TOEFL Essential Words

Question 1

abroad

Answer 1

adv. to or in another country
Syn. overseas, internationally

Louis Armstrong often traveled abroad.
Living abroad can be an educational experience.

Question 2

abrupt

Answer 2

adj. quick, without warning
Syn. sudden

There was an abrupt change in the weather.
After the incident everyone left abruptly.

adv. abruptly
n. abruptness

Question 3

acceptable

Answer 3

adj. allowable or satisfactory
Syn. permissible

The idea was acceptable to everyone.
The registrar accepted more applicants than he should have.

v. accept
adv. acceptably
n. acceptability
adj. accepting

Question 4

acclaim

Answer 4

n. enthusiastic approval, applause
Syn. praise

Isaac Stem has won acclaim abroad.
Acclaimed authors often win Pulitzer Prizes.

adj. acclaimed
n. acclamation

Question 5

actually

Answer 5

adv. being in existence, real or factual
Syn. truly

They were actually very good soccer players.
The actual time allotted to complete the test is two hours.

adj. actual

Question 6

adverse

Answer 6

adj. displeasing, objectionable, or bad
Syn. unfavorable

Adverse weather conditions made it difficult to play the game.
His indecision adversely affected his job performance.

adv. adversely
n. adversity
n. adversary

Question 7

advice

Answer 7

n. a recommendation given by someone not associated with the problem or situation
Syn. suggestion

Good advice is hard to find.
It is not advisable to stay up late the night before a test.

v. advise
adj. advisable
n. advisability

Question 8

attractive

Answer 8

adj. calling attention to, pleasing, creating interest
Syn. appealing

The idea of working four, 10-hour work days was attractive to the employees.
The major attraction of the show was a speech by the president.

v. attract pretty
n. attraction
n. attractiveness
adv. attractively

Question 9

ideal

Answer 9

adj. having no flaw or mistake, excellent
Syn. perfect

The beach is an ideal place to relax.
Candidates for the job should ideally have five years experience in similar positions.

adv. ideally
n. ideal

Question 10

persistent

Answer 10

adj. continuous, refusing to give up, firm in action or decision
Syn. constant

The attorney’s persistent questioning weakened the witness.
Her persistence earned her a spot on the team.

v. persist
n. persistence
adv. persistently

Question 11

wide

Answer 11

adj. extending over a large area
Syn. broad

Pine forests are found over a wide area of the Pacific Northwest.
The senator has traveled wide1y.

adv. widely
n. wideness

Question 12

autonomous

Answer 12

adj. by itself, with no association
Syn. independent

Mexico became an autonomous state in 1817.
Although working closely with the government, all businesses function autonomously.

adv. autonomously

Question 13

haphazardly

Answer 13

adv. having no order or pattern, by chance
Syn. arbitrarily, carelessly

It was obvious that the house was built haphazardly.
Susan completed the assignment in a haphazard way.

adj. haphazard
n. haphazardness

Question 14

disruptive

Answer 14

adj. causing confusion and interruption
Syn. disturbing

Frequent questions during lectures can be disruptive.
The storm caused a disruption in bus service.

v. disrupt
n. disruption
adv. disruptively

Question 15

disapproval

Answer 15

n. the act of disagreeing, not giving approval
Syn. objection

Their disapproval of the plan caused the experiment to be abandoned.
The students disapproved of the plan of study.

v. disapprove
adv. disapprovingly

Question 16

advanced

Answer 16

adj. ahead of current thought or practice forward thinking, new
Syn. progressive

Advanced technology is changing the world.
His advancement to captain came unexpectedly.

v. advance
n. advancement

Question 17

advantage

Answer 17

n. something that may help one to be successful or to gain something
Syn. benefit

Is there any advantage in arriving early?
He was advantageously born into a rich family.

adv. advantageously
adj. advantageous

Question 18

advent

Answer 18

n. the coming or appearance of something
Syn. arrival

With the advent of computers, many tasks have been made easier.
The newspapers announced the advent of the concert season.

Question 19

agile

Answer 19

adj. able to move in a quick and easy way
Syn. nimble

Deer are very agile animals.
She moved agilely across the stage.

adv. agilely
n. agileness
n. agility

Question 20

albeit

Answer 20

conj. in spite of the facts, regardless of the fact
Syn. although

His trip was successful, albeit tiring.
Albeit difficult at times, speaking another language is rewarding.

Question 21

allow

Answer 21

v. to agree to let something happen, not to interfere with an action
Syn. permit

Arthur’s natural agility will allow him to excel in sports.
The extra money allowed us to stay abroad another day.

n. allowance
adj. allowable
adv. allowable

Question 22

appealing

Answer 22

adj. attractive or interesting, able to move
Syn. alluring

Working abroad is appealing to many people.
Through his speeches, the candidate appealed to the voters.

v. appeal feelings
n. appeal
adv. appealingly

Question 23

celebrated

Answer 23

adj. acclaimed, well-known, and popular
Syn. renown

The celebrated pianist will give a concert this weekend.
San Francisco is celebrated for its multicultural makeup.

Question 24

contemporary

Answer 24

adj. modern, up-to-date; also a person living at the same time as another person
Syn. current

Contemporary architecture makes very good use of space.
Cervantes was a contemporary of Shakespeare.

n. contemporary

Question 25

distribute

Answer 25

v. to divide among people or to give out
Syn. dispense

Many publishers distribute their newspapers directly to homes in their area.
The distribution of seeds is very quick with this new machine.

n. distribution

Question 26

encourage

Answer 26

v. to give courage or hope to someone
Syn. inspire

Even though the runner finished second, he was encouraged by his performance.
His teacher gave him the encouragement that he needed to learn the material.
n. encouragement
adj. encouraging
adv. encouragingly

Question 27

energetic

Answer 27

adj. full of life, action, or power
Syn. vigorous

Sam hasn’t been as energetic as he usually is.
There’s a lot of energy in these batteries.

n. energy
adv. energetically

Question 28

frail

Answer 28

adj. weak in health or in body
Syn. fragile

The frail wings of the newborn bird could not lift it off the ground.
One of the frailties of human beings is laziness.

n. trade

Question 29

refine

Answer 29

v. to make pure, to improve
Syn. perfect (v.)

Factories must to refine oil before it can be used as fuel.
A squirt of lime juice is the perfect refinement to cola.

n. refinement
adj. refined

Question 30

worthwhile

Answer 30

adj. value in doing something
Syn. rewarding

It was worthwhile waiting 10 hours in line for the tickets.
It’s worthwhile to prepare for the TOEFL.