Speaking Study Guide for the TOEFL Test

General Information

The Speaking section of the TOEFL test requires completing two speaking tasks in eight minutes total, responding to prompts delivered via headphones. Additionally, there are a number of prompts within each of the tasks, and they each have a time limit in which you must respond. An on-screen clock will count down the remaining time. Read more about time limits within each task below.

Scoring

You will be given a score of 0 to 5 for this section. Scorers for this section are listening for clear, understandable, accurate speech, as well as appropriate responses to the interview questions. You can find out more about the scoring guidelines in the TOEFL Speaking Scoring Guide. It covers both of the speaking tasks.

The Two Speaking Tasks

There are only two tasks on the TOEFL 2026 Speaking test. There is no reading involved: just listening and speaking. Neither of them provides preparation time, so you must be ready to respond as soon as prompted. Between the two tasks, there is a total of 11 questions.

Listen and Repeat

In this task, your job is simply to listen to seven sentences, one at a time, and repeat exactly what you hear. You will only hear each sentence once and must repeat it word for word. You will not see the sentence on the screen. Instead, there will be a picture to generally set the focus of the sentences, which will be related to it. This “setting” may help you to focus on what types of sentences you will hear, but don’t let it distract you. It’s most important to listen very carefully and remember the exact words and their given order. There will be no time to take notes. Here are some important guidelines:

Each sentence will be between three and five seconds long when spoken.

• There is no prep time given, and you will have five seconds to repeat each sentence.

• The sentences will become a little longer and more difficult as this task progresses.

• Scorers will be listening for not only the correct words and their order but also for these things:

  • pronunciation—Are the words spoken correctly, according to standard English?

  • enunciation—Are the words clearly spoken and easily understood?

  • intonation—Is the sentence, as a whole, spoken with expression instead of using one pitch throughout?

Here is an example of the Listen and Repeat task:

Take an Interview

This speaking task involves a short conversation with a recorded interviewer. Before the interview begins, you will be told that this is an interview and to answer each question with as much detail as there is time for.

After that, you will hear a few sentences that explain the topic of the interview.

The interviewer will begin with a brief introduction and a two-second pause. They will then ask you four questions, pausing for 45 seconds for your response to each question. Again, there will be no prep time. You’ll simply listen to the interviewer and begin your response as soon as they have finished each question. The questions will not be technical in nature, and the topic could be one in an everyday conversation.

As you complete each answer, the interviewer will briefly acknowledge that you responded and then proceed to the next question. Before the last of the four questions, the interviewer will indicate that it will be the last question.

Here are some points to remember when completing this task:

• Be sure to listen carefully, and do not let your mind wander. The interviewer will not repeat the questions if you don’t hear them the first time.

• Listen carefully to each part of each question.

  • The interviewer will begin each one with some information that should inform your answer. Knowing this will help you know how to answer.

  • Be sure you totally understand the question being asked. If you answer a question that was not asked, your score will go down significantly.

• Most of the questions, especially the last three, will have a second part that asks you to tell why you are giving that answer. So this will require you to support your answer with additional details. Omitting this part of the answer will lower your score.

• The first question will usually be factual, asking a little bit about who you are and your experiences. Be sure to not only answer this question, but also use the time to elaborate on your response, while staying on topic.

• The last three questions will probably concern your opinion of something. The gist of your opinion does not matter, but the support you give for it does. Be careful to state details that confirm your opinion, without straying away from the topic and the question asked.

• Be aware that the questions are already recorded before you take the test, so none of them will depend on how you answer a previous question.

Here is a sample interview task: