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The TOEFL Listen & Repeat Task Demystified: Real Examples, Scoring, and Strategy

October 18, 2025

The Enhanced TOEFL iBT Speaking section introduces a new task type called Listen and Repeat.
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At first glance, it looks easy right? You hear a sentence and repeat it. Not so fast.
Under the surface, it’s a sophisticated AI-driven test of pronunciation, fluency, and short-term language processing.
Let’s look at how it works, how each prompt becomes more difficult, and how your score is calculated.

What the Listen & Repeat Task Looks Like

In this task, you hear a short sentence once and must repeat it exactly as you heard it.
There is no text on the screen—only an image or short scene that updates as you progress.

You’ll complete seven prompts in total.
Each one grows slightly longer and more complex, and your recording time increases from 8 seconds to 12 seconds.

Below is an example sequence used in a Sky Harbour Airport practice test.

# Spoken Text Recording Time
1 Welcome to the international airport. 8 seconds
2 Baggage claim is straight ahead. 8 seconds
3 You will find restrooms near every main gate. 8 seconds
4 Please have your boarding passes and identification ready for security. 10 seconds
5 Carry-on liquids must be placed in clear plastic bags. 10 seconds
6 Do not leave your luggage unattended at any time. 12 seconds
7 If your flight is delayed, you may receive updates through the airline’s mobile app. 12 seconds

Each new item on the map highlights a different part of the airport—baggage claim, restrooms, security, boarding gates—and the sentences become longer, faster, and more detailed.

You’re being tested on how accurately and efficiently you can perceive, store, and reproduce English speech.
In other words, this task measures how your brain and mouth handle real-time language processing—not what you know, but how you perform.

How the Task Gets Harder

  1. Length: Sentences expand from 5 to 15 words.
  2. Structure: Early prompts are simple statements; later ones include conditionals and modifiers.
  3. Pronunciation load: New rhythm patterns and stress sequences test timing and articulation.
  4. AI precision: The system detects tiny deviations in sound, stress, or word order.

How the AI Scores You

In the Enhanced TOEFL Speaking test, there are no human raters.
All responses are scored automatically by AI.

The scoring engine analyzes your voice frame-by-frame, comparing it to a model recording.
It measures:

  • Pronunciation accuracy: how closely your sounds match native-like production.
  • Fluency: rate, smoothness, and pause distribution.
  • Prosody: rhythm, pitch, and stress that create natural speech.

📊 Official TOEFL Listen & Repeat Scoring Rubric (view official rubrics)

SCORE DESCRIPTION
5 The response exactly repeats the prompt.
  • The response is fully intelligible and is an exact repetition of the prompt.
4 The response captures the meaning expressed in the prompt but is not an exact repetition.
  • Minor word or grammar changes that do not alter meaning.
  • One or two function words may be missing or changed.
  • A content word may be replaced with a related word.
  • Tense, aspect, or number markers may be incorrect.
  • One or two words may be transposed.
  • Pronunciation may make one or two words ambiguous, but the response is complete.
3 The response is essentially full but does not accurately capture the original meaning.
  • Contains most of the content words or ideas in the prompt.
  • Multiple function words may be changed or missing.
  • One or more key content words may be missing or altered.
  • Is a full sentence but may show intelligibility issues that reduce clarity.
2 The response is missing a significant part of the prompt or is highly inaccurate.
  • A large portion of the prompt is missing or changed.
  • The speaker may start correctly but fail to complete the sentence.
  • The response is fragmented or not self-contained.
  • Low intelligibility makes understanding difficult.
1 The response captures very little of the prompt or is mostly unintelligible.
  • Only a few words are repeated; most of the prompt is missing.
  • Recognizable attempt to repeat, but largely unintelligible.
0 No response or entirely unintelligible; or no English is used; or only unrelated phrases such as “I don’t know.”

How to Improve Your Score

  1. Practice exact repetition. Train short-term recall by repeating sentences after a single listen.
  2. Mirror natural rhythm. Match the speaker’s pitch, stress, and timing.
  3. Focus on function words. Omitting small words (like is, at, for) can lower a perfect 5 to a 4.
  4. Track your data. Use MySpeakingScore.com to measure Speaking Rate, Pause Frequency, and Distribution of Pauses—the same metrics used by TOEFL’s AI scoring system.

FAQ

Q1: Do I see the text on screen?
No. You only hear the sentence once; there is no visible text.

Q2: How much time do I have to answer?
Between 8 and 12 seconds, depending on prompt length.

Q3: What is the AI measuring exactly?
Your pronunciation accuracy, fluency, and prosody. The closer your delivery matches the model, the higher your score.

Q4: Can I still get a good score if I change a few words?
Yes—small, non-meaning-changing variations may earn a 4, but only an exact repetition earns a 5.

Q5: Is there a human rater?
No. The new Enhanced TOEFL Speaking is scored completely by AI.

Q6: How should I practice?
Record, review, and measure. Compare your speech rate and pause distribution to high-scoring samples to find where you lose fluency or timing.

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