The Ultimate TOEFL Vocabulary List: 150 Best Words to Boost Your Score

Key takeaways:

• The TOEFL tests academic English, not daily conversation. The vocabulary can feel advanced, so studying is crucial to understanding and using these words.
• Learning words by test section helps you study smarter. Focus on the reading, listening, writing, and speaking sections. 
• Knowing words isn’t enough; make sure to use them accurately. Take practice tests and use these words in sentences, speaking answers, and short essays. Work with professional TOEFL tutors for targeted feedback.

If prepping for the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language), you need to study TOEFL vocabulary. People take this exam to get into English language universities, or apply for work or immigration. But the exam is based on academic English, and the words can be challenging.

As a native English tutor, I know you wouldn’t use TOEFL vocabulary words in everyday conversations. This makes studying crucial. You can’t get a good score without understanding word meanings and using vocabulary accurately. So below, I’ve listed the 150 most useful words for the TOEFL exam. 

There’s no official TOEFL word list. These words were chosen because they’re commonly used in academic writing, and they’re what TOEFL students encounter on the real test. So make flashcards and add them to your study materials. Better yet, practice them with a professional TOEFL tutor to make sure you use them correctly.

TOEFL vocabulary list by category

Instead of listing 150 words outright, I’ve split the TOEFL vocabulary words into sections. They’re grouped by how you’d likely find them on the exam. There are general academic words throughout the whole test. But certain words pop up more in the reading, listening, writing, or speaking sections. 

Academic & general words

This academic word list has vocabulary you’ll find across all sections of the TOEFL ibt. You’ll see these words in reading passages and academic lectures on the test. Having a wide range of English vocabulary is useful for expressing your ideas clearly in speaking and writing responses. 

Word	Definition	Example Sentence
community	group living together	The community supports the school.
culture	traditions and values	Culture shapes communication styles.
crucial	extremely important	Trust is crucial in teamwork.
data	collected information	The data supports the claim.
economy	system of money and jobs	Tourism supports the economy.
education	process of learning	Education opens job opportunities.
environment	natural world or surroundings	Pollution harms the environment.
evidence	proof	There is evidence of climate change.
global	worldwide	Climate change is a global problem.
government	group that rules a country	The government changed the law.
impact	strong effect	Education has a big impact on income.
industry	business activity	The tech industry is expanding.
infrastructure	roads, schools, systems	Infrastructure supports growth.
innovation	new ideas or methods	Innovation increases efficiency.
limited	not large in amount	The school has limited funding.
policy	official plan or rule	The policy reduces pollution.
population	people living in an area	The population is growing rapidly.
potential	possible future ability	She has great potential.
resources	useful materials or support	Natural resources must be protected.
significant	important; strong effect	The change was significant.
society	people under shared systems	Society benefits from cooperation.
technology	scientific tools	Technology improves education.
tendency	common behavior pattern	There is a tendency to overwork.
widespread	happening in many places	Internet access is widespread.

Reading vocabulary

Studying vocabulary helps you understand reading passages on the TOEFL test. As of January 2026, there are two reading sections with follow-up questions: Read in Daily Life and Read an Academic Passage. The latter has more advanced vocabulary. There is also a Complete the Word section, so the more vocab you remember, the better.   

Word	Definition	Example Sentence
analyze	study in detail	The author analyzes social behavior.
assume	accept without proof	The theory assumes stable conditions.
claim	state as true	The article claims the method is effective.
conclude	decide after thinking	The study concludes that exercise helps memory.
conversely	in the opposite way	Sales increased; conversely, costs decreased.
demonstrate	clearly show	The experiment demonstrates the effect of heat.
dispute	argue against	Some scientists dispute the results.
emerge	appear	New problems began to emerge.
evaluate	judge quality or value	Researchers evaluate the success of the program.
examine	look at closely	The paper examines economic trends.
infer	guess based on evidence	We can infer the cause from the data.
indicate	show or suggest	The chart indicates steady growth.
interpret	explain meaning	Historians interpret events differently.
maintain	continue or claim	The author maintains this position.
predict	say what will happen	Experts predict population growth.
refute	prove wrong	New data refuted the old theory.
reveal	make known	The survey revealed student preferences.
unlike	different from	Unlike adults, children learn faster.
verify	confirm as true	The information was verified by experts.
whereas	while contrasting	Urban areas grew, whereas rural areas declined.

Listening vocabulary

In this section, you listen to statements, conversations, announcements, and academic talks. Speakers might explain processes, problems, and solutions. Review these words and practice English listening skills to help you follow along and answer questions. 

Word	Definition	Example Sentence
affect	influence	Sleep affects memory.
clarify	explain clearly	The teacher clarified the point.
compare	find similarities and differences	We compared both methods.
confirm	make sure	Please confirm the data.
contribute to	help cause	Stress contributes to illness.
depend on	rely on	Results depend on effort.
determine	decide or control	Weather determines crops.
emphasize	say is important	She emphasized safety.
enable	make possible	Grants enable research.
estimate	roughly calculate	The cost is estimated.
generate	produce	Solar panels generate power.
identify	recognize	Scientists identify patterns.
influence	affect	Media influences behavior.
lead to	cause	Errors lead to delays.
likely	probably	Rain is likely tomorrow.
meanwhile	at same time	Sales fell; meanwhile, costs rose.
observe	watch carefully	Researchers observe animals.
occur	happen	Problems may occur.
prevent	stop	Vaccines prevent disease.
produce	make	Factories produce goods.
propose	suggest formally	He proposed a solution.
recommend	suggest	Doctors recommend exercise.
regulate	control	Laws regulate trade.
respond	react	Students responded well.
result in	cause	Stress may result in illness.
subsequently	afterward	She moved and subsequently worked.
unlikely	probably not	Prices are unlikely to drop.
vary	change	Results may vary.

Writing vocabulary 

As of 2026, the TOEFL ibt consists of three written assignments. The Build a Sentence section requires you to create a sentence from a list of given words. You’ll also need to Write an Email and Write for an Academic Discussion, which may require high-level vocabulary. Make sure to use words accurately, follow English spelling rules, and practice English composition skills.

Word	Definition	Example Sentence
advocate	support publicly	Many groups advocate education reform.
allocate	distribute	Funds were allocated to public schools.
argue	give reasons for	Some people argue that exams cause stress.
assert	state strongly	The author asserts that technology improves learning.
challenge	question or oppose	The article challenges traditional beliefs.
consequently	as a result	Costs increased; consequently, profits fell.
elaborate	give more detail	The author elaborates on the main point in the final paragraph.
for instance	for example	For instance, online tools can save time.
generally	usually	Generally, students prefer flexible schedules.
highlight	draw attention to	This sample highlights the main problem.
however	in contrast	The idea is good; however, it is expensive.
implement	put into action	The school implemented new safety rules.
in addition	also	In addition, the plan reduces costs.
in summary	to conclude	In summary, both sides make valid points.
justify	give good reasons	The benefits justify the expense.
primarily	mainly	The study focuses primarily on adults.
support	give evidence for	Statistics support the conclusion.
sustain	keep going	The program helps sustain local businesses.
therefore	as a result	The data is unclear; therefore, more research is needed.
ultimately	in the end	Ultimately, experience is more important than theory.

Speaking vocabulary

The TOEFL Speaking’s Listen and Repeat section is just as it sounds. Sentences will be heard but not written. Becoming familiar with words makes it easier to remember and repeat accurately. The Interview section involves answering questions with no prep, so quick access to vocab is crucial. You might need to provide facts, describe an experience, and give opinions.

The best way to overcome the fear of speaking English is to practice. Learn the words below, and run through the TOEFL Speaking exercises out loud. I also recommend hiring a native English tutor to ensure you make sense and your pronunciation is accurate. 

Word	Definition	Example Sentence
adapt	change to fit	Students adapt quickly.
adjust	change slightly	I adjusted my plan.
agree	have same opinion	I agree with that idea.
choose	select	I chose online classes.
decide	make a choice	I decided to practice daily.
decline	decrease	Attendance declined.
describe	give details	I described my experience.
develop	grow	Skills develop with time.
disagree	have different view	I disagree politely.
experience	have event	I experienced culture shock.
expect	believe will happen	I expect improvement.
expand	grow larger	The program expanded.
explain	make clear	Let me explain.
for example	give example	For example, podcasts help.
improve	become better	Practice improves speaking.
in particular	especially	In particular, listening is hard.
mention	say briefly	She mentioned costs.
on the other hand	contrast	It’s cheap; on the other hand risky.
overall	in general	Overall, it was useful.
plan	decide future action	I plan to review nightly.
prefer	like more	I prefer morning study.
reason	cause	My reason is time limits.
share	tell others	I’d like to share an idea.
shift	change direction	Opinions shifted quickly.
solve	find solution	We solved the issue.
suggest	give idea	I suggest daily practice.

Advanced vocabulary

Using advanced TOEFL vocabulary words across sections can strengthen your overall score. However, make sure you’re using them correctly, especially in speaking and writing. 

Word	Definition	Example Sentence
accelerate	increase speed	Technology accelerates growth.
accumulate	gather over time	Debt accumulated quickly.
assess	evaluate carefully	Teachers assess progress.
coexist	exist together	Cultures can coexist.
compensate	make up for	He compensated for delays.
comply	follow rules	Companies must comply.
constrain	limit	Budgets constrain projects.
considerable	fairly large	There was considerable progress.
consumption	use of resources	Energy consumption increased.
deteriorate	become worse	Conditions deteriorated.
diminish	reduce	Pain diminished gradually.
distribution	spreading of items	Food distribution was delayed.
efficient	working well	The system is efficient.
evolve	develop over time	Languages evolve naturally.
excessive	too much	Excessive stress harms health.
facilitate	make easier	Apps facilitate learning.
fluctuate	change often	Prices fluctuate weekly.
inevitable	unavoidable	Change is inevitable.
inhibit	stop or slow	Fear inhibits learning.
integrate	combine	Schools integrate technology.
maximize	increase fully	We maximize efficiency.
minimize	reduce fully	They minimized waste.
moderate	not extreme	Moderate exercise helps.
negligible	very small	The error was negligible.
offset	balance against	Gains offset losses.
prevalent	common	The habit is prevalent.
reinforce	strengthen	Practice reinforces skills.
stabilize	become steady	Markets stabilized.
substantial	large and important	There was substantial improvement.
transform	change completely	Education transforms lives.
trigger	cause suddenly	News triggered panic.
utilize	use effectively	Firms utilize software.

Take your TOEFL test preparation to the next level

You can study for the TOEFL test solo, but working with a professional tutor is the fastest way to improve your score. italki has professional English tutors specializing in TOEFL prep. These teachers design personalized classes with your specific needs in mind. If you have trouble using vocab words, they help you understand the meaning and form new sentences. 

A huge benefit of italki’s TOEFL online classes is the practice tests. Teachers correct your mistakes and see which areas you need to improve in. italki teachers also offer TOEFL speaking practice, which means feedback from native speakers in real time. With all this support, you can fine-tune your areas of weakness to feel confident and prepared on test day. 

Learn TOEFL vocabulary faster and boost your score with italki’s expert TOEFL teachers. Trusted by over 5 million students and operating for 15+ years, italki makes it easy to start improving. Book your first lesson today.

FAQs 

How to prepare for TOEFL vocabulary?

To prepare for the exam, review lists of commonly used TOEFL vocabulary. Make sure you fully understand the meaning of each word. Practice pronouncing the words, then using them to form sentences, both in speaking and writing. 

Is 1 month enough for TOEFL?

If you already have a solid foundation in English, one month of TOEFL prep should be enough. Familiarize yourself with the test format and scoring system. Take practice tests to identify weaknesses, then focus on those. Dedicate an hour or more daily to studying vocabulary, grammar, listening, speaking, reading, and writing. 

Still a beginner? You’re probably wondering how do I learn English fast? If this is the case, one month won’t be enough to score highly on the TOEFL, but you can definitely improve your score with consistent exposure and targeted practice. 

Is 72 a good TOEFL score?

A 72 on the TOEFL is considered below average to moderate. It is just below the median score (50th percentile) for all test takers. This is based on the previous scoring system out of 120. A 72 would be similar to a 3.5 on the current scoring scale (1-6). Some institutions, like community colleges, may accept a 72/120, but more competitive universities or visa requirements wouldn’t.

How rare is 120 in TOEFL?

A 120 on the TOEFL is extremely rare. This would mean a perfect score (120/120) based on the previous TOEFL scoring scale. As of January 2026, the scoring system has moved to a 1-6 scale, making a perfect score a 6/6. 

Is TOEFL harder than IELTS?

Whether TOEFL is harder than IELTS depends on your strengths and weaknesses. They are both English proficiency tests, but TOEFL focuses on academic English and integrated tasks, while IELTS includes more everyday topics. Because of this, TOEFL vocabulary often feels more advanced. 

The most common TOEFL exam is the TOEFL ibt, which is conducted online. The IELTS can be taken in person or online. One main difference is that the TOEFL ibt Speaking portion is entirely computer-based. You answer prerecorded questions by speaking into a microphone. On the IELTS, you answer questions face-to-face or over video call directly with the examiner.