Toefl first test
Vocabulary
Listen task 1
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Catching up after a trip
Listen to two friends talking about a recent trip abroad to practise and improve your listening skills.
Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
See moreListening C1: Catching up after a trip – preparation
Transcript
See moreDave: Jean, hi!
Jean: Hi, Dave. How are you?
Dave: Good, good.
Jean: Wait a second, I’m not calling you in Canada, right? You’re back now, aren’t you?
Dave: Yeah, I got back two days ago.
Jean: Oh good, phew. Because I wouldn’t want to be calling you long distance without realising it and suddenly …
Dave: You’ve spent a fortune on a long-distance call. No, I know, it’s OK. I actually wouldn’t answer the phone while I was over there if I saw the call was coming from England. But no worries, we’re in the same country now.
Jean: Yeah. So, how was the trip? Did you meet your long-lost uncle?
Dave: I did, actually. It was very good. I flew to Toronto and stayed there for a few days. At first I was really worried about my accommodation because I kept reading these appalling stories about rental flats going all wrong.
Jean: Oh, was it one of those?
Dave: Yeah.
Jean: My friend had a disastrous experience in Barcelona with one of them. The place didn’t look anything like the photos, and all the neighbours hated that there was a holiday flat in their building. Awkward situation. Urgh.
Dave: Right. So, as I was saying, I was really worried because I heard these stories. And at first I couldn’t find the place. Turns out I was in the wrong building. It was next door, and on the top floor, and … wow. Jean, this place was fabulous! Really spacious, with these floor-to-ceiling windows and the most scenic views of the city. I could see the lake and the whole city skyline and skyscrapers from my bedroom. I had to pinch myself to prove I wasn’t dreaming.
Jean: Sounds pretty cool. So, what’s it like? The city, I mean. I’ve always wanted to go to Canada.
Dave: It’s nice. I mean, it’s another big, vibrant, modern city. But it’s really clean, and there’s lots of parks. One of the things I liked was the multiculturalism. We visited Chinatown, Little Italy, Greektown, Little India … umm, I can’t remember the others but it was sort of a new area every three or four blocks, you know?
Jean: Hey, is it true that there’s a whole part of the city that’s underground? I read that somewhere about Toronto, or saw it on some TV show.
Dave: It’s true! I asked about that. They call it the PATH. There’s, like, almost 30 kilometres of restaurants, shops, cinemas and stuff all underground. In the middle of the downtown area.
Jean: Amazing!
Dave: Yeah, but actually once you’re down there it’s not that noticeable. There’s actually a lot of natural light. I forgot we were underground. It’s mostly useful to get out of the cold weather.
Jean: What temperature was it while you were there?
Dave: It was still only November, but it was getting cold. We had at least a day where it was less than zero. My uncle told me that in January and February it can go down to 20 below zero.
Jean: Oh, wow. I think I’d die!
Dave: Yeah, and the worst thing was what they call the ‘wind-chill’ factor. So they say the temperature is zero degrees, but minus eight with the wind chill. So it feels like minus eight. And my uncle said the wind-chill factor can go down to minus 40.
Jean: Stop it! You’re making me feel cold just thinking about it. So, how was meeting your uncle? The famous Uncle George.
Dave: That was great too. He lives outside of Toronto, in a cottage by a lake. Really tranquil and unspoiled nature.
Jean: I’m dying to see photos. You want to meet up soon? Or are you too jet lagged still?
Dave: Yeah, I’m actually free tomorrow if you like.
Task 1
See moreListening C1: Catching up after a trip – 1
Task 2
See moreListening C1: Catching up after a trip – 2
Choose the correct option to complete the sentence.
Birthday parties
Listen to a conversation about birthday parties between three friends to practise and improve your listening skills.
Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
See moreListening C1: Birthday parties – preparation
Transcript
See moreMarco: The big four-oh, Charles!
Dora: Oh!! It’s your 40th!
Marco: Are you planning a party?
Charles: Nah, I never celebrate birthdays. I don’t see why this one should be any different.
Dora: Why not?
Charles: First, you know me, I can’t be bothered with the hassle. It’s my birthday but I’m supposed to do all the hard work – contacting people, finding a venue, organising food, worrying who will show up. No, thanks.
Marco: Ah, someone’s angling for a surprise party, eh, Dora?
Charles: Marco, stop! Even worse. Having to pretend to be delighted 50 people just sprang up in your living room when you thought you were coming home to put your feet up. Probably having a heart attack at the shock.
Dora: Note to self: never to organise you a surprise party. OK then!
Marco: You’ve got to do something, though, Charles. It’s your 40th.
Charles: Why? What’s so great about getting old?
Dora: Er … still being here to have your birthday?
Marco: Yeah, ‘Ageing is better than the alternative’, as they say.
Dora: Yeah, and it’s true – so why not celebrate?
Charles: You guys can have parties for your 40ths if you like. I just don’t go in for that kind of self-indulgent attention-seeking.
Dora: Wow, that’s a bit harsh! I had a huge bash for my 30th. And you came. And enjoyed yourself if I recall. Are you trying to say I was just doing it for attention?
Charles: Not exactly … but … well … at least a small part of you must have been.
Dora: Remind me not to invite you to my 40th then, so you won’t have to put up with my huge ego while I feed you and provide free drinks all night because I thought we were friends.
Charles: I meant, er, I mean, not all attention-seeking is bad. It’s just not my style is all.
Dora: Whereas it is mine?
Marco: Anyway …
Charles: I didn’t say that!
Dora: Er, yes, yes, you did. You said celebrating birthdays is self-indulgent and …
Marco: Guys, guys! Who knew birthdays was such a touchy subject? Speaking of which, I have to sort out my nine-year-old’s party the weekend after next.
Charles: Now, that’s a party I’d love to organise.
Marco: Really? It’s a nightmare. It’s not like when we were kids. Now you have to take them all rock-climbing or hire a make-up artist to come and teach them how to look like a zombie or a film star. And there’d be trouble if someone else in school had the same kind of party and your kid gets accused of copying. That fear you said about no one turning up? It’s a million times worse when you’re scared your kid is going to have no one turn up.
Charles: Is there that much pressure?
Marco: Yeah, it’s crazy. Last year, I got it right with a cinema trip. Simple, but always a winner. But we can’t do the same thing again apparently. It says it in my ‘Official Laws for 9-Year-Olds’ book.
Charles: That’s a pity. I’ve got so many fond memories of birthday parties as a kid. Party food and games and watching cartoons until your parents arrived.
Marco: Trust me, your parents were stressing out!
Dora: At the risk of restarting the argument, when do you think you stopped enjoying birthdays then?
Charles: I dunno really … somewhere around moving away from home and getting a job and being a grown-up. I don’t mean birthdays are immature. I mean, it takes a while to make new friends and so birthdays just become more low-key and it’s drinks with a couple of friends or dinner or something. And I just got out of the habit, I guess. Maybe I just need to have a kids-style party like we used to have! Play musical chairs and eat pineapple and cheese on sticks and all that.
Dora: Very retro. I bet people would love that.
Marco: Yeah, they would. Well, I would anyway. And maybe it’ll catch on with my kids and it’ll start a new party trend.
Charles: You’ve got me thinking … it’s not a terrible idea. Maybe I will have a party this year!
Task 1
See moreTask 2
See moreListening C1: Birthday parties – 2
Instructions for an assignment
Listen to a university teacher giving instructions for an assignment to practise and improve your listening skills.
Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
See MoreTranscript
See MoreI want to explain a few things about your essay.
First of all, the deadline. The deadline for this essay is October the 18th. Not the 19th, not the 28th, not two days later because your dog was ill or your computer broke – the 18th. If it’s late, I won’t mark it. I won’t even read it – you’ll fail the assignment! So, please hand it in on time. You can even hand it in early, if you like!
You can email me the essays at j.hartshorn@lmu.ac.uk. That’s H-A-R-T-S-H-O-R-N. I’ll reply to say I’ve got it. If I don’t reply within a day, it might mean I didn’t get it, so please email me again to make sure. You can also bring a paper copy of the essay to my office, but let’s be kind to the trees, OK? Email is better for the trees and for me.
Don’t forget that you must reference every idea or quote you use that isn’t your own idea. And the last page of your essay should be a list of all the books you used, in alphabetical order, not in the order you used them!
And lastly, make it easy for me to read! That means use a clear font. Arial is best, but Times New Roman is fine too. Not Comic Sans please! Size 12 font for the essay, and size 14 for the titles and subheadings. And use page numbers. Any questions?
Task 1
See MoreTask 2
See MoreGetting advice
Listen to someone getting advice from a friend to practise and improve your listening skills.
Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
See MoreListening B2: Getting advice – preparation
Match the words with the definitions.
Transcript
See MoreClara: Hi, how are you? I haven’t seen you in class for a while.
Ben: Good, thanks. You?
Clara: Great, as long as I don’t think too hard about all the essays I have to write this term!
Ben: Yeah …
Clara: Hey, are you OK?
Ben: I have to admit, I’m struggling a bit. Maybe even a lot. I’ve not been sleeping well at all and then I can’t concentrate. And all these things are just going around and around in my head.
Clara: Mmm … that doesn’t sound good. So, you’re sleeping badly and you can’t concentrate. Is that all it is, do you think?
Ben: Well, if I’m honest, it’s more than that. I’m starting to dread going outside. I find myself worrying about stupid things like what if I forget the way home. Or, what if I go to class thinking it’s Monday but actually it’s Friday and I’m in the wrong place at the wrong time. It sounds even more stupid when I say it out loud. It took me two hours to leave the house today.
Clara: It doesn’t sound stupid at all. It actually sounds a lot like me last year.
Ben: Really? But you’re so together!
Clara: I’ve learned to be, but even I still have bad days. I used to have panic attacks and everything. When you were trying to leave the house today, how did you feel?
Ben: Like I couldn’t breathe. And my heart was going way too fast.
Clara: Hmm … that sounds like a panic attack to me.
Ben: I thought I was going to die.
Clara: You’d be surprised how common they are. Loads of people have them, they just don’t talk about it.
Ben: How did you get over them?
Clara: I actually talked to a doctor about it, and you should too. But I learned some practical things as well. Though they’re easier said than done, and they’re going to sound weird, so hear me out, OK?
Ben: OK …
Clara: So, one thing I did was to try to reduce the power of the anxiety and the panic attacks when they came. So – and this may sound strange – at a time when you’re feeling safe and OK, you literally do things that make your heart start racing faster and your breathing speed up. Like spinning around on a chair until you’re dizzy or hyperventilating so you’re short of breath.
Ben: That sounds awful!
Clara: It is, but it means you get used to the symptoms, so they feel less scary.
Ben: Right.
Clara: Then you have to deliberately do the things that usually make you feel panic. So, if it’s going to class on Monday and being scared you’ve got the wrong day, on Monday you go to class. If you let the anxiety control you by making you stay at home, it just makes it worse the next time you really do have to go out.
Ben: And what did you do if a panic attack came anyway?
Clara: I had a distraction plan. So, I walked everywhere instead of taking the bus because the exercise helped, but also I did things like count trees or red cars or something. Whatever it was didn’t matter, as long as I had something else to focus on.
Ben: I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this. I thought …
Task 1
See MoreTask 2
See MoreListening B2: Getting advice – 2
Put the pieces of advice in the order you hear them.
At the chemist
Listen to a conversation at a chemist’s to practise and improve your listening skills.
Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
See moreListening B1: At the chemist – preparation
Put the words in the correct group.
Transcript
See moreChemist: Hello, can I help?
Customer: Yes, my wife sent me here. I, erm, need something for a sore throat … and I can’t stop coughing. It really hurts.
Chemist: Do you have a headache too?
Customer: Not really, no.
Chemist: Well, we have this syrup. And these lozenges.
Customer: Which is better?
Chemist: They’re both good. The syrup is more expensive.
Customer: Oh, well … I’ll take the lozenges, then. How many do I take?
Chemist: Just one.
Customer: Sorry, I’m sorry. Er, how often should I take it?
Chemist: Just one every four to six hours. Take it before mealtimes. Are you allergic to any medicine?
Customer: No.
Chemist: Then you’ll be fine with this.
Customer: Can I get some antibiotics too?
Chemist: I’m afraid you need a prescription for that.
Customer: Ah.
Chemist: You know, you should really see a doctor if that cough continues.
Customer: Thanks. I know.
Chemist: Anything else?
Customer: No, thanks.
Chemist: That’ll be £7.49 then, please.
Task 1
See moreTask 2
See moreFour conversations
Listen to four conversations to practise and improve your listening skills.
Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
See MoreListening A2: Four conversations – preparation
Put the words and phrases in the correct group.
Transcript
See MoreA
Man: How did it go?
Woman: Umm, I think it went quite well. I did a lot of research and prepared a lot. I was in there for … I don’t know … half an hour?
Man: And? What did they say?
Woman: Nothing much. At the end I asked them, ‘What happens now?’, and the woman said, ‘We’ll call you back with news in three or four days.’
Man: Really?
Woman: Yeah, I think I’ve got the job. There weren’t a lot of other people there. I was the only interview that day, you know?
Man: Well, good luck with it.
B
Man: Anyway, you were saying …
Woman: Oh, yeah, um … let’s see. Yes, so I was in the museum and there were, I don’t know, a hundred people waiting to get into the room. Finally, I got in, and I tried to see the Mona Lisa but I couldn’t look at it.
Man: Why not?
Woman: Because the room was filled with people taking photographs of it!
Man: Oh, right.
Woman: Yes! And selfies.
Man: Wait a minute. You can take photos while you’re in there?
Woman: Yes, but you can’t use flash. I don’t know … Why do we take photos of everything we see when we travel?
Man: I know. And we never look at the photos after.
Woman: Exactly! I’m tired of always taking photos. I don’t feel I’m enjoying things.
C
Man: Who took this?
Woman: I can’t remember. Hmmm …
Man: What am I doing?
Woman: You’re sitting on the sofa, watching TV and eating chocolates. Nothing changes!
Man: Ha! Very funny. You look very young, though.
Woman: I know. Look at my hair – it was so long!
Man: Mine too, look at me! Hey … I think I know who took this photo.
Woman: Umm … who? Was it Dad?
Man: No, it wasn’t Dad or Mum. Do you remember Barry?
Woman: No.
Man: Yes, YES! You do remember. Barry, your boyfriend at high school. You were seventeen and he was sixteen and he was so very polite: ‘Hello, I’m Barry. It’s very nice to meet you …’
Woman: Stop it! He was nice.
Man: Yeah, well, he took the photo.
D
Woman: Let’s see. OK. I’m glad we could talk about this. It’s not easy to say.
Man: What?
Woman: Well, you’re not in our group – for the class project.
Man: What do you mean? You know I’m always in a group with you.
Woman: I know. It’s just that this time … this time we made the group differently and because you were late …
Man: I see. You don’t want me in the group?
Woman: No, no. It isn’t that. It’s that we’ve already made the group, see? There’s four of us already.
Man: So? We can’t be a group of five?
Woman: Well, the teacher said four people per group.
Man: Oh.
Woman: It’s not about you or your work or anything like that. It’s … errrr … well, we already have the group.
Man: So I have to find another group.
Woman: I’m sorry.
Task 1
See MoreListening A2: Four conversations – 1
Match the topics with each conversation.
Task 2
See MoreMeeting other students
Listen to a group of new students meeting for the first time to practise and improve your listening skills.
Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Transcript
See MoreTeacher: So, now you’ve got the important information, it’s time to meet each other. Everyone turn to the people next to you and introduce yourselves.
Cara: So, hi. I’m Cara. And you are?
Robert: Robert.
Selim: Selim.
Cara: Nice to meet you!
Robert and Selim: You too.
Robert: Nice accent. Where are you from?
Cara: I’m from Glasgow.
Robert: Oh, really? My mum’s from near Glasgow, so I’m half Scottish.
Cara: Cool. Do you live in Scotland?
Robert: No, we live in England, near Manchester. My dad’s from there. What about you, Selim?
Selim: I’m from Leeds originally but I grew up near London.
Cara: Are you both doing history on its own?
Selim: No. I’m doing history and German.
Robert: I’m doing it with maths, actually.
Selim: History and maths. That’s different!
Robert: Yeah, I couldn’t decide between arts and sciences. Maths doesn’t help with remembering dates, though! And you?
Cara: I’m doing history and French.
Selim: I wanted to do French but German was easier, so I took that.
Cara: German is so hard!
Task 1
See MoreListening A1: Meeting other students – 1
Put the phrases in the correct group.
Task 2
See MoreListening A1: Meeting other students – 2
Put the sentences in the correct order.
Meeting a new team member
Listen to a conversation between two new colleagues to practise your listening skills.
Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
See moreListening A1: Meeting a new team member – preparation
Transcript
See morePeter: Hi, my name’s Peter. What’s your name?
Carla: Hi, Peter. I’m Carla. I’m new here.
Peter: Welcome to the company, Carla.
Carla: Thanks, Peter. I’m happy to be here and it’s nice to meet you.
Peter: It’s nice to meet you too.
Carla: Where do you work?
Peter: I work in the design team. We sit over there.
Carla: I’m in the marketing team. I started last week.
Peter: You work in marketing? That’s very interesting.
Carla: Yes, it is. I’m enjoying it. But there are a lot of new things to learn.
Peter: I’m sure there are. I’m happy to help you if I can.
Carla: Thank you, Peter. What do you do in the design department?
Peter: I design new products.
Carla: That sounds interesting. I plan marketing events for new products. So I think we’ll work together sometimes.
Peter: That would be great. So, where are you from, Carla?
Carla: Brazil. And you?
Peter: I’m from the UK.
Carla: How long have you been here?
Peter: I’ve worked here for three years but I actually moved here from the UK five years ago, to study.
Task 1
See moreListening A1: Meeting a new team member – 1
Are the sentences true or false?
Task 2
See moreListening A1: Meeting a new team member – 2
Match the sentences with who said them.
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