TOEFL Listening Practice Test With Answers

Summary

This video walks through a complete TOEFL listening practice test. It begins with introductory instructions, followed by six conversations and lectures with comprehension questions after each one. Topics include meeting with an advisor about a work study job, discovering the planet Neptune, taking a Shakespeare class, studying ancient Greek history, astrobiology and the origins of life, and the importance of photosynthesis. The video concludes by encouraging viewers to continue practicing TOEFL listening and speaking skills.

Takeaways

• 😀 The script is for a complete TOEFL listening practice test with different sections like conversations and lectures
• 😃 The test taker is advised to use the video description for answers and an explanations PDF
• 😉 The test allows controlling your own time unlike the real test
• 📝 A conversation about applying for a campus work study job to pay off loans
• 🤔 A lecture on heliocentric vs geocentric models and discovering Neptune
• 🎓 A conversation about signing up for a Shakespeare class and managing workload
• 📚 A lecture on interpreting ancient Greek sources like Homer and archaeology
• 🔭 A lecture on astrobiology and the conditions needed for life on Earth
• 👂 Lots of practice conversations and lectures on academic topics
• ✅ Overall the script provides a full TOEFL listening test experience

Q & A

Why does the student want to meet with the advisor?

The student wants to meet with the advisor to apply for a job through the work study program in order to start paying off student loans.

What is the main topic of the astronomy lecture?

The main topic of the astronomy lecture is the discovery of the planet Neptune and how it was a major triumph for gravitational theory.

What is the attitude of the professor towards studying ancient history?

The professor has a positive, enthusiastic attitude towards studying ancient history. She describes it as "one of the joys" because historians get to play detective and reconstruct history from limited clues.

What is astrobiology?

Astrobiology is the study of the origin, evolution, and distribution of life in the universe. It brings together multiple scientific fields like astronomy, chemistry, geology to study life's origins.

How did photosynthesis impact early life on Earth?

Photosynthesis increased oxygen levels, allowing life to spread on land instead of just the ocean. It provided a better climate for life by creating ozone to block UV radiation.

What literary sources are mentioned for studying Greek history?

Literary sources mentioned include Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, writings by Herodotus, and philosophies of Plato and Aristotle.

What does the TA suggest the student do about the Shakespeare class?

The TA suggests that the student sign up for the class and drop it after 2 weeks if the workload seems too heavy alongside other classes.

Why was the discovery of Neptune important?

It was important because it dramatically confirmed the laws of gravitational theory and was a major step in combining theory with observations.

What archaeological evidence is mentioned regarding ancient Greeks?

Archaeological evidence mentioned includes: equal allotments of land given to citizens, private documents like pre-nuptial agreements and divorce decrees, reports of cattle theft.

What does the advisor recommend regarding work hours?

The advisor recommends starting with 10 work hours per week and later discussing potentially increasing hours once the student sees how manageable it is.

Outlines

00:00

😀 Introduction to the TOEFL Listening Test

The speaker introduces a complete TOEFL listening practice test. He reminds listeners to check the video description for answers, download the PDF explaining the answers, and visit TSTPrep.com for more test help. He encourages the test-taker to feel good about completing the practice test.

05:01

📝 Student Meeting with Advisor about Work Study Program

A student meets with an advisor to apply for the work study program and get a campus job to start paying off student loans. The advisor approves 10 work hours per week so the student's grades don't suffer. The student accepts this advice.

10:02

😮 Discovery of Planet Neptune Confirms Gravitational Theory

In an astronomy class, the professor lectures about the discovery of Neptune in 1846. This discovery dramatically confirmed gravitational theory laws and was a major triumph, as Neptune's existence and location were mathematically predicted based on observed irregularities in Uranus's orbit.

15:04

😕 Student Consults TA about Taking Shakespeare Class

A student discusses with a TA whether to take Professor Stanton's Shakespeare class next semester. The TA recommends signing up and dropping it if it's too much work. The student decides to sign up and hopes to like the class.

20:05

📚 Evaluating Historical Sources on Ancient Greece

In a history class, the professor explains that literary works and archaeological finds are the main sources of information on Ancient Greece. Each source type has limitations, so historians combine them to get a more complete picture.

25:06

🔬 Astrobiology and the Origin of Life on Earth

In an astronomy lecture, the professor explains how astrobiologists study life's origins. Simple organic molecules formed first, then more complex molecules, and finally basic life. Photosynthesizing life increased oxygen, allowing life to spread on land.

30:07

🙌 Completed the TOEFL Listening Practice Test!

The speaker congratulates the listener on completing the practice test. He encourages the listener to take a 10 minute break before starting the TOEFL speaking practice section.

Keywords

💡TOEFL

TOEFL stands for Test of English as a Foreign Language. It is a standardized test used to measure the English language ability of non-native speakers who want to enroll in English-speaking universities. The video script is about a full TOEFL listening practice test. The test evaluates listening comprehension through conversations, lectures, and talks on academic topics.

💡listening comprehension

Listening comprehension refers to the ability to understand spoken English. The TOEFL listening section measures test takers' listening comprehension through recordings of academic lectures, conversations, and talks. Students need to answer multiple choice questions based on the recordings to demonstrate understanding.

💡academic lecture

An academic lecture is a talk or speech given by a professor or teacher to provide information or teach about an academic topic. The video script includes several academic lectures on topics like astronomy, biology, and history. Students must comprehend these lectures to answer test questions.

💡multiple choice questions

The TOEFL listening test uses multiple choice questions to evaluate test takers' listening comprehension. Students must choose the best answer from 4 options for each question based on the lectures, conversations, and talks they have listened to.

💡conversation

The video script contains several conversations between two or more speakers, like students and teachers. Students must comprehend these conversations in detail in order to answer multiple choice questions.

💡primary source

In the history lecture, primary sources are mentioned. These are original materials from the time period being studied, like literary works, archaeological finds, or historical records. Analyzing primary sources is key to reconstructing history.

💡origin of life

The astronomy lecture discusses theories about the origin of life on Earth billions of years ago. This involves bringing together findings from different fields like biology, astronomy, and geology to determine how the first living cells were created.

💡photosynthesis

Photosynthesis is the process plants use to convert sunlight into energy and produce oxygen. The lecture states that the emergence of photosynthesis was a major innovation that allowed life to spread on land by increasing oxygen levels.

💡astrobiologist

An astrobiologist studies the origin and evolution of life in the universe. Astrobiology combines different scientific fields like astronomy, biology, and chemistry to understand how life began on Earth and whether it exists elsewhere.

💡vocabulary

Understanding vocabulary words and concepts is key to comprehending academic lectures and conversations on the TOEFL listening test. The explanations provided analyze important vocabulary used in the video script.

Highlights

First major finding revealed

New theoretical framework proposed

Innovative methodology presented

Key practical applications discussed

Notable limitations identified

Transcripts

you're about to take a complete toefl

listening practice test now i know that

sounds pretty boring probably a million

other things you would rather be doing

but you're going to feel really good by

the end of this because you're going to

feel like you are ready and prepared for

the toefl test so four quick things to

tell you before you start this test

thing number one is that the answers are

in the description can't say this enough

answers are in the description

thing number two is that yes the answers

are in the description and there is a

link to a pdf that explains all the

answers download that pdf if you want to

know why a choice is correct or

incorrect

thing number three to keep in mind is

that on test day you will be in control

of your time

for this video we give a certain amount

of time for each question but just so

you know on test day you can click and

answer and go to the next one or take

longer it's up to you last thing to know

is that if you need help toefl courses

classes more practice questions toefl

evaluations there are links in the

description to all that at tstprep.com

that's it guys good luck and i'll see

you at the end

now

listen to a conversation between a

student and an advisor

hi mr sanders i know i'm a little early

for our meeting but i figured i'd see if

you want to get started anyways

sure come on in

thanks

so tell me what's going on you want to

apply for a job

yeah well i was thinking that if i don't

start working towards paying off my

student loans now i'm going to feel

really burdened and strapped for cash

after graduation

so i was hoping i would be able to join

the work study program and get a job on

campus

you're a smart student we can definitely

sign you up for the work study program

no problem

okay so let me get the form really

quickly here

right okay so the jobs offered in the

work study program are only part-time of

course so you can dedicate enough time

to your studies you can either apply for

a job that requires 10 hours a week or

20 hours a week i suggest you start with

a 10 hour a week so you don't overload

yourself

well i think i'd rather work 20 hours a

week i mean i want to make money faster

and pay off as much of my loans as

quickly as possible

ah it's good that you're thinking ahead

but considering you're a freshman with a

full class schedule it wouldn't be wise

to increase your workload so much

i'm a really hard worker though i know i

could do it i'm determined

i'm sure you are but if your grades slip

up you might not qualify again next year

for your current scholarship well

um i really wouldn't want that to happen

that would just put me into more debt

okay so what exactly do you recommend

i'm going to give you permission to work

10 hours a week in the work study

program i'll sign this form and then you

will need to take it to the job center

and they will help you find a job there

make sure you let them know it's for a

work study position since we have jobs

reserved for those students once you

find a job and work for a little bit see

how it goes and then we can discuss

giving you more hours

okay sounds like a plan thanks for your

help

now answer the questions

one

why does the student want to meet with

the advisor

two

listen again to part of the conversation

why does mr sanders say this

you're a smart student we can definitely

sign you up for the work study program

no problem

three

why does the student want to work 20

hours a week

four

why does mr sanders mention the students

current scholarship

five

what does mr sanders decide to do to

help the student

now listen to part of a talk in an

astronomy class

all right so just to quickly pick up

where we left off the ancient greeks and

romans believed there were seven planets

all these were visible to the naked eye

mars jupiter venus saturn mercury the

sun and the moon

nowadays we don't consider the sun and

the moon planets but as of right now we

have eight planets in our solar system

well nine if you count pluto as a planet

anyway so we have mars jupiter venus

saturn mercury earth and of course later

pluto as i just mentioned which gives us

seven

what two planets are we missing here

jeff

uranus and neptune i think that's right

the discovery of the planet neptune was

one of the highest points in the

development of gravitational theory you

might remember that most people before

this time believed in the geocentric

view of the earth that is that the earth

was the center of the universe and that

the sun and the moon and the rest of the

planets revolved around it

and it was copernicus who first proposed

the heliocentric model that is that the

earth and the other planets in our solar

system revolve around the sun

still it took a couple hundred years for

scientists and researchers to eventually

change their view and admit that the

heliocentric model was and is indeed

accurate

professor why did it take so long for

people to agree with copernicus i mean

didn't the heliocentric model make more

sense of course the other planets don't

revolve around the earth well i think

it's natural for us humans to believe we

are the center of the universe but

besides that copernicus couldn't explain

the reason why and how the planets

revolved around the sun the geocentric

model had been accepted for over a

thousand years copernicus couldn't prove

his hypothesis it was just a theory

now this is where the hero of the story

of the heliocentric model gravity comes

into play the motion of the planets had

to be explained through some type of

mechanism and that turned out to be

gravity

and it's the gravitational pull that

eventually helped astronomers understand

how the planets revolve around the sun

and that leads us to the discovery of

neptune okay

so

let's see who did the reading can anyone

tell me who discovered uranus

kim

it was william herschel in 1781 i think

well other people had seen it before but

he was the first to classify it as a

planet

and you remembered the year too very

nice

right so in the decade following its

discovery the orbit of uranus had been

calculated but there was a problem

uranus didn't move in the orbit

predicted by the theory of gravitational

pull and by 1840 over 50 years after it

was called a planet it was clear that

uranus did not move in orbit according

to the one predicted by gravitational

theory

in 1843

john couch adams a young englishman

began a detailed mathematical analysis

of the motion of uranus to see whether

they might be produced by the pole of an

unknown planet

he guessed that there must be a planet

more distant from the sun than uranus

and then determined the mass and orbit

it had to have to account for uranus's

strange orbit

about a month later an astronomer in

germany started to look for the planet

he quickly found and identified it it

was less than a degree from the position

predicted by adams

the discovery of the eighth planet now

known as neptune was a major triumph for

gravitational theory because it

dramatically confirmed its laws with a

great deal of accuracy

this discovery was a major step forward

in combining gravitational theory with

careful observations such work continues

in our own times with the discovery of

planets around other stars

and that leads me to

now

answer the questions

one

what is the lecture mainly about

two

why was copernicus's heliocentric idea

not accepted until hundreds of years

later

three

why was the discovery of neptune so

important

four

how does the professor organize the

lecture

five

what is the geocentric view of earth

six

what is the professor's opinion on the

discovery of neptune

now listen to a conversation between a

student and a teacher's assistant

oh hey john you're the ta for professor

stanton's literature class right yup

that's me i'm actually signed up for

that class but you didn't see me on the

first day because i was sick my friend

is in it though so she filled me in i'm

sorry to hear about that uh did your

friend make sure to tell you about the

first assignment yeah she did we have to

write a paper on the first couple

chapters of our book right yep that's

the one well now that i've run into you

i was actually wondering you're also the

ta first professor stanton's shakespeare

class right i was thinking of taking

that next semester and aren't you a

freshman you'll have to wait until next

year to sign up for the class

no i'm a sophomore actually but i

switched my major which is why i'm just

taking professor stanton's lit class

this year

oh okay sorry that's okay anyways i was

wondering what you think about the class

in terms of workload because i'll be

taking extra credits next semester and i

don't want to feel overwhelmed but i

also really love shakespeare

well in my opinion the class is really

fun as i'm sure you've heard but it's

also a lot of work you need to do a lot

of reading or you will quickly fall

behind in class

hmm

i mean yeah it sounds like an awesome

class but i'm worried that i wouldn't be

able to make the most of it if i'm

taking so many other classes

well you could always sign up and see

how it goes the first two weeks and if

it seems like too much you could drop

the class and just take it next year

when you have more time

that's a good idea i didn't even think

about that i forgot we had a couple of

weeks to make changes to our schedule

after the semester starts if i don't end

up taking the shakespeare class do you

have any other suggestions

um i'm not sure

i think you'll just have to research and

see what sounds best to you sure that's

fine i'll look into it well thanks for

the good idea i'll be sure to sign up

for the class next semester cool i hope

you like it me too see you in class next

week

now

answer the questions

one what does a student want to talk to

the ta about

two

why does the ta think the student is a

freshman

three

why is the student concerned about

taking professor stanton's shakespeare

class

four

what does the ta suggest the student do

select two

five

what does the student decide to do at

the end of the conversation

now listen to part of a talk in a world

history class

so it's time for us to move on to the

ancient greeks now this is one of my

favorite cultures from the ancient world

because it has such a rich history but

we have to be careful

before launching into the story of the

early greek world it's important to

consider how historians have gathered

all of this information in the first

place

modern scholars are obsessed with

analyzing primary sources and with good

reason especially when studying greek

history

it's kind of like trying to put together

a puzzle where most of the pieces are

missing well

here let me explain

the most common sources for greek

history fall within two categories

literary works which include fiction and

non-fiction and archaeological finds

so let's start with the literary side of

things can anyone tell me one of the

most famous books from the ancient world

well well i i should say it's more of an

epic yes martha of course there are

homer's iliad and odyssey i remember

reading them in high school

yeah i'm sure you're not alone on that

one homer's epics are considered

essential reading for most students

now from a historian's perspective

however they are quite a headache to

interpret you see the stories of the

iliad in the odyssey were originally

oral tales told through word of mouth

rather than written on paper the events

they described occurred well before they

were finally written down by homer in

the 6th century bc

these works most likely do not reflect

the society of any particular greek

city-state at any one period

but rather a mixture of places and times

their value for historians as a result

rests more on their impact on later

greek culture rather than on providing

information about the time that is

actually written about

professor what about herodotus i know

many consider him the father of history

but are his works more fiction or

non-fiction

good question and it's still the subject

of much debate herodotus mostly

described the history of athens and from

the way he writes it's clear that he is

athenian and very much concerned with

making his culture appear dominant so

it's hard to rely completely on his book

histories which describes the persian

war

now besides homer and herodotus we also

have the famous philosophies of plato

and aristotle now even though all of

these texts come from different fields

particularly literature history and

philosophy

we must still be cautious besides

believing in the superiority of their

own culture the authors of these sources

were men and provide very little

evidence of the lives and perspectives

of women in the greek world except as

seen through the eyes of men secondly

most of the authors were wealthy

individuals thus their perspective does

not reflect that of most citizens and

slaves

so professor

how can we really trust anything we

study about ancient greece

well remember besides literary sources

there is also thankfully archaeological

evidence that we can examine and

fill in the gaps so to speak from the

literature

archaeological sources provide us with

key information about different aspects

of everyday life in different

city-states for example

in one famous greek city archaeologists

found that each citizen was given an

equal piece of land

imagine every single person in a city

having an equal amount of space

this one simple find shows that the

greeks were interested in city planning

and inequality of citizens

now papyri which is kind of like old

paper include private documents like

agreements between families before

marriages divorce documents loans and

village police reports cattle theft

appears to have been a serious problem

in some regions so my point is that by

combining the literary and

archaeological sources historians can

complete much more of the puzzle than

would have been possible with just the

literature

still significant gaps in our knowledge

about ancient greece remains but that's

one of the joys of studying ancient

history we get to play the part of a

detective attempting to reconstruct the

history of events based on just a few

available clues

now let's start our detective work and

take a deeper look at the sources around

the trojan war

so the trojan war

now

answer the questions

one

what is the lecture mainly about

two

how does the professor organize the

lecture

three

why are homer's iliad and odyssey not

ideal sources for learning about ancient

greeks

4.

what does the professor say are some

problems with literary sources of

ancient greek history

select two

five why does the professor discuss

papyri

six

what is the professor's attitude towards

studying ancient history

now listen to part of a talk in an

astronomy class

now make no mistake about it studying

the origin evolution and distribution of

life in the universe is no easy task but

this is exactly what astrobiologists do

astrobiology brings together astronomers

chemists geologists and biologists to

work on the same problems from their own

fields

one issue that astrobiologists are

currently researching are the necessary

conditions for life to appear on earth

it's a long and complicated theory to be

sure but it can also be fascinating to

bring together information from

astronomy biology history and geology

and use this data to make a fairly

accurate prediction of how life on earth

came to be billions of years ago pretty

cool right all right well let's think

like astrobiologists and take a look out

into the solar system to find out just

how life started here on earth

i mean if you think about just how big

the universe is it's quite astounding

that we're here right now in human form

having the ability to talk about how we

got to be here in the first place

sorry i guess you can tell i get pretty

excited about this topic

taking a look out into the universe

astronomers have detected the chemical

building blocks in a wide range of

environments outside of our own planet

meteorites have been found to contain

two kinds of substances whose chemical

structures mark them as having an

extraterrestrial origin amino acids and

sugars

amino acids are organic compounds that

are molecular building blocks of

proteins

proteins are key biological molecules

that provide the structure and function

of the body's tissues and organs and

essentially carry out the work of the

cells in your body

when we examine the gas and dust around

the universe we also find a number of

organic molecules compounds that on

earth are associated with the chemistry

of life

while these materials that help create

life may be common in the universe it

still doesn't explain how a living cell

could come into creation

even the simplest molecules are

incredibly complex

furthermore even the most basic life

requires two special capabilities

a way of extracting energy from its

environment and means of storing and

repeating information in order to make

copies of itself

we are still a long way from knowing how

the two came together in the first life

forms

to be honest we have no solid evidence

to explain the scientific causes that

led to the origin of life on our planet

except for whatever early history may be

retained in present life forms like me

and you

we do not understand in any detail the

sequence of events that led from

molecules to biology but there is fossil

evidence of tiny organisms in three and

a half billion year old rocks which is

really such a huge amount of time that

it's hard for us to really comprehend

just how long that is

perhaps the most important innovation in

the history of biology apart from the

origin of life itself is the process of

photosynthesis the complex sequence of

chemical reactions through which some

living things can use the energy from

the sun to transform carbon dioxide into

oxygen among other things previously

life had to survive through sources of

chemical energy available on earth or

delivered from space

as plants went through the process of

photosynthesis they produced higher

quantities of oxygen the first traces of

large amounts of oxygen on earth enough

to support species has been estimated at

about 2 billion years ago which means

that these oxygen-producing life-forms

existed before then

the interaction of sunlight with oxygen

can produce ozone which collects in the

earth's atmosphere

as it does on earth today this ozone

provided protection from the sun's

damaging radiation which provides a much

better climate for life to grow

so just to sum it up

first the earth had to get some

chemicals from space like amino acids

and sugars and then somehow

these turned into the most basic life

forms possible which later developed

into species that could go through the

process of photosynthesis

photosynthesis increased the level of

oxygen in earth's atmosphere and this

allowed life to take over the land of

our planet instead of remaining only in

the ocean

now

answer the questions

one

what is the lecture mainly about

two

what is the professor's attitude towards

the topic

three

how does the professor organize the

lecture

four

what had to happen first for life to

appear on earth

five

why does the professor say this

perhaps the most important innovation in

the history of biology apart from the

origin of life itself is the process of

photosynthesis the complex sequence of

chemical reactions through which some

living things can use the energy from

the sun to transform carbon dioxide into

oxygen among other things

six

what does an astrobiologist do

all right congratulations you have made

it to the end about an hour of toefl

listening practice millions of other

things you could be doing but you did

this you focused on it good job

congratulate yourself

but

but

if you want to get ready like test day

right now

toefl reading and listening listening

section is done

now is a 10-minute break and the next

section is the dreaded toefl speaking so

watch this video right here to start the

toefl speaking section of the test

that's it good luck guys and i'll see

you in the next one all right take care