Official Guide to the TOEFL iBT Test

by Educational Testing Service

Publisher's Note: Products purchased from Third Party sellers are not guaranteed by the publisher for quality, authenticity, or access to any online entitlements included with the product.


The one and only bestselling official guide to the TOEFL, from the makers of the test!

Preparing for the TOEFL exam? Why not study with the only guide on the market that contains real TOEFL questions pulled from recent exams? The Official Guide to the TOEFL(R) Test is most complete and reliable guide to the test that is used to meet English-language proficiency requirements at more than 10,000 institutions worldwide. This updated sixth edition includes real TOEFL questions for practice, as well as explanations of every section of the test and information on what is expected for every speaking and writing task.

You will learn how to construct a proper answer and how to integrate speaking, listening, and writing skills to demonstrate college-level English proficiency. The accompanying online content includes four authentic TOEFL practice tests just like the one you will encounter on test day.

The Official Guide to the TOEFL(R) Test features:

- 4 full-length practice TOEFL tests (available in the book and online for download)
- Hundreds of authentic TOEFL test questions and essay topics
- Test-taking strategies directly from the test maker
- Answer keys, self-scoring guides, and more

Genres: Nonfiction, Textbooks, Education, Language

704 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2018

Reviews

[Eny Rebel · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Good source of study for the reading and listening sections. Useful strategies. Not so much for the writing and speaking of course. But overall, pretty good preparation for the test."

[Michael Goodine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Official Guide to the TOEFL Test is a book that everyone preparing for the TOEFL should read. I recommend every edition, and the new sixth edition is no exception.

First, though, a few words about changes this year. This edition has, more or less, the same content as the fifth edition. However, it has been modified to match the modifications to the test introduced in August of 2019. This means that the reading, listening and speaking practice tests are all a bit shorter. The chapters that describe these sections have been updated accordingly. The only new questions are the speaking questions in practice test one. Everything else is the same as before. A few of the small inaccuracies scattered throughout the the previous edition have been revised, but some of the big errors (particularly in the writing section, as will be described in a moment) remain. Digital content must now be downloaded via an access code provided in the book. I’m glad that a DVD is no longer used, but it is shameful that McGraw-Hill only allows the access code to be used twice, even if the 600 MB download fails mid-download. If your download fails twice you are screwed. Good luck finding a customer support number for the publisher. It ain’t easy.

Anyways, the content here is mostly strong. The book doesn’t really focus on strategies but instead aims to accurately describe how the test is constructed, and what the questions look like. Descriptions of all of the question types are given, along with multiple sample questions of each. This comes in especially handy when students are studying for the reading and listening sections. Overall, this makes the book a really valuable resource, since most third party books provide misleading sample questions and inaccurate descriptions of test items. I find that if students actually understand the patterns of the test and how it is created they are able to improve their performance and study properly. If you want to know exactly what the test looks like, this is the book for you!

In this regard, the reading, listening and speaking chapters are great. The writing chapter falls short, though. Inexplicably, the authors provide a grossly inaccurate sample integrated writing question, with a reading consisting of only two paragraphs in total. The matching lecture is similarly inaccurate. What’s worse is that the integrated writing question in the first sample test is similarly flawed. These two flaws have been part of the book since the first edition was published 15 years ago, and it pains me to see them reprinted in edition after edition after edition. Likewise, the big list of sample independent questions included on pages 210 to 213 contains a bunch of prompt styles no longer used on the test. I’m pretty sure they are all leftovers from the CBT version of the test, as they have also been in the book since the first edition was published.

I will also point out that while the software used for the sample tests is functional, it is quite dated and clunky, which makes it a poor simulation of the real test. It is about time for Mcgraw-Hill to replace that with something more elegant, similar to what Barron’s is now using for their line of TOEFL prep books.

Originally published on TOEFL Resources.

[Fahed Al Kerdi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book to prepare for TOEFL test from my point of view. It contains a good amount of tests and examples.

[Michael Goodine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the best general overview of the test, but the chapter on the writing section of the test is still frustratingly inaccurate, as is the writing section of practice test one. I don't understand how ETS could leave this inaccurate content in for yet another edition of the book.

Note, also, that this is the most recent version of the book, but it does not reflect the changes to the test in 2019. Apparently, future PRINTINGS will include an insert that describe them, but ETS has no plans to issue a new edition anytime soon.

[Roberto Juárez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Había olvidado que tenía este libro marcado sin terminar cuando ya hice todas las secciones e incluso realicé los exámenes de práctica.

Es un libro bastante completo, sin embargo, es recomendable que sea llevado de la mano por un profesor de inglés debido a que hay secciones como el Speaking y Writing que requieren una evaluación que el libro no ofrece. Fuera de esa cuestión "faltante" en el libro, me parece una estupenda ayuda para aquellos que deseen presentar el examen TOEFL, sea ITP o IBT.

[Ly Casnocha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This publication seemed effective for the detailed and specific information it provided. Alongside, several tips related to the TOEFL could be found. With a number of readings which have been compiled sort of close to the real exams, this publication seemed able to work well for most audience. Among the materials related to the TOEFL, this publication is indeed a worthwhile one, and I think most people should consider to refer to this publication if they aim to perform well on this exam.

[Amr Farag · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good step to start with for the preparation for the TOEFL test, but It's not enough, If you wanna get above 100. I strongly recommend the LongMan app as a second step to simulate your TOEFL test like you are in the test day already.

[nathan tapley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is great

Thanks this was really helpful for me in learning the toefl. Thank you again for all your time in putting this together.

[Jithendra Gottu · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best authentic book for TOEFL.

[Felix · Rating 4 out of 5]

The TOEFL Test is one of the most popular English proficiency tests in the world. Most colleges and organizations in the US and UK require it for people born and raised outside of a majority English speaking country. Of all the resources available to prepare for the test, The official guide to the TOEFL test is a must have. It is well structured covering the four areas of focus in the Test (Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing). There are hardy tips on how to approach each section and numerous questions from past tests. It also comes accompanied with a application packed with four sample test questions. Although this not the only preparation you will need for the test, it's the only one you must have.

[Octavio Sánchez Huerta · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fue mi primer libro de preparación para el examen TOEFL, mi impresión para obtener un buen puntaje eran un curso de idiomas mas libros de preparación y con ello podria obtener un buen puntaje de lo cuál mi experiencia fue que prácticamente toque el suelo por mi falta de estudio apropiado, obtuve un puntaje aproximado de 51o en la escala del examen de papel, en ese entonces hice el examen de Internet; mi puntos debiles fueron la desconfianza y la poca fortaleza en reglas gramaticales, consideró al libro bueno pero tiene debilidades en colocarte examenes ejemplo parecidos al real aun asi sigue siendo un libro de repaso para la parte de writing.

[Pebel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good source of study for the reading and listening sections. Not so much for the writing and speaking of course. But overall, great preparation for the test.

[Tahirou]

i think it won't finish on 31 december 2015.

[Sid S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I only skimmed this book a night before taking the test. It seemed to fulfill what it was supposed to - get me up to speed with how the test is going to be, and it succeeded at that

[Ruaa Sadiq · Rating 3 out of 5]

Old version

Not the update version of Toefl test. Many samples are repeated. Need to include samples answers to understand more. ..

[Hai Le · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not much explanation provided, thus not recommended for skill building. But the materials like sample questions, sample responses, and practice tests are great, because well, they come from those who make the test so they're pretty authentic.