TOEFL iBT Reading practice test 5

Fill in the missing letters in the paragraph.

Confucian and Daoist Ethics

For centuries, Chinese philosophers have debated how individuals should balance their own interests against the needs of the wider community. Confucian thinkers argued that people learn moral behavior mainly through family relationships and traditional social roles. Daoist authors, by contrast, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life.

1. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (4 letters)

2. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (2 letters)

3. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (3 letters)

4. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (4 letters)

5. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (4 letters)

6. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (7 letters)

7. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (6 letters)

8. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (3 letters)

9. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (4 letters)

10. Confucian thin{{1}} argued th{{2}} people le{{3}} moral beha{{4}} mainly thr{{5}} family relati{{6}} and tradi{{7}} social ro{{8}}. Daoist aut{{9}}, by cont{{10}}, encouraged people to step back from rigid rules and live in harmony with nature. Today, many university students read both traditions side by side to explore how each one defines a good and meaningful life. (4 letters)

Answer questions about everyday reading material.

Read a notice.

Brookfield College Hartwell Hall Arts Series Mara Lindqvist: Violin Without the Rules Friday, November 13 Doors 7:00 PM, performance 7:30 PM Don't expect a quiet traditional recital. Violinist Mara Lindqvist takes the stage alone and moves freely between folk, rock and classical sounds. As she plays, she stamps out the rhythm with her feet, tells stories between pieces, and sings along with her own strings. Free with a Brookfield College student ID. Guests $8. Unreserved seating.

Read an email.

To: praman@dmail.com From: roomdesk.calloway@dmail.com Date: 11/09/2026 Subject: Change to Your Room Booking Dear Ms. Raman, Because of a heating repair on the second floor, we have moved your Thursday booking from Room 214 to Room 108 on the ground floor. Your time stays the same: 2:00 to 4:00 PM. Room 108 also has a larger screen, which should work well for your group's presentation practice. We're sorry for the inconvenience. Please note that markers are no longer kept in the rooms. You can borrow them at the front desk with your student ID. If the new room does not suit you, reply to this email by Wednesday at noon and we will release the booking. After that, any unused room goes to walk-ins, first come, first served. Best regards, Daniel Okafor Room Desk, Calloway Library

11. What does the notice suggest about Mara Lindqvist's performance?

A) It will feature several musicians from different genres

B) The audience will be asked to sing and stomp along

C) She will use her feet and voice as well as her violin

D) It will focus on well-known classical violin pieces

12. What is stated about admission to the performance?

A) Everyone pays $8 at the door

B) Students with a college ID attend free

C) Seats must be reserved online in advance

D) Guests attend free if they come with a student

13. What is the main purpose of the email?

A) To confirm a new booking Ms. Raman has just made

B) To tell Ms. Raman that her booking has moved to another room

C) To announce that the second floor is closed for the semester

D) To invite Ms. Raman to reserve a room with a larger screen

14. What can be inferred about Ms. Raman?

A) She asked to be moved to the ground floor

B) She reported the heating problem in Room 214

C) She plans to practice a presentation with other students

D) She has already borrowed whiteboard markers from the desk

15. The phrase "first come, first served" in the email indicates that unused rooms

A) must be booked online at least one day ahead

B) are offered first to students whose bookings were moved

C) will be given to whoever arrives first without a booking

D) will be kept empty while the repair work continues

Answer questions about academic passages.

Emotional Labor in Hotels

Sociologists use the term “emotional labor” for work in which employees must display certain feelings as part of their job. Hotels are a clear example. Guests expect a warm, calm welcome, so front desk staff are expected to smile, stay patient, and conceal any irritation or tiredness. The feelings remain, but guests must not see them. Workers manage this demand in two main ways. In surface acting, they display an expected emotion, such as cheerfulness, without feeling it, keeping their real mood hidden. Many describe this as unusually draining because they must constantly sustain a split between their inner state and their outward expression. In deep acting, workers try to genuinely feel the emotion they show while serving a guest. A clerk might picture the difficult journey of a guest checking in late at night, so that patience comes more easily. Guests often perceive such service as more sincere, and employees who rely on deep acting tend to report less fatigue than those who depend on surface acting. Some hotels and university hospitality programs train staff to view situations through the guest's eyes. A trainee might imagine why a traveler whose flight was canceled arrives at the desk upset. Such training encourages deep acting rather than surface acting, yet these hotels still keep their standards of courteous service.

16. What is the passage mainly about?

A) How hotel employees manage the emotions they display

B) Why hotel employees leave the hospitality industry

C) How guests judge the quality of hotel service

D) How hotel schools changed their training over time

17. The word “conceal” in the passage is closest in meaning to

A) reduce

B) hide

C) notice

D) express

18. According to paragraph 2, why do employees find surface acting especially tiring?

A) It is usually required during the longest and busiest shifts

B) Guests often notice the false emotion and complain about it

C) They must keep up a difference between what they feel and what they show

D) They must spend extra time learning it in formal training

19. According to the passage, all of the following are true about deep acting EXCEPT:

A) It involves trying to change one's own feelings

B) It may involve imagining a guest's situation

C) Guests often find service delivered this way more sincere

D) It mainly involves stepping away from the desk to calm down

20. What can be inferred about the hotels described in paragraph 3?

A) They probably allow staff to drop the usual polite routines with upset guests

B) They probably want staff to become better at hiding their irritation from guests

C) They probably hope to reduce how worn out their staff become

D) They probably want staff to keep conversations with upset guests as short as possible

Fill in the missing letters in the paragraph.

Compostable Plastic Bags

Compostable plastic bags are made from plant materials such as corn starch rather than from petroleum. Many shoppers assume that these bags will simply disappear in a backyard compost pile. Actually, most of them decompose fully only in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system.

1. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (4 letters)

2. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (2 letters)

3. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (2 letters)

4. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (3 letters)

5. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (1 letter)

6. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (4 letters)

7. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (4 letters)

8. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (1 letter)

9. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (5 letters)

10. Many shop{{1}} assume th{{2}} these ba{{3}} will sim{{4}} disappear i{{5}} a backyard com{{6}} pile. Actu{{7}}, most o{{8}} them deco{{9}} fully on{{10}} in industrial facilities, where heat and moisture are carefully controlled. In cooler, drier conditions, the same bags may remain intact for months or even years. Consequently, a bag labeled compostable offers an environmental benefit only when a community provides the appropriate collection and processing system. (2 letters)

Answer questions about everyday reading material.

Read a notice.

Hartwell University Benefits Office New This Year: Pet Surgery Coverage Faculty, staff and graduate students can now add optional surgery coverage for their cats and dogs. It helps pay for pet operations. Pets of any age can join, and no exam is needed first. Surgery after an accident is covered from your first day of coverage; surgery for an illness is covered after a 14-day waiting period. Sign up on the benefits portal by November 30.

Read an email.

To: n.okafor@ridgeview.edu From: d.reyes@ridgeview.edu Date: 10/28/2026 Subject: Spanish Table: New Room Starting Next Week Dear Ms. Okafor, Thank you again for leading the Spanish table this semester. Your sessions have been some of our best attended. Starting next week, our Thursday sessions will meet in Room 204 of Halvorsen Hall instead of the Student Center lounge, which is being renovated through December. We'll keep the usual time, 6:00 to 7:30 PM. Room 204 seats only twelve people, so new participants will need to sign up online in advance. Regular attendees can just show up as usual. Could you reply by Monday and let me know if you can still make it on Thursdays? If not, no worries, I'll find a fill-in. Best, Daniel Reyes Program Coordinator, Ridgeview College Language Exchange

11. What is the main purpose of the notice?

A) To remind employees to renew pet coverage they already have

B) To announce a new optional insurance benefit for pets

C) To explain changes to employees' own health insurance

D) To advertise a veterinary clinic that is opening on campus

12. According to the notice, when does coverage begin for surgery that a pet needs after an accident?

A) After a 14-day waiting period

B) After the enrollment period ends on November 30

C) On the first day of coverage

D) After the pet has had a veterinary checkup

13. What is the main purpose of the email?

A) To announce that the Thursday sessions will start at a different time

B) To ask Ms. Okafor to attend an additional session on another day

C) To tell Ms. Okafor about a change of room and check that she can still attend

D) To invite new students to sign up for the Spanish conversation table

14. What can be inferred about Ms. Okafor?

A) She has led the Spanish table earlier this semester

B) She recently joined the program as a new participant

C) She is in charge of the Student Center renovation

D) She must sign up online before the next session

15. The word "fill-in" in the email is closest in meaning to

A) a form to complete

B) an extra room

C) a later meeting time

D) a substitute

Answer questions about academic passages.

Voting from Abroad

Many democracies let citizens living abroad vote in national elections at home, a practice called external voting. Some countries ask voters to come to an embassy or consulate, others mail ballots, and a few allow online voting. The method chosen strongly shapes how many citizens abroad take part. In-person voting creates the clearest obstacle. Because emigrants are often dispersed across a large host country, a single polling station at the embassy may be hundreds of miles away for many of them, and travel costs time and money. When one home government opened an additional polling station in a second city of a host country, researchers observed, turnout among citizens living nearby rose sharply. Many of them had apparently wanted to vote all along; the journey had simply kept them away. Postal voting spares citizens the trip, but in many systems a ballot must be requested several weeks before election day, and those who learn this too late cannot vote. Volunteer-run emigrant associations in many host-country cities help close these gaps. They explain registration steps in plain language, send reminders before request and registration deadlines, and organize carpools to the nearest polling station on election day. Their work is practical help with voting, not campaigning. Participation abroad, then, depends on organization at least as much as on political interest.

16. What is the passage mainly about?

A) Why emigrants tend to lose interest in the politics of their home countries

B) How practical voting arrangements and community help affect whether citizens abroad vote

C) Why postal voting has replaced in-person voting at embassies

D) How emigrant associations influence the results of elections at home

17. The word “dispersed” in the passage is closest in meaning to

A) divided in opinion

B) spread out

C) forced to leave

D) poorly informed

18. Why does the author mention the polling station that was added in a second city?

A) To show that governments regularly increase the number of polling stations abroad

B) To give an example of what an emigrant association achieved

C) To support the idea that distance, rather than lack of interest, keeps many citizens abroad from voting

D) To explain why postal ballots often arrive too late

19. According to paragraph 2, what is one drawback of postal voting?

A) Voters must pay international postage to return their ballots

B) Voters often have to request a ballot several weeks before the election

C) Postal ballots are counted only after the main results are announced

D) Ballots must be signed in front of a witness

20. According to the passage, all of the following are true about emigrant associations EXCEPT:

A) They explain registration steps in plain language

B) They remind members of upcoming deadlines

C) They organize shared rides to polling stations

D) They invite candidates from home to speak