TOEFL iBT Reading

This page focuses on the TOEFL iBT Reading section and the skills you need to score well on academic and everyday texts. Use the five modules below to practise the core question types: vocabulary in context, sentence meaning, explicit detail, inference and author purpose, and passage organisation. Each card links to a dedicated question bank so you can train one skill at a time and track improvement.

Owner: ETS Credential: TOEFL iBT Test Exam: TOEFL-iBT Approaches: predictive + agile/hybrid
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TOEFL-iBT Reading syllabus coverage (5 balanced modules)

Build reading competence for the TOEFL iBT Reading section by practising the exact skills that most questions require. The modules below move from word-level understanding to whole-passage synthesis, so you can improve both accuracy and speed.

  • Aligned to common TOEFL Reading question types: vocabulary in context, sentence simplification, detail, inference, and organisation
  • Includes both academic and daily-life reading skills, reflecting official Reading task types
  • Train evidence-finding and paraphrase recognition to reduce careless mistakes
  • Use this page as a module-by-module checklist before full mock tests

Use the Practice this section button on each card to open the question bank for that syllabus area in a new tab.

Academic Vocabulary and Lexical Interpretation

S01

What you will practice:

Build reliable vocabulary-in-context skills for academic passages: meaning, reference, morphology, and paraphrase selection.

  • Vocabulary in context: infer meaning from surrounding clues, examples, and contrasts
  • General academic vocabulary (e.g., derive, constrain, accumulate, infer, maintain)
  • Discipline-linked terms across common TOEFL topics (biology, geology, economics, anthropology, astronomy, history)
  • Polysemy: choose the correct meaning of a word with multiple senses in different contexts
  • Abstract nouns and academic register (phenomenon, framework, paradigm)
  • Academic collocations and set phrases (account for, pose a challenge, draw a conclusion)
  • Synonym and replacement choices: distinguish precise vs partial paraphrases
  • Word formation: prefixes, suffixes, roots, and word-family shifts
  • Reference words and phrases: pronouns and idea-level references (this, those, such systems)
Practice this section ↗

Tip: After topic practice, do mixed sets under time pressure and review missed questions immediately.

Sentence Meaning and Local Comprehension

S02

What you will practice:

Master complex sentence structures and local coherence: simplification, paraphrase recognition, and clause relationships.

  • Sentence simplification: reduce embedded clauses while preserving meaning
  • Maintain relationships (cause–effect, time sequence, contrast) while simplifying
  • Local paraphrase recognition: match reworded sentences without changing modifiers or logic
  • Immediate context interpretation using transitions (however, therefore, although)
  • Tracking local coherence across 1–3 sentences
  • Clause relationship cues: conditionals, contrasts, additions, sequences
  • Modality and hedging: may, might, likely, suggests, indicates
Practice this section ↗

Tip: After topic practice, do mixed sets under time pressure and review missed questions immediately.

Factual Information and Explicit Detail

S03

What you will practice:

Answer detail-based questions efficiently: locate evidence, handle EXCEPT items, and separate main ideas from supporting facts.

  • Detail questions: definitions, dates, locations, observations, process descriptions
  • Strategic scanning: find exact wording and evidence lines quickly
  • Negative factual questions (EXCEPT): identify what is not stated; avoid plausible distractors
  • Supporting examples: connect examples to the author’s claim
  • Distinguish main ideas from supporting data and illustrations
  • Classification and description: taxonomies, stages, system components, cause-driven descriptions
  • Evidence recognition: experimental results, measurements, historical records
Practice this section ↗

Tip: After topic practice, do mixed sets under time pressure and review missed questions immediately.

Inference, Author Purpose, and Logical Reasoning

S04

What you will practice:

Strengthen inferencing and rhetorical reasoning: implied meaning, purpose, function, and logical relationships.

  • Inference questions: draw logical conclusions from stated evidence
  • Author assumptions and implications: what must be true given the passage
  • Consequences and predictive reasoning: likely outcomes based on described mechanisms
  • Author purpose: why a detail appears (illustrate, contrast, support, introduce, challenge)
  • Rhetorical function: role of a sentence (background, evidence, limitation, hypothesis, conclusion)
  • Logical relationships: cause→effect, problem→solution, claim→evidence, theory→evaluation
Practice this section ↗

Tip: After topic practice, do mixed sets under time pressure and review missed questions immediately.

Passage Organization, Integration, and Global Understanding

S05

What you will practice:

Move from sentence-level understanding to whole-passage mastery: main idea, structure, cohesion, and summary skills.

  • Main idea identification: central thesis, overall purpose, topic sentence recognition
  • Paragraph function: introduction, development, counterargument, evidence block, conclusion
  • Text structure recognition: compare–contrast, cause–effect, problem–solution, historical development, theory–evaluation
  • Sentence insertion: cohesion, logical flow, referential continuity, topic progression
  • Prose summary: select core statements, eliminate minor details, preserve macro meaning
  • Table completion/category matching: classification, feature grouping, cause–outcome grouping (when present)
Practice this section ↗

Tip: After topic practice, do mixed sets under time pressure and review missed questions immediately.

FAQ

What does the TOEFL iBT Reading section measure?

It measures how well you understand and interpret academic and everyday English texts, including vocabulary, sentence meaning, explicit information, inference, and passage organisation.

What types of Reading tasks should I expect?

Official TOEFL iBT Reading includes multiple task types such as completing missing letters in short texts, reading everyday materials, and answering questions about academic passages.

How should I use the five modules on this page?

Study one module at a time. Learn the skill targets, then click Practice this section to open targeted question sets in a new tab. Rotate modules to balance accuracy (detail questions) and higher-order skills (inference and organisation).

What is the fastest way to improve Reading score?

Build vocabulary-in-context habits, practise sentence simplification, and train evidence-finding. Consistent timed practice with review of wrong answers is usually more effective than re-reading passages repeatedly.

Are the passages only about science?

No. TOEFL passages and reading materials can cover natural sciences, social sciences, arts, history, and daily-life contexts. Your strategy should work across topics, not depend on prior subject knowledge.