TOEFL Reading Question Types with Examples

The TOEFL comprehension passages are based on purpose and factual information questions TOEFL. The correct answer will be stated in the text, often in just one or two sentences.

Here are few TOEFL reading types of questions and how to answer these types of questions in TOEFL reading is given mentioned below to help you in achieving better TOEFL reading scores:

TOEFL Reading – Vocabulary Question

The first TOEFL reading section question types include the TOEFL reading vocabulary questions. The TOEFL reading vocabulary questions are designed to test your knowledge of words or phrases that are commonly used in academic or non-academic contexts. Each Vocabulary item consists of a sentence with 1 word or phrase highlighted. A strong and enhanced vocabulary is needed to answer this question without reading the passage.

Example Vocabulary Question:

It is difficult to get young people to plan for their old age, which seems very distant to them.

1. impossible
2. far away
3. observable
4. fearful

TOEFL Reading – Purpose Question

The TOEFL reading purpose questions will test your ability to understand why a certain idea or argument has been used in the text. They will ask you to draw conclusions about the information that has been stated in the passage. You need to locate the paragraph and read briefly to get the purpose.

Example Purpose Question:

If true, though, why did cold-blooded animals such as snakes, lizards, turtles, and crocodiles survive the freezing winters and torrid summers? These animals are at the mercy of the climate to maintain a livable body temperature. It’s hard to understand why they would not be affected, whereas dinosaurs were left too crippled to cope, especially if, as some scientists believe, dinosaurs were warm-blooded. Critics also point out that the shallow seaways had retreated from and advanced on the continents numerous times during the Mesozoic, so why did the dinosaurs survive the climatic changes associated with the earlier fluctuations but not with this one? Although initially appealing, the hypothesis of a simple climatic change related to sea levels is insufficient to explain all the data.

Why does the author mention the survival of “snakes, lizards, turtles, and crocodiles” in paragraph 3?

1. To argue that dinosaurs may have become extinct because they were not cold-blooded animals
2. To question the adequacy of the hypothesis that climatic change related to sea levels caused the extinction of the dinosaurs
3. To present examples of animals that could maintain a livable body temperature more easily than dinosaurs
4. To support a hypothesis that these animals were not as sensitive to climate changes in the Cretaceous period as they are today

TOEFL Reading – Reference Question

In reference questions TOEFL: Read one or a few sentences before the highlighted word. 

Here are highlighted words you might be asked about:

1. Subject pronoun: it, they
2. Object pronoun: it, them
3. Demonstrative pronoun: these, those, this, that
4. Possessive adjectives: its, their
5. Other reference words: the former, the latter, one, ones, another, other, others

Example TOEFL Reference Questions:

Economic contact between Native Americans and Europeans can be traced back to the English and French fishermen off the coast of Canada in the 1500s. They traded guns and other weapons for beaver fur.  The first explorers to trade with the Native Americans were Giovanni da Verrazano and Jacques Cartier in the 1520s and 1530s. In Verrazano's book he notes, "If we wanted to trade with them for some of their things, they would come to the seashore on some rocks where the breakers were most violent while we remained on the little boat, and they sent us what they wanted to give on a rope, continually shouting to us not to approach the land."

Question: The word 'They' in paragraph 3 refers to?

1. English and French fishermen
2. Beavers
3. Europeans
4. Traits and characteristics

TOEFL Reading – Inference Question

In TOEFL reading inference questions: Understand the passage and consider all the answer options – the answer may not be directly present in the passage. For TOEFL reading inference questions practice you can seek for practice papers from different online platforms. 

There are three steps to identify the inference questions TOEFL:

• Identify the subject
• Summarize what the passage says about the subject
• Compare your summary to the answers

Example TOEFL Inference Questions Practice :

Until the 1850's, Herman Melville primarily published novels, including Moby Dick, which would later become one of America's most famous and beloved novels. His novels, however, had extremely low sales, and Melville had to quit writing novels because no publisher would agree to print his books. In an effort to make more money from his writing, Melville chose to publish some poetry instead. Poetry was extremely popular and sold well in 19th-century America, so Melville expected to make a profit from his first book of poems. These poems, however, were as unpopular as his novels, and sold scarcely any copies.

Which of the following can be inferred about Melville's poetry?

A. It was not as well-written as Melville's novels.
B. It was written primarily in iambic pentameter.
C. It did not yield a significant profit for Melville.
D. It was Melville's only possible way of making money.

TOEFL Reading – Essential Information Question

Understand the text by using excellent vocabulary as the answer will be different from the given statement but will carry a similar meaning only. Review all the options.

Example Essential Information Question:

The end of the Indian trade began with the Indian Removal Act of 1830 forcing tribes such as the Cherokee and the Choctaw to leave their homelands.  When Native Americans resisted relocation conflicts occurred, such as the Second Seminole War which caused the deaths of 3000 Native Americans. They were forced to relocate to and adjust to reservation life. Between industrialization, the reduced population of Native Americans, and the segregation of them into the reservations contributed to the end of Indian trade. Native Americans became dependent on the US government and unable to form economic systems of their own. Today there are several programs, such as the Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development, that are helping reservations become independent and financially stable communities.

Question: The sentence in paragraph 6 " Between industrialization, the reduced population of Native Americans, and the segregation of them into the reservations contributed to the end of Indian trade."  is most similar to

1. Indian trade came to an end because of segregation, industrialization, and declining populations.
2. The United States industrialized their production, segregated from the Native Americans, and entered conflicts that decreased the Native American population.
3. Native Americans did not wish to follow industrialization and segregated into the reservation.
4. Native Americans wished to follow industrialization and segregated into the reservation.

TOEFL Reading – Detail Question

TOEFL Detail or Factual Information questions you about information of a particular stated in a small part of the passage. Locate the paragraph and read to answer. They generally focus on the “who,” “what,” “when,” “where,” and “why” as explained by the author. You can solve TOEFL factual information questions exercises to ace this section. Regular TOEFL reading detail questions practice can help you ace this section.

Example Detail Question:

Paleontologists have argued for a long time that the demise of the dinosaurs was caused by climatic alterations associated with slow changes in the positions of continents and seas resulting from plate tectonics. Off and on throughout the Cretaceous (the last period of the Mesozoic era, during which dinosaurs flourished), large shallow seas covered extensive areas of the continents. Data from diverse sources, including geochemical evidence preserved in seafloor sediments, indicate that the Late Cretaceous climate was milder than today’s. The days were not too hot, nor the nights too cold. The summers were not too warm, nor the winters too frigid. The shallow seas on the continents probably buffered the temperature of the nearby air, keeping it relatively constant.

According to paragraph 1, which of the following is true of the Late Cretaceous climate?

1. Summers were very warm and winters were very cold.
2. Shallow seas on the continents caused frequent temperature changes.
3. The climate was very similar to today’s climate.
4. The climate did not change dramatically from season to season.

TOEFL Reading – Negative Factual Information Question

Find out the paragraph and understand the question to answer

Example Negative Factual Question:

Dissatisfaction with conventional explanations for dinosaur extinctions led to a surprising observation that, in turn, has suggested a new hypothesis. Many plants and animals disappear abruptly from the fossil record as one moves from layers of rock documenting the end of the Cretaceous up into rocks representing the beginning of the Cenozoic (the era after the Mesozoic). Between the last layer of Cretaceous rock and the first layer of Cenozoic rock, there is often a thin layer of clay. Scientists felt that they could get an idea of how long the extinctions took by determining how long it took to deposit this one centimeter of clay and they thought they could determine the time it took to deposit the clay by determining the amount of the element iridium (Ir) it contained.

 In paragraph 4, all the following questions are answered EXCEPT:

1. Why is there a layer of clay between the rocks of the Cretaceous and Cenozoic?
2. Why were scientists interested in determining how long it took to deposit the layer of clay at the end of the Cretaceous?
3. What was the effect of the surprising observation scientists made?
4. Why did scientists want more information about the dinosaur extinction at the end of the Cretaceous?

TOEFL Reading – Rhetorical Purpose Questions 

TOEFL rhetorical purpose questions enquire “why” behind any passage. There would be 1-2 TOEFL rhetorical purpose questions per passage. To understand the reasoning behind the author’s way of presenting information, you need to go through TOEFL reading practice test with answers 2021 for the Rhetorical Purpose tasks.

Example Rhetorical Purpose Question:

Refer once again to page 22, paragraphs 2 and 4. Why does the author mention China and Russia there?

1. To demonstrate different types of fixed currency systems

2. To compare their economic performance

3. To illustrate the power their currencies play in the international market

4. To explain the benefits of free-flowing currency

TOEFL Reading – Sentence Simplification 

For TOEFL sentence simplification questions you need to summarize and generalize the information you are given with. There would be 0-1 TOEFL sentence simplification questions per passage.

Example Sentence Simplification Question:

Which of the following best expresses the essential information in the last sentence on page 20 (“Throughout history…”)?

1. The gold standard ensured that exchange rates remained fixed up until World War II.

2. The gold standard coupled with the fixed exchange rate agreement ensured the exchange rates remained stable in most countries.

3. The Bretton Woods system played a major role in guaranteeing that the gold standard remained in place.

4. After World War II, fixed exchange rates were adopted by most countries.

TOEFL Reading –  Summary Question

In TOEFL summary question reading: Thoroughly understand the entire passage to get the main idea questions toefl to answer. Also, TOEFL reading summary questions practice can help you further.

Example Summary Question:

[1] Paleontologists have argued for a long time that the demise of the dinosaurs was caused by climatic alterations associated with slow changes in the positions of continents and seas resulting from plate tectonics. Off and on throughout the Cretaceous (the last period of the Mesozoic era, during which dinosaurs flourished), large shallow seas covered extensive areas of the continents. Data from diverse sources, including geochemical evidence preserved in seafloor sediments, indicate that the Late Cretaceous climate was milder than today’s. The days were not too hot, nor the nights too cold. The summers were not too warm, nor the winters too frigid. The shallow seas on the continents probably buffered the temperature of the nearby air, keeping it relatively constant.

[2] At the end of the Cretaceous, the geological record shows that these seaways retreated from the continents back into the major ocean basins. No one knows why. Over a period of about 100,000 years, while the seas pulled back, climates around the world became dramatically more extreme: warmer days, cooler nights; hotter summers, colder winters. Perhaps dinosaurs could not tolerate these extreme temperature changes and became extinct.

[3] If true, though, why did cold-blooded animals such as snakes, lizards, turtles, and crocodiles survive the freezing winters and torrid summers? These animals are at the mercy of the climate to maintain a livable body temperature. It’s hard to understand why they would not be affected, whereas dinosaurs were left too crippled to cope, especially if, as some scientists believe, dinosaurs were warm-blooded. Critics also point out that the shallow seaways had retreated from and advanced on the continents numerous times during the Mesozoic, so why did the dinosaurs survive the climatic changes associated with the earlier fluctuations but not with this one? Although initially appealing, the hypothesis of a simple climatic change related to sea levels is insufficient to explain all the data.

[4] Dissatisfaction with conventional explanations for dinosaur extinctions led to a surprising observation that, in turn, has suggested a new hypothesis. Many plants and animals disappear abruptly from the fossil record as one moves from layers of rock documenting the end of the Cretaceous up into rocks representing the beginning of the Cenozoic (the era after the Mesozoic). Between the last layer of Cretaceous rock and the first layer of Cenozoic rock, there is often a thin layer of clay. Scientists felt that they could get an idea of how long the extinctions took by determining how long it took to deposit this one centimeter of clay and they thought they could determine the time it took to deposit the clay by determining the amount of the element iridium (Ir) it contained.

[5] Ir has not been common at Earth’s surface since the very beginning of the planet’s history. Because it usually exists in a metallic state, it was preferentially incorporated in Earth’s core as the planet cooled and consolidated. Ir is found in high concentrations in some meteorites, in which the solar system’s original chemical composition is preserved. Even today, microscopic meteorites continually bombard Earth, falling on both land and sea. By measuring how many of these meteorites fall to Earth over a given period of time, scientists can estimate how long it might have taken to deposit the observed amount of Ir in the boundary clay. (A) These calculations suggest that a period of about one million years would have been required. (B) However, other reliable evidence suggests that the deposition of the boundary clay could not have taken one million years. (C) So the unusually high concentration of Ir seems to require a special explanation. (D)

[6] In view of these facts, scientists hypothesized that a single large asteroid, about 10 to 15 kilometers across, collided with Earth, and the resulting fallout created the boundary clay. Their calculations show that the impact kicked up a dust cloud that cut off sunlight for several months, inhibiting photosynthesis in plants; decreased surface temperatures on continents to below freezing; caused extreme episodes of acid rain; and significantly raised long-term global temperatures through the greenhouse effect. This disruption of food chain and climate would have eradicated the dinosaurs and other organisms in less than fifty years.

Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.

Drag your answer choices to the spaces where they belong. To remove an answer choice, drag it back.

1. Extreme changes in daily and seasonal climates preceded the retreat of the seas back into the major ocean basins.
2. A simple climate change does not explain some important data related to the extinction of the dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous.
3. The retreat of the seaways at the end of the Cretaceous has not been fully explained.
4. The abruptness of extinctions at the end of the Cretaceous and the high concentration of Ir found in clay deposited at that time have fueled the development of a new hypothesis.
5. Some scientists hypothesize that the extinction of the dinosaurs resulted from the effects of an asteroid collision with Earth.
6. Boundary clay layers like the one between the Mesozoic and Cenozoic are used by scientists to determine the rate at which an extinct species declined.

TOEFL Reading –  Sentence Insertion Question

Logically read the paragraph with strong grammatical sense to find out where a sentence can fit.

Example Sentence Insertion Question:

Ir has not been common at Earth’s surface since the very beginning of the planet’s history. Because it usually exists in a metallic state, it was preferentially incorporated in Earth’s core as the planet cooled and consolidated. Ir is found in high concentrations in some meteorites, in which the solar system’s original chemical composition is preserved. Even today, microscopic meteorites continually bombard Earth, falling on both land and sea. By measuring how many of these meteorites fall to Earth over a given period of time, scientists can estimate how long it might have taken to deposit the observed amount of Ir in the boundary clay. (A) These calculations suggest that a period of about one million years would have been required. (B) However, other reliable evidence suggests that the deposition of the boundary clay could not have taken one million years. (C) So the unusually high concentration of Ir seems to require a special explanation. (D)

In paragraph 5 of the passage, there is a missing sentence. The paragraph is repeated below and shows four letters (A, B, C, and D) that indicate where the following sentence could be added.

Consequently, the idea that the Ir in the boundary clay came from microscopic meteorites cannot be accepted.

Where would the sentence best fit?

• (A)
• (B)
• (C)
• (D)

TOEFL Reading –  Complete the Table Question

Organize the ideas in certain categories with relationships and use compare and contrast techniques

Example Complete Table Question:

[1] The method of Radiocarbon dating was invented in the late 1940s by Willard Libby. It is a method to determine the age of an object by using radiocarbon properties. Radiocarbon is created in the atmosphere through the interaction of nitrogen and cosmic rays. When combined with oxygen, carbon dioxide is produced. CO2 enters plants through photosynthesis; animals and humans incorporate carbon when they eat plants. After the death of a plant or animal, the rate of carbon begins to decline – this is called the radioactive decay of carbon. When analysts measure the amount of carbon in this decayed object, they can calculate when it died. The furthest date that has been reliably measured back to is around 50,000 years.

[2] Research into the proportion of carbon in the atmosphere has been going on for more than five decades. Due to the increase in the burning of fossil fuels and nuclear testing in the 20th century, there was a significant increase in the level of carbon in our atmosphere, so this adds to the complication of carbon calculation. Originally, scientists used samples of solid carbon for testing. However, they realized that converting the samples to liquid or gas offered more precise results. Accelerator mass spectrometry is the current method of analysis. All carbon atoms in the sample are counted; its results are fast and very accurate.

[3] Archaeology has been profoundly affected by progress in radiocarbon dating. Faunal analysis has also been impacted by progress in this area. Faunal analysis is the study of the remains of animals with the aim to help us understand human activities in the past.

[4] At the end of the Pleistocene Era, there were many rapid extinction of megafauna, particularly in the Americas. There is a notable report by Vartanyan et al. on the extinction of pygmy mammoths, dating them back to 3700 years before present using radiocarbon dating. Other scientists have used this method to calculate the age of the extinct species in the La Brea tar pits in California. In their faunal analysis, they employed a pre-treatment method that included the use of tar. They collected bones, divided them into small pieces and chips and crushed them. The bone fragments were treated with a variety of solvents, including benzene, to examine a species of Cuban Caribbean ground sloth and the Xenarthra armadillo. Carbon was then examined and radiocarbon dates were obtained from the organic material separated from the tar. Scientists were able to date the sloth remains to around 5400 before present. This information is important as it may show that the extinction of the sloth was caused by human arrival in Cuba.

[5] Much work is necessary to further investigate the abundant fossil materials found in Central and South American pits, including those of Talara, Peru, where there are a lot of remains of extinct megafauna and human artefacts. Ongoing studies of these sites can help to verify the theories of extinction and the impact on human behaviour.

[6] One notable achievement in radio carbon dating is Two Creeks Fossil Forest. During the 20th century, a goal of geologists was to establish the date of transition from the Pleistocene to the Holocene era. The Pleistocene epoch began 2.6 million years ago and the current, Holocene period began 11,700 years ago. In Wisconsin, USA, a fossil forest called Two Creeks was discovered. Prior to radiocarbon dating, the trees in this forest had been dated back to around 24,000 years ago, the estimated date for the end of the Pleistocene period. This estimate had been made through correlation with sequences in Scandinavia. Libby and later scientists investigated Two Creeks and used radiocarbon dating to date the trees more accurately. Samples from the fossil forest were used in tests in over 70 labs, dating the trees back to 13,730 before present. This achievement is now considered a notable result in the development of our understanding of glaciation in North America and the end of the Pleistocene epoch.

Complete the table by matching the phrases below

Directions: Select the appropriate phrases from the answer choices and match them to the Radiocarbon Dating and Faunal Analysis to which they relate. Some of the answer choices will NOT be used. This question is worth 4 points.

Drag your answer choices to the spaces where they belong. To remove an answer choice, drag it back. To review the passage, click VIEW TEXT.

1. Tar and benzene are used in the analytical process.
2. This analytical method has determined when the Pleistocene epoch ended.
3. Initial estimates were made by comparing with similar occurrences in Scandinavia.
4. Over 70 tests were done on fossil samples.
5. Radiocarbon dating tracked the fossils to 13,370 years before the present.
6. Successful radiocarbon dating of the forest samples proves the end of glaciations in North America.

TOEFL Reading – Prose Summary 

In TOEFL reading Prose Summary you will be asked to identify the major arguments of the whole passage. There would be 1 prose summary questions TOEFL per passage. To solve his kind of question you need to learn to recognizing minor details and pay attention to whole idea and the argument of the passage instead. Also, these questions provides 6 options.

Example Prose Summary:

The passage describes the basics of exchange rates and how they are used throughout the world. What are the main points of the passage?

1. Countries rely on the exchange of currency to conduct trade and financial transactions across borders. Trade and investment are impossible without established currency exchange systems.

2. The European Union maintains a fixed exchange rate in between its member states, but a free-floating one in relation to every other country.

3. The gold standard was a traditional way of pegging currency to a commodity (gold) and basing the exchange rates on that.

4. The Bretton Woods system allowed countries to maintain fixed currency rates, and is still the norm today.

5. Several types of currency systems are in use today, including free floating, fixed and composite currency fixed, among others.

6. The IMF helps monitor currencies across the world, and every state’s central bank has to comply with its policies and Special Drawing Rights.