Rhetorical question
Hi TOEFL enthusiasts!
Today we’re tackling a tricky, TOEFL Listening, function question, one with a rhetorical question. A rhetorical question isn’t asked to get information — it’s used to make a point, persuade, or guide the listener toward a conclusion. For example: “Can we really afford to ignore this problem?” The speaker doesn’t want an answer — they’re emphasizing that the problem can’t be ignored.
What makes a function question with rhetorical questions difficult is that the answer is not stated directly. You have to infer the speaker’s intent based on three things:
Context – What’s being discussed? What idea is the speaker reinforcing?
Tone – Is the speaker sarcastic, serious, doubtful? Tone reveals purpose.
Implied Answer – What’s the obvious answer the speaker expects, even if unspoken?
Today’s example is a real challenge — even ChatGPT and Gemini couldn’t get it right. Let’s look at the question:
Function Question
Question (TPO 37 Lecture)
Why does the professor say this? “Ever heard of a frog being chased by a polar bear?”
A.To indicate that the student's assertion is correct
B.To introduce a fact she thinks will surprise the student
C.To point out the effectiveness of the frog's defense mechanisms
D.To find out what the student knows about extreme environments
Lecture
Student: Well, what about ectotherms, like frogs. They must have metabolism too.
Professor: Sure they do.It's just that metabolism in ectotherms is so much lower.
I mean, the metabolic rate of an endotherm, say, a mouse, is at least six or seven times that of an ectotherm of a similar size like a frog or a lizard. An ectotherm doesn't generate nearly as much heat internally. So its body temperature will tend to equalize with the temperature of its surroundings. And that's where behavior comes in. Imagine a lizard, okay, living in the desert. Now, a desert gets very cold at night and very hot during the day. So what does the lizard do to maintain its body temperature? Well, on a cold morning, it can warm itself by going to a sunny spot and lying in the sun, and later if it gets too hot, it can seek out a cool place in the shade. It's by means of such behavior that an ectotherm like this lizard regulates its temperature. But you put that same lizard in a temperature controlled chamber and gradually drop the temperature, say, 20 degrees, and here of course, the lizard can't go off to lie in the sun. So what happens?
Student: Well, the lizard's body temperature drops too.
Professor: Right, and this really slows down its metabolism, which depends on temperature. Even that 20 degrees drop in body temperature though, the lizard can survive that no problem, and come out just fine when it warms up again. Ectotherms can do that.
Student: But an ectotherm probably wouldn't survive in a place where the temperatures got too low, right?
Professor: Ever heard of a frog being chased by a polar bear?
Student: No.
Professor: Well, there you are. Now a mouse in the same situation, in the same temperature chamber, is just the opposite of the lizard.
Analysis
In this exchange, the professor is discussing ectotherms, such as frogs, and how these animals regulate their body temperature. The student suggests that ectotherms likely wouldn't survive in extremely cold environments. In response, the professor poses a rhetorical question: “Ever heard a frog being chased by a polar bear?” Rhetorical questions like this carry an implied answer—in this case, “No, of course not”—and are used to make a point rather than gather information. By presenting such an absurd scenario, the professor humorously emphasizes that the idea of a frog living in the same environment as a polar bear is unrealistic. This supports the student’s point and confirms their understanding that ectotherms cannot survive in very cold climates. Therefore, the professor’s purpose in asking the question is best captured by answer choice A: To indicate that the student's assertion is correct.
B. No. The professor is not introducing a surprising or factual statement. The student already understands that ectotherms like frogs can't survive in extremely cold places.--
C. No. The professor isn’t talking about defense mechanisms. The conversation is about how ectotherms regulate body temperature, not how they defend against predators. The mention of a “polar bear” is meant to be absurd, not literal—it’s not about frogs escaping danger.
D. The professor isn’t actually asking the question to get an answer or test the student's knowledge. She already knows the student understands that frogs don’t live in cold regions; she’s just using humor to reinforce that point.
Answer: A