TOEFL Vocabulary Guide

Test of English as Foreign Language (TOEFL) assesses the English language skills of candidates with a native language other than English. Applicants wishing to study or work abroad need to furnish their TOEFL scores. It measures a candidate's abilities in listening, reading, speaking, and writing skills. 

To ace the TOEFL test, test takers must be well versed with good vocabulary. There are many TOEFL vocabulary exercises that you can check out to practice before the examination. At the same time, here is a handy TOEFL vocabulary list for your perusal. This will stand you in good stead for the TOEFL vocabulary test.

TOEFL vocabulary list with meaning

If you are practicing your vocabulary and grammar for the TOEFL test, here are some category-wise options for your perusal. 

Business & Enterprise

1. To launch any product/service- It means the beginning of commercial marketing/selling any product/service, and also the start of promotions for the same amongst the targeted audiences. 
2. Lay-off/Laying-off- This means termination of the employment contract for employees by any company. 
3. Lifestyle business- This is a business that has been established with the aim of generating adequate income as its primary goal. 
4. Making a profit- Earning sufficient revenues exceeding business costs. 
5. Niche Entity/Business- This means any business/company in a small, specific, and particular segment/market/category. 
6. Raising company profiles- This equates to spreading awareness about a business amongst prospective consumers and the general audience. 
7. Sales figures- These indicate the amounts generated by any company through selling its products/services. This can also be equated to the revenues of an organization. 
8. Stiff competition- This means strong competitors in the market for any business in the same segment/business category. 
9. Taking on/take on employees- This means hiring/recruiting/employing more personnel/staff members/employees. 

Shopping & Retail

1. Tight budget (on a tight budget) - Having a restricted/limited sum of money to spend on anything. 
2. Being on commission- Paying a specific sum of money (often a percentage) to someone for selling anything. This is related to the amount sold by the individual or entity. 
3. Paying in cash- This means paying for something with physical cash or currency/money. 
4. Bargain- Anything that is a great deal or affordable/cheaper than its regular price in the market. 
5. Full price- The total amount payable for anything. 
6. Running up credit card bills- Owing money as debt on credit card purchases, which are also subject to interest. 
7. Shopping around- Trying out various stores and retailers in order to get the best possible deals/offers. 
8. Shop assistants- They are the ones who guide customers and serve them at physical stores. 
9. Shop until you drop- Shopping for things until one is absolutely exhausted! It signifies a massive volume of shopping that is done! 

Books and Movies

1. Catching a movie- Going to watch a movie or watching a movie. 
2. Blockbuster- Any movie that has succeeded in commercially earning stellar revenues. 
3. Classic- Something of the best possible quality, something iconic, and something that is a benchmark in the industry. 
4. Central character- The main individual or person in any movie or book, around whom the story revolves. 
5. Highly recommended- Endorsed, supported, and backed by anyone/anything. 
6. Unputdownable- Anything that is hard to set aside, be it a movie or a book. It is so gripping that one has to watch it fully. 
7. E-books- Digitally-published books. 
8. E-readers- Digital reading devices such as Kindle. 
9. General release- Any release for the general audience or mass/public. 
10.  Flicking through- Swiftly browsing through/reading through/looking through something. 
11.  Hardback- Books with hard and rigid covers. 
12.  Paperback- Books with softer covers. 

These terms will help with your TOEFL reading vocabulary and your TOEFL writing vocabulary.

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Other important words

There are many other important words and phrases that will help you improve your TOEFL listening vocabulary or your TOEFL speaking vocabulary. These include the following:

Word	Definition
Abundant	Something present in sufficient or ample quantities
Accumulate	To collect or build up something steadily/gradually
Accurate	Something that is error-free and correct
Acquire	Get possession of or purchase something
Advocate	To support/back something publicly
Aggregate	Combining something
Allocate	Putting something aside for any purpose, or giving specific things to specific parties, i.e. allocating duties to people
Anomaly	Anything that is a deviation or grossly different from convention
Annual	Something that takes place yearly
Arbitrary	Any decision of a random and sudden nature, often based on a whimsical thought process
Augment	To augment something means making it bigger, or increasing it
Cognizant	Possessing knowledge of something or being aware of anything
Cohesion	Fusion, unity, joining together
Concur	The act of agreeing with something/someone
Copious	Sufficient or abundant, usually used to denote quantities
Deplete	This means reducing or considerably lowering something
Deposit	It means anything delivered anywhere or to anyone. Alternatively, it may also mean a sum of money that is kept with the bank or any other financial institution
Estimate	Any value or figure that is an approximation or assumed
Exclusive	Anything restricted to specific groups/categories/people/other conditions, while not admitting the majority
Expand	To grow or enhance in size
Extension	Increasing the tenure of something or making it longer, i.e., an extension of his contract as Chairman
Finite	Something with a limit or end
Framework	Any structure, mechanism, or system for something
Fundamental	Anything that is the basic, primary, or core concept, idea, or aspect
Hypothesis	A theory/idea which attempts at proving something, although it has not been proven yet
Incentive	Anything which induces someone to do something, an attraction, or bonus, as it were
Inflate	To scale up in terms of size or increase, i.e., He realized that he was paying an inflated value in rentals
Lag	To stay behind or fall behind
Legitimate	Something legal.
Maximize	To increase or enhance something
Measure	The dimensions, size, and intricacies of something
Minimum	The lowest/smallest measure of something
Modify	Changing anything or revamping anything or even tweaking anything
Origin	The source of something or its starting point or even roots
Peak	The best and highest point of something.
Reform	Change or measure that brings about positive improvements
Scrutinize	Examine or analyze something with great care and attention
Shrink	To reduce in size or become smaller
Speculate	To form an opinion, conclusion, judgment, idea, or theory, without any evidence
Strategy	A blueprint or guideline for arriving at an objective
Transition	Evolution or change across positions/conditions/ideas/philosophies/actions
Verdict	Any decision, judgment or conclusion given by an authority

 

These are some technical and financial terms, while there are some other words. They will help you prepare better for the examination. There are many other types of words that you can look up. These are only a few examples.

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TOEFL Vocabulary Exercise

Question Type

Select the right word for the definitions given below- 

Question 1

To approve of, overlook, accept, or excuse any behavior which is otherwise taken as wrongful or unacceptable. 

Options- 

1. To forgive
2. To be generous
3. To be merciful
4. To be kind
5. To condone 

Question 2

Trying very hard to accomplish anything. 

Options- 

1. Venturing into something. 
2. Beginning something. 
3. Striving to achieve something. 
4. Pursuing something. 

Question 3

Anything showcasing the dates and holidays for the year. 

Options- 

1. Journal
2. Notebook
3. Calendar
4. Diary 

Question 4

Being fully visible, crystal clear, and honest. 

Options- 

1. Transparent
2. Reflective
3. Concealed
4. Outward 

5. Something like an activity or any process with a step-wise approach, one after the other.

Options- 

1. In a sequence. 
2. In disparate forms. 
3. In a cocoon. 
4. In direct relation to one another. 

Question Type

Select the right word from the given list, the best possible/most suitable option for the highlighted phrase/word (in bold). 

Question 6

1. They tried very hard to stalk and trap it. 
2. Chase
3. Poach
4. Hunt 

Question 7

The children were taught to obey their teachers. 

1. Listen to. 
2. Ignore. 
3. Rebuke. 
4. Oppose. 

Question 8

He was riding a costly motorcycle that was considered flashy for the times. 

1. Stylish. 
2. Ugly. 
3. Displeasing. 
4. Expensive. 

Question 9

 She was more inclined towards periodic fits of anger these days. 

1. Occasional. 
2. Regular. 
3. Rare. 
4. Frequent. 

Question 10 

How on earth did you get tangled up in this mess? 

1. Mixed. 
2. Choked. 
3. Twisted.