symbol of American democracy, Mount Rushmore National Memorial, has stood over the Black Hills of South Dakota since it was finished in 1941. This enormous sculpture, carved out of a mountainside, depicts the faces of former presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln. It was designed by American sculptor Gutzon Borglum. He died before the memorial was actually finished and his son Lincoln took over… and incredibly, of the 400 workers involved in the carving of the images of the Presidents, no others died during the massive undertaking – unusual for any construction of the time, especially one involving dynamite and at very dangerous heights! As a matter of fact, these workers even had to climb a mountain to get to work, but then this was during America’s Great Depression, a time when people were just thankful to have jobs. Many people were struggling to put food on the table, to feed their families…. which may explain why they accepted such dangerous work—rather than a sense of national pride. Ninety percent of the rock removed from the mountain was blown away using dynamite. The powdermen in charge of the explosives set off a variety of charges in specific locations in order blast away certain portions of rock. Try to imagine how dangerous this work must have been!
So that’s the main structural sculpting taken care of… now, let’s discuss the actual carving of the mountain. Men were lowered down in front of the 152-metre rock face in bosun’s chairs, using thick steel cable. At the top of the mountain, men in winch houses controlled and lowered the cables manually. If they winched too quickly, the workers in the bosun’s chairs would be injured, and so “call boys” whose job it was to watch the men and call out instructions– were employed to sit on the mountain’s edge and shout directions to the winch men. To sculpt the last six inches of stone, drillers and carving assistants used jackhammers and a technique called honeycombing. They bored holes very close together. This weakened the hard granite so that it could be finished off by hand — and then the Presidents’ faces were smoothed off using tools that could cut more precisely. Today, more than 2 million people visit this monument annually, and it’s often called “The Shrine of Democracy.”
What is the main topic of the lecture?
- To explain why people accepted dangerous work during the Great Depression
- To explain why the Black Hills was chosen as a location for the monument
- To explain how Mount Rushmore was created
- To illustrate the dangers workers faced while creating Mount Rushmore
The answer is C. Think about it: The professor spends most of her time explaining the steps in creating Mount Rushmore. Every other answer choice is a detail or not mentioned.
3. DETAIL QUESTIONS. These types of questions ask you to recall a detail of something that was mentioned in the conversation or lecture. In my opinion, these are the questions in which you must rely on good note-taking. These questions look like this:
What is (Y)?
According to the professor, how does (A) affect (B)?
What doubts do scientists have about (X)?
What is the main problem with (A)?
What does the student say about (A)?
What is the challenge with (B)?
As you can see, detail questions come in many forms. The important thing to note is that the details are often an elaboration or support of the main point.
Let’s look at an example.
Please go to this link to listen to the conversation. An audio script is also provided below.
TOEFL Listening: Detail Questions – YouTube
Student: Hi, is this the housing office?
Employee: Yes, it is. How can I help you?
Student: It’s my dorm room. It’s REALLY cold. I can’t even sleep at night, or get any studying done.
Employee: Really? This is the first time I’m hearing about any trouble with temperatures in the rooms… say, is it only your room? Does anyone else have this problem?
Student: No, it’s only our room. Our heater is broken. It’s been so cold, I’ve been sleeping at my cousin’s house. Luckily for me, she lives in the city, and has a couch in her living room I’ve been staying on. But I’m paying for my dorm room, and I’d rather stay here.
Employee: Of course. I didn’t know this was a problem. What does your roommate say?
Student: It doesn’t bother her. She has extra blankets that she brought from home. So, she’s been able to sleep alright. She also has a small space heater, but it’s super small…. so the heat doesn’t really reach my side of the room.
Employee: Okay, I can see this is a problem. Why don’t you fill out this form—it’s a request for repairs. Then I’ll give you the fax number, and you can fax it over to the repairs office. They are usually pretty responsive. The fax machine is right over there. You’ll need your student identification number, and of course, the number of your dorm room in order to fill out the form.
Student: Thanks! So do you think they’ll come and look at it soon?
Employee: I’ll email them and let them know that your request is urgent. That way they should respond within twenty-four hours.
Student: Thanks. I really just can’t stand how cold it is in there right now.
Employee: I understand. Hopefully this will solve the problem.
What has the woman been doing to deal with her problem?
- Sleeping with extra blankets
- Staying with a family member
- Using a space heater
- Sleeping in another dorm room
What does the employee offer to do to help the woman?
- Fax a form to the repairs office
- Call the repairs office and tell them the request is urgent
- Fill out a form to request repairs
- Send an email to the repairs office
The answer is to the first question is B. If you review the transcript, you will see that A and C are solutions her ROOMMATE has been using to deal with the problem. D is not mentioned.
For the second question, the answer is D. He tells the woman she needs to fill out the form and fax it, but he does offer to send an email. B is a trap answer, which is typical. He doesn’t offer to call and tell them it’s urgent, he will email them to tell them this. It’s the wrong verb—keep your eye on verbs! Do not be tricked by repetition of words such as “urgent.”
Here is an except from a lecture. Please watch the YouTube video. The audio script is also available below.
TOEFL Listening: Detail and Inference Questions – YouTube
“Today, we are going to talk about the famous poem, ‘The Raven’ by Edgar Allan Poe. When it was first published in 1845, Poe had no idea that hundreds of years after his death, it was destined to become an American classic. His poetry gained little popularity during his lifetime, but ‘The Raven’ was an exception- it did gain a lot of attention and acclaim among his contemporaries. The poem is told by a first-person narrator, a man who lives alone. The poem itself includes a supernatural talking raven—a giant, black bird—that visits this man who is alone in his chambers at night.
The poem begins when the man, sitting alone reading, hears a knock on his window, and he opens it to find a raven. This raven flies into his room and sits on a sculpture he has just above his doorway. As the man continually asks the bird its name, it simply repeats, “Nevermore.” As the man struggles to get answers from the bird about his lost love Lenore, or about the afterlife, the bird simply repeats the word. In the end, the man is left alone, with the constant shadow of the raven casting him into darkness, and we can assume, madness.
The raven itself is a symbol of grief and loss. The narrator has recently lost his lover, the woman he named ‘Lenore.’ The poem does not explain how the loss came about, but we can assume she has passed away, as the man asks the raven about the afterlife several times.
To write the poem, Poe may have been inspired by ravens of ancient mythology and folklore. In Norse mythology, the god Odin owned two ravens that represented thought and memory. In Hebrew folklore, Noah sends a white raven to check if land is nearby while commanding his ark. The raven does not immediately return with news of land, and is punished by being turned black and forced to eat rotten meat for the rest of its life. Or perhaps Poe was inspired by Ovid’s story Metamorphoses, in which a raven is born white before the god Apollo punishes it by turning it black for bringing Apollo the news of his lover’s betrayal. Whatever story influenced Poe’s poetry; we may never know. And despite some initial criticism of the poem, it has been repeated, illustrated, and parodied hundreds of times.
“The Raven” is now one of the most well-known, popular poems in the world. I suggest you read it… if you have never read it. It’s personally one of my favorite pieces of contemporary American writing.”
Here are two detail questions:
How was “The Raven” different from other poems that Poe wrote?
- It was quite a bit longer
- It had darker themes
- It was widely criticized
- It gained popularity during Poe’s life
What does the raven in the poem represent?
- The grief and heartache over a loss
- The romantic relationship with Lenore
- A form of companionship for the narrator
- The motives of the supernatural elements in the poem
The answer to the first question is D. The answer to the second question is A. Review the transcript for these answers if you got them wrong.
4. FUNCTION QUESTIONS
Sometimes, people do not say what they mean directly. They may use a tone of voice or choose certain words to communicate a message. For instance, imagine a student is very busy studying for exams, and a friend of his asks him for help moving some boxes. He might reply, “Sorry, I’m swamped.” Swamped means very busy. Although he doesn’t directly refuse to help, we can logically infer he doesn’t have time to help his friend.
Imagine another situation. A student says to his professor, “I’m sorry professor. I still haven’t finished the outline for my paper.. I’ve had a lot going on in my personal life.” Then the professor replies, “I’ve given you two weeks.” When she says “two weeks” her tone sounds a bit annoyed. You can infer that the professor thinks she has given the student plenty of time to complete the outline.
These types of questions usually have a portion of the audio that is replayed, then you answer the question. These can be tricky because you often have to recall the context in which the comment was made.
These questions might look something like this:
Why does the professor say this? (a part of the audio will be replayed)
What does the professor mean by this? (a part of the audio will be replayed)
What does the student imply when he says this? (a part of the audio will be replayed.)
Please go to this link. The audio script is also provided below.
TOEFL Listening: Function and Attitude Questions – YouTube
Here is an example. This is a conversation between a student and the manager of the dining hall.
Female Student: Hi, I’m Jennifer Swanson.
Manager: Nice to meet you, Jennifer. You said on the phone a few days ago you were looking for a part-time job here in the dining hall.
Female Student: Yes, you had mentioned that there was an opening for a cashier?
Manager: There was one… but I hired someone for that position this morning. I’m sorry you missed it.
Female Student: Oh, no REALLY? You see, I really need a job. I have to cover a lot of expenses. And I’m a hard worker.
Manager: No kidding! I’ve had a look at your resume. It looks like you’ve been working steadily since you were in high school… you have been a nanny and a waitress– and the classes you are taking! Everything from American history, to zoology, to economics… say, how do you manage with such a heavy class load?
Female Student: Pretty well, actually. Although I admit, I don’t go out a lot on weekends. And if I do get a job, I might have to drop at least one class.
Manager: Well, I’m sorry it didn’t work out here, but you know, I heard the bookstore is also looking for a cashier…. someone who can work evenings.
Female Student: I could do that! I love being around books. My friend worked there last semester, and she said the hours were pretty flexible.
Manager: Well…. I don’t know the details… it’s possible she’s right. The best thing you can do is… Why don’t you go over and talk to them… Ask for John, he’s the hiring manager. Tell him I sent you. Have him take a look at your resume. I’m sure he will be impressed.
Female Student: Thanks!
Here is a function question:
Why does the man say this?
“No kidding!”
- He thinks the woman is joking
- He wants to turn to a more serious matter
- He agrees with the woman
- He doesn’t think the woman understands his point
The answer is C. Right before, the woman said “I’m a hard worker.” The man responds with “No kidding!” indicating his agreement, and then he goes on to even list all the things she is involved in, which includes her work history and many classes she is taking.
5. UNDERSTANDING ATTITUDE The fifth type of questions are those that ask us to understand the speaker’s attitude, opinion, or feelings about something. You may be asked about how the speaker feels or the reason for the feeling. There may even be sarcasm on the TOEFL (which ETS calls “irony.”) Irony is when our words are the opposite of how we really feel.
For example, imagine this conversation:
Female Student: I just got my class schedule for the semester.
Male Student.: Who is your advisor?
Female Student: Looks like…. Tony Anderson?
Male Student: Geez… lucky you!
Female Student: What do you mean?
Male Student: I had him last year. He’s totally disorganized. He even lost some of my paperwork! And he couldn’t even advise me about which classes to take!
If we look at the conversation, when the man says, “lucky you!” he is being sarcastic. From his later comments you know he doesn’t think the woman is lucky at all—this advisor was not helpful for him.
These question looks like this:
How does the woman feel about (X)?
What can be inferred about the professor’s attitude towards (Y)?
What does the man mean when he says this?
What is the advisor’s attitude about (Y)?
… and so on.
Review the earlier conversation again: (or listen to the YouTube video again)
TOEFL Listening: Function and Attitude Questions – YouTube
Here is an example. This is a conversation between a student and the manager of the dining hall.
Female Student: Hi, I’m Jennifer Swanson.
Manager: Nice to meet you, Jennifer. You said on the phone a few days ago you were looking for a part-time job here in the dining hall.
Female Student: Yes, you had mentioned that there was an opening for a cashier?
Manager: There was one… but I hired someone for that position this morning. I’m sorry you missed it.
Female Student: Oh, no REALLY? You see, I really need a job. I have to cover a lot of expenses. And I’m a hard worker.
Manager: No kidding! I’ve had a look at your resume. It looks like you’ve been working steadily since you were in high school… you have been a nanny and a waitress– and the classes you are taking! Everything from American history, to zoology, to economics… say, how do you manage with such a heavy class load?
Female Student: Pretty well, actually. Although I admit, I don’t go out a lot on weekends. And if I do get a job, I might have to drop at least one class.
Manager: Well, I’m sorry it didn’t work out here, but you know, I heard the bookstore is also looking for a cashier.. someone who can work evenings.
Female Student: I could do that! I love being around books. My friend worked there last semester, and she said the hours were pretty flexible.
Manager: Well… I don’t know the details… it’s possible she’s right. The best thing you can do is… Why don’t you go over and talk to them… Ask for John, he’s the hiring manager. Tell him I sent you. Have him take a look at your resume. I’m sure he will be impressed.
Female Student: Thanks!
What is the man’s attitude towards the woman’s schedule?
- He thinks she does not have time for a job
- He thinks she should drop some classes
- He thinks she should take more classes related to her major
- He thinks it indicates she is a very hard worker
What is the woman’s attitude towards the job in the dining hall?
- She thinks she does not have time for it in her schedule
- She thinks it will be easier than other jobs she has done in the past
- She is disappointed it is no longer available
- She thinks it will be a good fit because it has flexible hours
The first answer is D. The second answer is C. She says, “Oh no, REALLY? When she finds out it is no longer available. The other answer choices are traps from other parts of the conversation.
6. ORGANIZATION QUESTIONS These questions ask about how questions on the TOEFL are ORGANIZED.
ETS considers these types of questions Organization questions:
How is the lecture organized?
How does the professor organize the information in the lecture?
Why does the professor mention (X)?
Why does the student mention (Y)?
Here is an example of a lecture in a history class. She is talking about the Revolutionary War. Please click the YouTube link. The audio script is also below.
TOEFL Listening: Organization Questions – YouTube
“Have you ever heard someone call someone else a ‘Benedict Arnold?’ Well, that was the name of a real person… whose name is now synonymous with treachery and betrayal. Born in Connecticut in 1741, Arnold was a general in the Revolutionary War, when America was fighting for its independence from Britain. In fact, Arnold was good friends with George Washington, who he met in 1775. As you all know, Washington was our first President—so that shows you how close Arnold was to the war effort, doesn’t it? At the time, Washington had just taken command of the newly formed Continental Army in Boston. Arnold showed incredible leadership skills when he took control of a key fort in 1775, so Washington decided to ask Arnold to lead a charge of soldiers into Canada to take Quebec City and bring that province into the rebellion. Arnold did so with enthusiasm, but suffered a serious wound on the last day of in a failed attempt to capture that city. Benedict Arnold went on to fight successfully in 1776 in keeping the British from invading the colonies through the Lake Champlain region, and his greatest victory was in Saratoga in 1777, which led to the French coming into the war as America’s first and most important allies. Washington thought of Arnold as a “fighting general,” and supported him as much as he could up to the time of Benedict Arnold’s defection to the British. So why did Arnold decide to switch to the British side and betray his friends and fellow soldiers? His bitterness about being ignored, passed over for promotions, and relegated to military commander of a city instead of a group of soldiers had made him furious, and he had been fuming about it for years. He married his wife Peggy in 1779. Arnold purchased Mount Pleasant that same year, a large manor home. The couple did not live at Mount Pleasant, however, but rented it out for the income. Now, the plot thickens! You see, Peggy was a British loyalist and had contacts within the British Army, and she offered to share them with her new husband. At first, he did not know whether to take her suggestion to defect seriously- after all, what she suggesting was to betray both the cause he had been fighting for and his good friend Washington… but over time she persuaded him to speak to her connections. Eventually, Arnold decided to change sides, and by 1780 he was officially fighting as a British soldier. In return, the British made him a brigadier general, a position with some power and influence, but he wasn’t paid as much has he had expected.
When the Revolutionary War was over, he moved to Canada to run a merchant business with his sons Richard and Henry. He was extremely unpopular in Canada, so he moved to London permanently in 1791, where he died ten years later. Now, his legacy is tarnished by his treachery. So, if anyone calls you a “Benedict Arnold,” now you know it’s not a compliment.”
How does the professor organize the information in the lecture?
- By comparing Benedict Arnold to George Washington
- By highlighting key victories in Benedict Arnold’s life
- By contrasting Benedict Arnold with other soldiers in the Revolutionary War
- By telling events of Benedict Arnold’s life in the order they occurred
Why does the professor say this, “Now, the plot thickens!”
- She is about to tell a personal story
- She wants to see if the students understand his point
- She is about to tell the students important information
- She is concerned the students might be bored by the lecture
Why does the professor mention Benedict Arnold’s wife Peggy?
- To note the impact his marriage had on his relationship with George Washington
- To explain how Arnold got into contact with the British
- To compare Arnold’s life events to Washington’s
- To explain why Arnold moved to Mount Pleasant
For the first question, D is correct. For the second question, C is correct. (The second question is actually a function question, but I put it in for my own amusement. I like the expression and it’s a good one to know.) The answer to the third question is B.
7. CONNECTING CONTENT QUESTIONS
These measure your ability to understand the relationships of points in the lecture. They may be stated directly or implied. You must listen carefully. Sometimes, you might be asked to organize information in a chart or classify items in categories. You may even have to put events in a sequence (the order in which they occurred.)
Here is a fun one. It isn’t nearly as challenging as a real lecture, I just included it to give you a break from the usual lectures! It’s originally from my book, which you can purchase here. (My book, however, is about the Reading.)
https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Reading-Section-TOEFL-iBT-ebook/dp/B08742XGJS
This lecture is from a biology class:
TOEFL Listening: Connecting Content – YouTube
“Cats and dogs are both carnivorous animals and are the most popular house pets in the world, and you can imagine why! They’re both fun for different reasons, and appeal to different lifestyles of their owners. Cats require less maintenance than dogs and prefer to be the solitary animal in the house. Dogs take a lot more work– for instance, dogs need daily walks and demand a lot of attention. On the other hand, cats have no difficulty being left alone, even overnight. In addition, cats require very little grooming, as they spend a good part of their day grooming themselves. Cats cost less, on average, both in veterinary bills and food costs. But– the ability to learn language is one of the most appealing characteristics of dogs. They can learn commands that are strung together, even without intensive training. Cats generally respond only to their names and the tone of voice of their owners. Cats enjoy games that engage their hunting instincts. Their favorite games include chasing balls across the floor or attacking a toy mouse. Dogs like simple games that consist of jumping, catching, and chasing. Dogs play “fetch” in which they retrieve an object their owner has thrown, and they are also fond of the game “tug-of-war.”
What are the characteristics these animals have? Place a check mark in the correct box.
