TOEFL Listen to an Academic Talk Practice
About this task
Listen to an Academic Talk plays a short mini-lecture, about 45 to 120 seconds or 100 to 250 words, on a single academic topic, then asks four multiple-choice questions that only appear after the audio ends. There is no replay button and no preview of the questions while the talk plays, which makes it the hardest of the four Listening task types: everything you are asked has to survive on your notes and memory alone. This practice mode plays a fresh academic talk for every scenario, holds the four questions until the audio finishes, and scores your answers instantly on submission.
- The module timer runs only while you answer, not while audio plays, so never rush your listening to save time.
- Questions appear after the talk ends, so note why the speaker says something, not only what they say.
- One or two words per idea plus an arrow at each transition; a full sentence costs you the next two sentences.
- Answer the main idea question first from your topic line, then work back to the detail items.
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Listen to an Academic Talk
Listen to the talk and answer the questions
Physical science
Listen to part of a lecture in a physics class.
Click the button below to hear the academic talk. The audio will play once only.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are on a TOEFL 2026 academic talk?
Most prep sources report four multiple-choice questions per talk, though at least one describes a range of two to four. ETS publishes the task description but not a per-task question count, so prepare for four. Each question is worth one point with no partial credit.
How long is the academic talk on the TOEFL 2026?
About 45 to 120 seconds of audio, roughly 100 to 250 words. That is far shorter than the lectures on the pre-2026 TOEFL iBT, and because it is so short, almost every sentence carries something a question can ask about.
Can you replay the audio in the TOEFL 2026 Listening section?
No. Each clip plays once and there is no replay button. You also cannot see the questions while the talk is playing, so your notes and your memory are the only record you have when the questions appear.
Can you take notes during the TOEFL Listening section?
Yes. ETS states that you can take notes while listening to help you answer the questions. Keep them short. Test-takers who write full sentences stop listening while they write and lose the thread of the talk.
What accents are used in TOEFL 2026 listening audio?
ETS says you may hear native-speaker English accents from North America, the U.K., New Zealand, or Australia. Academic talks have a single speaker, so an unfamiliar accent affects the whole clip rather than one line of it. Rotate accents in your practice listening.