ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

The Listening Comprehension section of the paper-based TOEFL has three parts. Our Power Lessons
One through Three guide you through each of these parts. Each lesson contains notes that refer to tracks on
the audio CDs that accompany this book. Listen to these tracks when you are prompted, so that you will be
able to answer the questions about the spoken conversations.

Here you will become acquainted with the kinds of questions and distractors ("TOEFL traps") that
appear in each section. Also, the vocabulary at the end of each section will help you begin the kind of
vocabulary building that a truly successful TOEFL candidate must undertake!

The bigger picture: listening beyond the TOEFL

It will help your TOEFL preparation to understand why the makers of the TOEFL at ETS place particular
emphasis on listening skills and why they test listening skills in the way that they do.

Remember that the TOEFL is meant to help American colleges and universities determine whether the
English of a nonnative speaker of English is at a high enough level for that person to function in an
American university setting.

For this reason, the TOEFL tests a student's ability to understand lecture-like talks given at a natural
speed. In U.S. colleges and universities, students are expected to attend and take notes in every class.
Classroom lectures supplement the reading assignments/that is, they do not necessarily repeat the
information in the reading homework, but rather add to it. On exams, students are expected to show that
they have learned the information given in the lectures as well as the information given in the readings.
Therefore, a successful international student must be able to understand his or her professors' lectures.

But successful students must be able to comprehend more than just university lectures. It is common for
many American college and university classrooms to be centered around group discussions, in which
students often discuss a subject at an informal level. You may also have to ask one of your classmates to
repeat an idea the professor mentioned in class or have to ask a complete stranger how and where you
register for a class. Finally, you will certainly want to make American friends. To accomplish these tasks,
you need to understand what is often called "survival English." For these reasons, the TOEFL also tests
your ability to understand very short conversations about topics commonly found on an American college
campus.
 2 Listening Lessons

THIS IS THE BASIC FOR THE LISTENING SECTION

PART A
Let’s begin by understanding the format of Part A. They call it “Short Conversations”
because, well, that’s exactly what it is. You will hear a man or a woman saying
something, most of the times, it will be a question. And then, a person of the opposite sex
will reply. Then, a narrator will ask you about the conversation.
Here’s an example

Woman: Did Paul arrive on time today?

Man : He hasn’t even left his house yet.
Narrator: What does the man mean?

Answers:
a) Paul arrived to his house
b) Paul is not at home this time
c) Paul is late today
d) Paul lives in the house on the left

The correct answer is (c), as you can see, the man said Paul hasn’t left his house YET,
which means he still has to travel and arrive, so he is definitely late.

Most books will tell you the same thing I will. I’m just summing it up. All the Short
Conversations (Part A), should focus on 3 basic Strategies:

1.- Focus on the second line

2.- Look for synonyms
3.- Avoid similar sounds.

And, that’s basically it. Sounds kinda easy, doesn’t it? When I work with my students,
I’ve realized that as soon as they understand these 3 basic points, their score inn Part A
improves dramatically.

I’ll explain these 3 points now.

Point 1: Focus on the second line.

Why should we focus on the second line? Because whatever the narrator will ask, is
based on the answer, rather than on the question. Look at this example

Woman: 
Man: I think you should bring your umbrella.
Narrator: what does the man mean?
ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

Please note that I intentionally changed the font in line 1. Because I want you to read the
man`s answer. He said “I think you better bring your umbrella”. That means he thinks it
will rain. Now look at the answers:

a) The woman should get a new umbrella

b) The man needs her umbrella
c) It will probably rain
d) He thinks the weather is better.

I don’t need to tell you that the correct answer is (c) again. We already established that
the man thinks is going to rain.

That’s the whole point of Part A. Understanding the conversation. DO NOT think that
just because you understand a couple words that mean you understood the conversation.
Now, let’s move to the next point:

Point 2:

LISTENING POWER LESSON 1

FOR LISTENING PART A OF THE TOEFL

AT A GLANCE:
Session A: Homophone Distractors
Session B: Synonym Distractors
Session C: Negative Distractors
Session D: Pronoun Distractors
Session E: Time and Sequencing Distractors
Session F: Unreal Situation Distractors
Session G: Multiple Referent Distractors
Vocabulary
This part of the TOEFL consists of a series of very short dialogues followed by a
question. The student then selects one of four possible items as the best answer to the
question.
For this lesson it is important to know what a distractor is:

A distractor is a wrong answer that looks correct. Test makers use distractors to trap you
into choosing the wrong answer.

There are seven different types of distractors commonly found in the Listening section:
 Homophones
 Synonyms
 Negatives
 Pronouns
 Time and sequencing
 Unreal situations
 Multiple referents
Remember that the TOEFL test makers use distractors to trick you into getting the question
wrong.
 4 Listening Lessons

SESSION A: HOMOPHONE DISTRACTORS

Homophone distractors are words or phrases that sound the same as or similar to words
or phrases heard in the conversation.

Here is a TOEFL question that has a homophone distractor in the answer set. Suppose
you hear:

Woman: Are you coming to the meeting tomorrow?

Man: Of course, I'll be just around the bend.
Question: What does the man mean?
(A) He'll be close to the meeting place.
(B) He'll have to be flexible to make it to the meeting.
(C) He's just been to the meeting.
(D) The meeting will begin when he arrives.
Answer (C) contains a homophone, just been is a homophone that sounds similar to just
around the bend, which was said in the original conversation. You should not be
distracted into choosing that answer simply because it sounds similar.

Both answers (В) and (D) repeat the word meeting. This is another common type of
distractor that is related to homophones. When an answer repeats the same words that
appear in the conversation, you may be tempted to choose it. However, usually the
answer that sounds most like the conversation, whether because of homophones or
repeated words, is wrong.

In this case (A) is the correct answer because just around the bend is an idiomatic
expression that means nearby. You will also notice that (A) sounds the most different
from the original conversation. Keep in mind that there is no guarantee that the correct
answer on the TOEFL exam will always be the one that sounds the most different, but it
is usually a complete rephrasing of the conversation.
! Similar-sounding answers are often wrong.
ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

SESSION B: SYNONYM DISTRACTORS

Synonym distractors are words and phrases that seem to mean the same thing as a word
or phrase in the conversation.

Can you identify the synonym distractor in the answer set of this example?

Woman: What do you think of the primary race?

Man: It's been interesting. I'll have to admit that.
Question: What is the woman asking the man?
(A) if he has been to the races
(B) what he thought of the first race
(C) if she has something on her face
(D) his opinion of the presidential primaries
Answer (B) contains a synonym distractor. First is substituted for primary in the
original conversation. Primary and first are often synonyms for each other, but you have
to remember that synonyms in one context may not be synonyms in another. Here you
must pay special attention to the context in which the word primary is used in the
conversation. A. primary race is not the same as a first race, so (B) is wrong.

In fact, a presidential primary is a type of primary race, which refers to the special
elections during which candidates for a particular political party are chosen. (D) is the
correct answer.

!Don't be fooled by answers which use the same words as in the dialogue. Read all
the answer choices carefully before making your selection.

SESSION C: NEGATIVE DISTRACTORS

Negative distractors are answers in the negative that seem to mean the same as a
statement in the conversation, but in reality mean the opposite.

Can you identify the negative distractor in this example?

Woman: Will you be at the library tonight?

Man: No way! I've got tickets to the game.
Question: What does the man say?
(A) that he will not go to the game
(B) that he doesn't have a way to the game
(C) that he is going to a sporting event
(D) that he came to the library the previous night

In this question, answer choices (A) and (B) are both negative distractors. A student
who is not paying careful attention might hear the negative in the mans answer—"No
way!"—and incorrectly choose an answer that also contains a negative.
 6 Listening Lessons

Answer (D) is a homonym distractor that tries to make the unwary student confuse the
words game and came. But in reality the man is not going to the library because he wants
to attend a game of some kind. Therefore, (C) is the correct answer.

Another variation of negative distractors is the use of a negative tag question in the
conversation. On the TOEFL, when a person responds with a negative tag question,
he/she is voicing agreement.

Man: It's a beautiful day.

Woman: Isn't it, though?

The woman's response means that she agrees with him. Take a look at how this question
might look on the TOEFL below.

Man: Bill's quite a musician.

Woman: Isn't he, though?
Question: What does the woman mean?
(A) She thinks Bill is not talented.
(B) She agrees with the man.
(C) She has not heard Bill play.
(D) She did not hear his comment.

The correct answer is (B).

SESSION D: PRONOUN DISTRACTORS

Pronoun distractors are pronouns that either reverse the gender of the person being
referred to or that confuse the interrogative pronouns who, which, or what.
ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

Can you identify the pronoun distractor in this example?

Man: Who gave Lucy her new bicycle?

Woman: Oh, it's not new. Her older brother handed it
down to her.
Question: What does the woman tell the man?
(A) that he got it from her brother
(B) that she got it from her brother
(C) that Lucy's brother gave it to him
(D) that he gave it to the woman

(A), (C), and (D) are all pronoun distractors. Answers (A) and (C) contain pronouns that
have the wrong gender. The man in the conversation did not receive the bike, as (A) and (C)
imply. (D) also confuses the subject pronoun because the speaker (here referred to as he) did
not give the bike to the woman.

The woman tells us that "Lucy's (her) older brother handed (gave) it to her."
Therefore, (B) is correct. Lucy (she) got it (the bicycle) from her brother.
Can you identify the interrogative distractor in this example?

Woman: What are you going to take this semester?

Man: Calculus and biology, but I decided not to
take composition.
Question: What does the woman ask the man?
(A) which courses he will take
(B) who he will take this semester
(C) what he will take to biology
(D) whom he will take to the prom

Answers (B), (C), and (D) all confuse the interrogative pronoun. Notice that (C)
especially causes a distraction because it repeats the same interrogative question. But (C)
is asking what object he will take to biology, which has a very different meaning from the
question in the conversation.

"What are you taking?" is a common way of asking someone, "Which courses will you be
taking?" So the correct answer is (A).

! Always listen carefully to determine "who is doing what" in TOEFL dialogues.

 8 Listening Lessons

Look for pronouns also in the passive voice.

ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

When the woman says « She got a new checking account» she means «she opened a new
checking account».

The correct answer is written in the passive voice «A new checking account was opened
(by Sally)»

Therefore, the correct answer is (C)

SESSION E: TIME AND SEQUENCING DISTRACTORS

Time and Sequencing distractors offer confusing alternatives to the order of events in the
conversation.

Can you identify the time/sequencing distractor in the following example?

Man: Will you start your new job next week?

Woman: No, the week after that. I still have to finish
 1 Listening Lessons
0

up where I am.
Question: When will the woman begin her new job?
(A) in one week
(B) in two weeks
(C) She is just finishing it.
(D) She has just begun.

ANSWER (B) is correct. The man asks if the woman will begin her job in one week,
and she replies that she will begin one week later than that. Therefore, the woman will
begin her job in two weeks.

SESSION F: UNREAL SITUATION DISTRACTORS

Unreal situation distractors try to make you think that an unreal or imaginary
situation truly happened.

These unreal situations may be in the future or conditional if clause. Sometimes, to answer
the question correctly, the student will have to make an inference and ignore information
given directly in the conversation.

Can you identify the unreal situation distractor in this example?

Woman: If I had bought a lampshade, I would have

picked a green one.
Man: Well, it's not as though there was a large selection.
Question: What does the man tell the woman?
(A) He's happy with the aftershave that he bought.
(B) He's sorry that the woman bought the lampshade.
(C) He will purchase the lampshade next time.
(D) There were a limited number of lampshades.

Answer (B) is the unreal situation distractor. The woman did not buy the lampshade.
When she says, "If I had bought that lampshade," she is using a conditional clause to describe
an unreal situation. (See Structure Power Lesson Three, Session С for help on conditionals.)
In his answer, the man justifies his choice by saying that there wasn't a large selection of
lampshades. For that reason, (D) is the correct answer.
Let's take a look at another example of an unreal situation distractor. Can you find it?

Woman: Would you pick up some milk?

Man: Why not? I've been sitting around all day.
What kind do you want?
Question: Where does the conversation probably take place?

(A) in a supermarket
(B) at the man's home
ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

(C) at the man's work

(D) in a subway

In this example, (A) is the unreal situation distractor. A student who hears the word
milk might think that the conversation takes place in a supermarket. Here, the phrasal
verb to pick up means to purchase it at a store. To get this question correct, you must
infer that the speakers are at home, and not be confused by the word milk. Therefore, the
correct answer is (B).
 1 Listening Lessons
2

SESSION G: MULTIPLE REFERENT DISTRACTORS

Multiple referent distractors occur when several people or items are mentioned and
the answers then repeat all or some of the characters in an attempt to confuse you.
Comparisons are often used to present this type of distractor problem.

Can you identify the multiple referent distractors in this example?

Man: My job is harder than yours.
Woman: But mine is harder than John's.
Question: Who has the easiest job?
(A) the woman
(B) John
ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

(C) the man

(D) Jan
Answer (B) is correct. If the mans job is harder than the woman's, and if the woman's job
is harder than Johns, then John's job is easier than the woman's and the man's. Therefore,
John has the easiest job. Both (A) and (C) are multiple referent distractors. A student who is
not listening carefully might select one of these as the answer.

! Be careful to avoid the homophone distractor Jan [dzэn] for John [dzan] in (D).

Other Lessons

DIALOGS WITH IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS

On many TOEFL exams, up to half the dialogs in PartA contain idiomatic expressions.
Many of the idiomatic expressions are two- or three-word verbs, such as call offand look
outfor.

Sample Item

You will hear:

 1 Listening Lessons
4

Woman: I wonder where Mike is.

Man: He'll show up as soon as the work is done, I bet.
Question: What does the man say about Mike?
(A) He probably won't arrive until the work is fInished.
(B) He went to a show instead of going to work.
(C) He can show them how to do the work.
(D) He'll probably work late today.
The idiom show up means "arrive." Choices (B) and (C) contain the word show, but it is
not used in the idiomatic sense.

In most dialogs, the second speaker uses the idiomatic expression. Most questions about
this type of dialog are questions about meaning ("What does the man mean?" for
example), but some are inference questions or other types of questions. The correct
answer often contains a synonym for the idiom (arrive for show up in choice (A) of the
Sample Item). Incorrect choices often contain references to the literal meaning of idioms,
as in choices (B) and (C).

However, memorizing these phrases does not guarantee that you will recognize all the
idiomatic expressions that you will hear in the Listening Comprehension section. There
are, after all, thousands of these expressions in English. You must develop "a good ear"
for guessing the meaning of idioms. The context of the sentence will help you understand
the expression, even if you're unfamiliar with it.

Look for some Idioms in the APPENDIX of this document.

ANSWERING INFERENCE QUESTIONS ABOUT DIALOGS

Sometimes the answer to a question about a dialog is not directly stated in the dialog.
How can you answer this type of question? You must be able to make an inference about
ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

the dialog. In other words, information in the dialog will indirectly provide you with the
answer to the question.

This type of question can be phrased in two ways:

• What does the man/woman imply?

• What can be inferred from the conversation?

• Some inference questions involve overstatement, or exaggeration.

F: Are you interested in selling your car?

M: Sure-if someone has a million dollars!

Because of the exaggeration, we can infer that the man doesn't want to sell his car at all.

Sample Item

You will hear:

Man: Can I take this bus to the art museum?

Woman No, this bus goes north to Bank Street. You want a bus that goes the
opposite way.
Question: What can be inferred from this conversation?
(A)The man needs to take a southbound bus.
(B) There is no bus to the museum.
(C) It takes a long time to get to the museum by bus.
(D) The art museum is on Bank Street.

From the information in the dialog it can be inferred that (A) is correct because the first
bus is going north, but the man must take a bus going in the opposite direction to get to
the art museum. Choice (B) is incorrect; it is possible to get to the museum by bus. There
is no information about (C). Choice (0) can't be true because Bank Street is where the
first bus is going.
 1 Listening Lessons
6

DIALOGS INVOLVING AGREEMENT AND DISAGREEMENT

To answer questions about some of the dialogs in PartA, it is necessary to
understand if the second speaker agrees or disagrees with the first speaker's ideas
or proposals.

There are many ways to express agreement and disagreement:

ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

Sample Items

You will hear:

Man: Howard certainly is a talented journalist.

Woman: Isn't he though!
Quesion: What does the woman mean?
(A) She doesn't know if Howard is a journalist.
(B) She agrees that Howard is talented.
(C) She read Howard's journal.
(D) She doesn't think Howard is talented.

Although the woman's reply seems negative in form, it actually signals agreement.
Therefore, the best answer is (B).

You will hear:

Woman: I thought Cheryl's photographs were the best at the exhibit.

Man: I didn't really see it that way.
Question: What does the man mean?
(A) He thought Cheryl's photos were the best.
(B) He didn't look at Cheryl's photos.
(C) He thought other photos were better than Cheryl's.
 1 Listening Lessons
8

(D) He didn't go to the exhibit.

The man's response, "I didn't really see it that way;' means that he disagreed with
the woman's opinion that Cheryl's photographs were the best. The best answer is
therefore (C)

DIALOGS INVOLVING SUGGESTIONS, INVITATIONS, OFFERS,

AND REQUESTS
A number of dialogs in Part A involve a speaker making and/or responding to
suggestions, invitations, offers, and requests. There are many ways to express these
language functions. Some are listed in the charts in this lesson, while others are practiced
in the exercises.
ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

A) Suggestions

These are pieces of advice that one speaker gives another. In most dialogs, the first
speaker poses a problem and the second speaker suggests a possible solution to that
problem. In some dialogs, the first speaker makes a suggestion, and the second speaker
responds to that suggestion positively or negatively.

M1: I'm doing so poorly in math class, I think I'm going to have to drop it.
F1: You know, Frank, you should talk to Professor de Marco before you do anything.
He's given special help to lots of students who were having trouble.
M2: What does the woman suggest Frank do?
(A) Study with a group of students.
(B) Drop his mathematics course.
(C) Discuss the problem with the professor.
(D) Take no action at this time.
 2 Listening Lessons
0

B) Invitations

These are requests for someone to come somewhere or to take part in some activity. The
first speaker may invite the second speaker to do something and the second speaker
responds, or the second speaker may invite the first speaker to do something.
ENGLISH TEST EXERCISES . COM LISTENING LESSONS .

You will hear:

Man: Would you like to join us on Sunday? We're going to go on a picnic at the
lake.
Woman: I'd love to, but I have a test Monday, and I have
to get ready for it.
Question: What will the woman probably do on Sunday?
(A) Study for a test.
(B) Go on a picnic.
(C) Take an exam.
(D) Join a club.
The man invites the woman to come to a picnic. The woman says that she'd love to go,
but that she must study for a test she is taking Monday. (If the woman had accepted the
man's invitation, Choice (B) would have been correct.)

C) Offers
These are proposals to help someone or allow someone to do something. Either
speaker in the dialog may make an offer.

~ Sample Item You will hear:

Woman: Should I make reservations for dinner Friday night?

Man: Thanks anyway, but I've already made them.
Question: What does the man mean?
(A) He can't go to dinner Friday night.
(B) Reservations won't be required.
(C) He made reservations earlier.
(D) He'd like the woman to make reservations.
The woman offers to make reservations, but the man replies that he's already made them

D) Requests
 2 Listening Lessons
2

To make a request is to ask someone to do something, or to ask for help or information.

Man: I have to make one more phone call before I go.

Woman: Take your time. Would you just lock the office door when you finish?
Question: What does the woman want the man to do?
(A) Lock the office.
(B) Finish his phone call quickly.
(C) Tell her what time it is.
(D) Look up a phone number.
The woman requests that the man lock up the office.