TOEFL Reading Practice 2026: How to Practise Each Task

What the 2026 reading section asks for

Reading is about 27-30 minutes and 50 items across three task types, scored on the 1-6 scale. It is multistage adaptive: a router module of about 18-21 minutes, then either a lower or an upper module of about 9. Some items are non-scored, used to calibrate future tests. What that means for practice is that the task types need different techniques — scanning a notice is not reading an academic argument — and that accuracy early in the section is worth more than a fast finish.

Item counts and timings from the April 2026 ETS blueprint, as summarised in the TOEFL 2026 test structure guide. Timing is approximate.

Complete the Words: practise it now, free

Start here. Each blank is the second half of one known word, so a browser page can mark it honestly — and this one does, with no account, no email and nothing sent to a server. 6 passages, 54 blanks, beginner to advanced.

These are LingoLeap's own practice passages, already published on our practice and exercises pages. They are shorter than the real task — 34-42 words with 8-10 blanks, against 70-100 words and exactly 10 — but keep its structure: the first sentence is intact and the blanks are spread across the rest. If JavaScript is off, every passage and answer is written out below.

Practising Read in Daily Life

The texts are short and nonacademic — 15 to 150 words of notice, email, schedule, advertisement, web page, memo or community announcement — and the questions ask for a detail, the purpose of the text, or a practical inference. Shorter does not mean easier: the skill is different — fast functional scanning, attention to formatting, practical inference — and students who only practise academic reading can find it surprisingly tricky.

What practice has to build is targeted scanning. Read the question before the text; use headers, bold type and bullet points to jump to the right place; and watch for texts that list several dates, names or options, where the wrong answer is the neighbouring detail. If a single question is taking you more than about two minutes, that is the signal you are overreading.

Work through the guided Daily Life passages first, then the harder exercises, with the scanning strategies alongside.

Practising Read an Academic Passage

About 200 words of university-level expository prose — biology, geology, history, archaeology, anthropology, environmental science — followed by main idea, detail, vocabulary-in-context, inference, purpose and structure questions. It is the most demanding reading task and the one closest to the old TOEFL, although the passage is far shorter than it used to be.

Practise reading for structure rather than for recall. Take the topic sentence of each paragraph on the first pass, so you have a map; then, for each question, go back to the part of the passage it points at. The passage is always on screen, and the wrong answers are built from plausible details for readers working from memory. Leave outside knowledge out of it — no specialist background is needed, and the questions test what the passage says, not what you already know about the topic.

Start with the guided academic passages, move to the timed exercises, and keep the question types guide open until every format is familiar.

A practice routine that fits the section

1. 1. Master each task type separately first

   Before any full-section practice, give each task its own sessions: Complete the Words until restoring words from context feels natural, Daily Life until you scan documents rather than read them, Academic Passages until every question type is familiar.

2. 2. Then practise under a timer, every time

   Untimed practice feels very different from the test. Complete the Words runs at about 3-4 minutes a passage; move quickly through it and Daily Life so the Academic Passage gets the time it needs.

3. 3. Analyse every wrong answer — and every lucky one

   After each session, review what you got wrong and what you got right but were unsure of. Know why the right answer is right and why each distractor is wrong.

4. 4. Build vocabulary in context, not from lists

   TOEFL vocabulary is academic and formal. Meet words in reading, pay attention to word families and suffixes such as -tion, -ment, -ous and -ive, and watch words with more than one meaning.

5. 5. Finish with full adaptive sections

   Once each task is comfortable, sit complete reading sections to build stamina and the switch between task types — and treat the first module as seriously as the last.

Mistakes that practice should be fixing

Drill passages and answers

The full text of each passage, with every restored word and the clue that gives it away.

1. Passage 1 · Weather and Climate · Beginner

   Weather describes the conditions of the atmosphere at a specific time and place. Temperature and humidity are two important factors that scientists measure every day. These measurements help forecasters predict storms and other events.

   • Temper___ → Temperature — Noun — topic word from first sentence context
   • humi___ → humidity — Noun — paired with 'Temperature' via 'and'
   • impor___ → important — Adjective modifying 'factors'
   • scien___ → scientists — Plural noun — subject of 'measure'
   • d___ → day — Short noun — 'every day' is a common collocation
   • measure___ → measurements — Plural noun — refers back to what scientists do
   • forecas___ → forecasters — Plural noun — people who predict weather
   • sto___ → storms — Plural noun — a type of weather event
   • eve___ → events — Plural noun — 'other events' completes the list

2. Passage 2 · Public Libraries · Beginner

   A public library is a place where people can borrow books and other materials for free. Libraries also provide access to computers and the internet. Many communities depend on these services for education and research.

   • Libra___ → Libraries — Plural noun — subject of 'also provide'
   • prov___ → provide — Verb — 'also provide access'
   • compu___ → computers — Plural noun — things you access at a library
   • inter___ → internet — Noun — paired with 'computers' via 'and the'
   • commun___ → communities — Plural noun — groups of people
   • the___ → these — Demonstrative — refers back to library services
   • educa___ → education — Noun — paired with 'research'
   • rese___ → research — Noun — common academic activity at libraries

3. Passage 3 · Sleep and Health · Beginner

   Sleep is essential for maintaining good physical and mental health. During sleep, the body repairs damaged tissues and strengthens the immune system. Adults generally need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night.

   • sle___ → sleep — Noun — repeats topic word from first sentence
   • bo___ → body — Noun — 'the body repairs' is the subject
   • dama___ → damaged — Adjective (past participle) modifying 'tissues'
   • streng___ → strengthens — Verb — parallel with 'repairs'
   • imm___ → immune — Adjective — 'immune system' is a fixed phrase
   • Adu___ → Adults — Plural noun — subject of the sentence
   • ne___ → need — Verb — 'Adults need between...'
   • a___ → and — Conjunction — 'seven and nine'
   • o___ → of — Preposition — 'hours of sleep'

4. Passage 4 · Photosynthesis · Intermediate

   Photosynthesis is the process by which green plants convert sunlight into chemical energy. During this process, carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is absorbed through tiny openings in the leaves. The resulting sugars provide fuel for growth and reproduction throughout the organism.

   • th___ → this — Demonstrative — 'this process' refers back to photosynthesis
   • car___ → carbon — Noun — 'carbon dioxide' is a fixed scientific term
   • th___ → the — Article — 'the atmosphere' is definite
   • absor___ → absorbed — Past participle — passive voice 'is absorbed'
   • open___ → openings — Plural noun — tiny openings (stomata) in leaves
   • lea___ → leaves — Plural noun — plant leaves
   • resul___ → resulting — Present participle as adjective — 'resulting sugars'
   • fu___ → fuel — Noun — sugars provide fuel (energy source)
   • a___ → and — Conjunction — 'growth and reproduction'
   • th___ → the — Article — 'the organism'

5. Passage 5 · The Industrial Revolution · Intermediate

   The Industrial Revolution began in Britain during the late eighteenth century. Factories replaced traditional workshops, and machines powered by steam engines dramatically increased production capacity. These technological advances transformed economies across Europe and North America within a few decades.

   • Facto___ → Factories — Plural noun — subject of 'replaced'
   • tradi___ → traditional — Adjective modifying 'workshops'
   • machi___ → machines — Plural noun — subject of 'increased'
   • ste___ → steam — Noun — 'steam engines' is a compound noun
   • increa___ → increased — Past tense verb — 'machines increased production'
   • capa___ → capacity — Noun — 'production capacity' is a common collocation
   • techno___ → technological — Adjective — 'technological advances'
   • transfo___ → transformed — Past tense verb — 'advances transformed economies'
   • Eur___ → Europe — Proper noun — geographic name

6. Passage 6 · Coral reefs · Advanced

   Coral reefs are among the most biologically diverse ecosystems on Earth. They support approximately one quarter of all marine species despite covering less than one percent of the ocean floor. Rising water temperatures and ocean acidification now threaten these fragile structures worldwide.

   • supp___ → support — Verb — 'They support approximately...'
   • on___ → one — Number — 'one quarter'
   • al___ → all — Determiner — 'all marine species'
   • desp___ → despite — Preposition — contrast: support many species despite small area
   • th___ → than — Conjunction — 'less than one percent'
   • o___ → of — Preposition — 'percent of the ocean'
   • flo___ → floor — Noun — 'ocean floor'
   • temper___ → temperatures — Plural noun — 'water temperatures'
   • acidif___ → acidification — Noun — 'ocean acidification' is a scientific term

Where to practise each task next

• TOEFL 2026 reading section guide

  The whole section: task types, adaptive format and strategy.

• Reading question types

  Every question format across the three tasks, and what each asks for.

• Complete the Words practice

  Beginner passages with every answer and the clue that gives it away.

• Complete the Words exercises

  Intermediate and advanced passages with target times.

• Complete the Words strategies

  How to use grammar and context clues to restore each word.

• Read in Daily Life practice

  Guided everyday texts with explanations.

• Read in Daily Life exercises

  Denser documents with tighter timing.

• Read in Daily Life strategies

  Scanning tactics for notices, emails and schedules.

• Academic Passage practice

  Guided academic passages to build comprehension.

• Academic Passage exercises

  Harder passages under tighter timing.

• Academic Passage strategies

  Reading for structure and answering by referring back.

Frequently asked questions