TOEFL prep questions, short and accurate answers

Short answers to common TOEFL prep questions, based on information ETS has published. The preparation article also describes how Unlock Prep analyzes items and responses, and says clearly that this part is not ETS material. Each article lists the addresses of its ETS sources.

The 2026 TOEFL iBT four sections: what ETS has and has not disclosed
For the four 2026 TOEFL iBT sections, ETS has disclosed task names, question counts, timing, maximum points per question, scoring methods, whether a section is adaptive, and how raw scores convert to the 1 to 6 bands. It has not published the conversion table built for each test form or the score that decides which second module you get.
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How to prepare for the 2026 TOEFL iBT
How to prepare for the 2026 TOEFL iBT: learn the new structure and the 1 to 6 score scale, find your weak task types with a diagnostic, practice those types, and measure again. The updated test has used four sections with new tasks since January 2026, and score reports have used the 1 to 6 scale since January 21, 2026.
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How to choose a TOEFL mock test for the 2026 TOEFL iBT
Choose a TOEFL mock test on five criteria: the 2026 update, on-screen timing, scoring and feedback, weakness diagnosis, and a published price. Start with ETS's TOEFL TestReady and Practice Test, then practice with Unlock Prep's 15 TOEFL mock tests, built by Hyukjoon Kwon, Lead TOEFL Instructor at Pagoda Academy, and Robson (Park Taehwan), Lead TOEFL Instructor at YBM Gangnam.
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How do TOEFL 1 to 6 scores compare with 0 to 120 scores?
Since January 21, 2026, TOEFL iBT reports give four section scores and an overall score from 1 to 6 in half-point steps. The overall score is the section average rounded to the nearest half band. For two years, reports also show a comparable 0 to 120 total; in the ETS table, 6 is 114+ and 4 is 72+.
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How do I prepare for the three new TOEFL Writing tasks?
The updated 2026 TOEFL Writing section has three tasks: Build a Sentence, Write an Email, and Write for an Academic Discussion. Build a Sentence has you arrange words or phrases into a grammatical sentence or question. The other two have you write an email and an online class discussion post. Each measures a different skill, so practice them separately.
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How do I prepare for TOEFL Speaking: Listen and Repeat and Take an Interview?
The updated 2026 TOEFL Speaking section has two tasks: Listen and Repeat and Take an Interview. In Listen and Repeat you hear short sentences and repeat them exactly. In Take an Interview you answer questions about your experiences and opinions in a simulated academic or campus interview. Every item in both tasks is worth up to 5 points.
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What TOEFL score do I need?
The institution you apply to sets the TOEFL score you need; ETS and the TOEFL Program set no passing or failing scores. Some institutions still list 0 to 120 requirements, but for two years your score report shows both 1 to 6 scores and a comparable 0 to 120 total, so compare that total with the requirement.
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TOEFL Build a Sentence: which grammar spots cost points?
On TOEFL Build a Sentence, in our view, points are lost where a wrong order also looks plausible: indirect question word order and the auxiliary's position in questions. ETS's "TOEFL iBT Test: 2026 Update Test Blueprint and Specifications Document" (the Specifications Document) lists the task as 10 items, up to 1 point each (no publication date, checked 2026-10-30).
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How long is the 2026 TOEFL iBT?
Plan on about 2 hours for the 2026 TOEFL iBT. The ETS page "TOEFL iBT Test Content" (no publication date, checked 2026-10-30) says the base time for each section does not include time for directions, and it tells test takers to allow about 2 hours to finish the test.
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What do you do if you miss the first TOEFL Listen and Repeat sentence?
If you miss the first of seven TOEFL Listen and Repeat sentences, our view is to say only what you heard while time remains, then listen from the second sentence's first word. ETS's "TOEFL iBT Test: 2026 Update Test Blueprint and Specifications Document" (the Specifications Document, no publication date, checked 2026-10-30) counts seven items, each up to 5 points.
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How do I practice TOEFL Complete the Words?
We recommend this order for TOEFL Complete the Words: choose each word from context, match its part of speech and form to nearby grammar, then spell the rest in full. Page 29 Table 1 of ETS "TOEFL iBT Technical Manual" (ETS Research Report RR-25-12, 2025-10, checked 2026-10-30) lists 20 of 35 scored Reading items per path as this task.
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How do I prepare for TOEFL Read in Daily Life and Read an Academic Passage?
In TOEFL Reading, Read in Daily Life has two or three multiple-choice questions on an everyday text of about 15 to 150 words; Read an Academic Passage has five questions on an explanatory passage of about 200 words. We suggest practicing the first by matching conditions in tables and notices, and the second by reading sentence relations and purpose.
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How do I prepare for the four TOEFL Listening tasks?
TOEFL Listening has four tasks and, according to the ETS Test Overview, 47 questions, which may include unscored questions. Each recording plays only once. Our view: prepare by practicing each task with a single listen, aiming at the abilities ETS says that task measures.
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How do I prepare for TOEFL Write for an Academic Discussion?
Practice taking one position that answers the professor's question within 10 minutes and supporting it with explanations and examples in your own words. The ETS "Updated TOEFL iBT Test Overview" (the Test Overview, no publication date, checked 2026-10-30) describes the 2 to 5 point levels in three lines: development, sentence structure and vocabulary, and errors.
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Where do you lose points on TOEFL Write an Email?
TOEFL Write an Email scores split on the four lines in the 5 and 4 rows of the 0 to 5 scoring guide: development that supports the purpose, sentences and vocabulary, social conventions, and errors. The ETS "Writing Scoring Guide" (checked 2026-10-30) describes typical 5 and 4 answers with these lines; from 3 down, the lines change.
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What should you look for in TOEFL Writing AI feedback?
In TOEFL Writing AI feedback, look past the score number and check whether the reason given for each sentence's lost points ties to an ability ETS says that task measures. The ETS Writing page (checked 2026-10-30) says scoring focuses on how clearly and effectively you communicate your ideas, not on a flawless first draft.
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TOEFL Take an Interview: can I use a template?
Unlock Prep's (unlockprep.com) position on templates for TOEFL Take an Interview is: "Use a framework if you like, but the wording should be your own. Memorized sentences that do not fit the task can lose points."
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TOEFL adaptive testing: can your score be low after an upper module?
On the adaptive TOEFL, your total score (1 to 6 band) can be low even with Reading and Listening upper modules. ETS's "TOEFL iBT Technical Manual" (ETS Research Report RR-25-12, 2025-10) says both section scores come from equating, which puts different-difficulty forms on one scale, using correct answers in both modules and module difficulty (pages 28, 34, checked 2026-10-30).
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How closely do TOEFL mock test scores match real scores?
No published evidence from ETS or Unlock Prep (unlockprep.com) yet quantifies how closely TOEFL mock test scores match real scores. Even ETS's TOEFL iBT Practice Test 1 says on its cover that it is not an exact copy and its directions and items were adapted for paper (ETS Practice Test 1 PDF, no publication date, checked 2026-10-30).
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TOEFL score submission: should I send the 1 to 6 band or the 0 to 120 score?
Official score reports ETS sends to institutions show both the 1 to 6 band and the 0 to 120 comparable total, so you never choose. Reports from January 2026 to January 2028 carry the CEFR level, 1 to 6 total and section scores, and the comparable total (ETS "TOEFL iBT Score Scale 1 to 6", no publication date, checked 2026-10-30).
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When are TOEFL test dates, and how do I register?
TOEFL tests in Korea run mainly on Saturdays, with some Wednesdays and Sundays, and most start at 10 a.m. (ETS registration screen, checked 2026-11-02). You register in your ETS account by choosing a test center and a date. Regular registration closes 7 days before the test, and paid express registration closes 2 days before (ETS Information Bulletin, page 3).
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How much is the TOEFL test fee?
A TOEFL test at a test center in Korea costs US$232. You pay in dollars, so the won amount depends on that day's exchange rate and your card issuer's fees. Express registration (US$49), a date change (US$69) and each extra score report (US$29; the ETS scores page says US$25) cost more (ETS fee page, checked 2026-11-02).
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TOEFL Mock Test — 15 rounds for the 2026 TOEFL iBT

Compiled from information ETS has published, checked on November 3, 2026. Test policies can change, so please check the latest ETS information before you test.

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