Lecture video
Hi everyone! Dr. Nanhee Byrnes here. I'm excited to share today’s TOEFL writing tip with you. Whether you're just starting your TOEFL journey or aiming for a higher score, this simple strategy can make a big difference in your writing.
Problem: Repeating the same words
Let me ask you something: Have you ever finished a TOEFL essay and realized you kept repeating the same words over and over? Don't worry—we’ve all been there.
Today, we're going to talk about how to fix that and impress TOEFL raters by showing lexical variety.
What's that? Well, it just means using different vocabulary to express similar ideas. And trust me—this is one of the key things TOEFL raters are looking for. It's especially important in the Integrated Writing Task, where you need to summarize both a reading and a lecture.
Let me show you what I mean.
Here’s a repetitive version of a TOEFL response:
"The passage talks about the disappearance of sea otters in North America. One theory for the disappearance of sea otters is that pollution caused it. The professor in the lecture disagrees with the idea that pollution caused the disappearance of sea otters. Instead, the professor maintains that predators like sea lions are the cause of the disappearance of sea otters."
Yikes! How many times did we say “disappearance of sea otters”? Repeating the exact same phrase again and again can make your writing sound basic, and even if you write a lot of words, you’re not conveying much new information. We need to fix this to make your essay look sophisticated and earn a high score.
Solution: Use "the" + Noun
Here’s a simple but powerful strategy to avoid repetition: use "the" plus a noun phrase to refer back to something you already mentioned.
Grammar with "the"
In grammar, you can use the definite article "the" with any noun—unlike the indefinite articles "a" or "an," which only go with singular countable nouns. So, we can use "the" with countable, uncountable, singular, and plural nouns.
Here are some examples:
"I bought a book." (Book is a singular countable noun.) → "The book is about ancient history."
"Students were outside." → "The students looked worried."
"She gave me information." (Information is an uncountable noun.) → "The information was helpful."
Did you get it? Just add "the" in front of the noun to refer back to what you introduced. To avoid redundancy even further, you can use other nouns that have a similar meaning, as long as your reader can quickly identify which idea you are referring back to.
"I bought a book." → "The publication is about ancient history." (Here, we replaced "book" with "publication.")
"Students were outside." → "The crowd looked worried." (Replacing "students" with "crowd.")
"She gave me information." → "The data was helpful." (Replacing "information" with "data.")
By using different words, you've increased your lexical variety score!
Replacing nouns with different nouns
Here are some more examples of replacing nouns with different nouns:
"I bought a car. → The vehicle is very fuel-efficient."
"My professor gave a difficult assignment. → The task took five hours to complete."
"The article mentions a famous archaeologist. → The researcher discovered ancient tools."
"An unarmed man robbed the bank. → The robber escaped unnoticed."
"The concert lasted three hours. → By the end of the performance, everyone was exhausted."
"I’m taking Friday off. → I’ll spend the whole day cleaning."
You can also use "the" plus a noun phrase to replace other parts of speech, like verbs, adjectives, adverbs, or even entire sentences!
Replacing verbs with "the" + noun
These are examples of replacing verbs with a noun phrase using "the":
"Scientists discovered a link. → The discovery changed marine biology."
"She failed the final exam. → The failure surprised her classmates."
"The reading and lecture disagree about the otter disappearances. → The disagreement stems from a misunderstanding."
"First, mix sugar, flour, and eggs. → Then bake the mixture for 20 minutes."
Replacing adjectives or adverbs with "the" + noun
Here are examples of replacing adjectives or adverbs with "the" plus a noun phrase:
"The architecture was complex. → The complexity made it hard to reconstruct."
"The team was efficient. → Everyone admired the efficiency."
"The team worked together efficiently. → Everyone admired the efficiency."
"That the otters disappeared suddenly surprised scientists. → The suddenness of the decline puzzled them."
Replacing sentences with "the" + noun
You can even refer back to entire sentences with "the" plus a suitable noun phrase. For example:
"The building collapsed after the earthquake. → The incident left many injured."
"The company laid off 200 workers last month. → The decision shocked the industry."
"He admitted to falsifying the data. → The confession caused an uproar."
Useful "the" + noun for TOEFL Integrated Essays
These words are excellent for referring back to ideas or clauses in your TOEFL Integrated Essay:
the claim
the argument
the idea
the problem
the situation
the explanation
the result
the process
the incident
the decision
Let's look at a few more specific examples:
"The reading argues that pollution caused the decline. → The lecture disagrees with the claim."
"Sea otters, which had lived on the shores of North America for centuries, had suddenly disappeared entirely. → Scientists have been trying to explain the incident."
With this knowledge, let’s rewrite our original essay example.
Original (Repetitive):
"The passage talks about the disappearance of sea otters in North America. The disappearance of sea otters may be caused by pollution. The professor disagrees with the idea that pollution caused the disappearance of sea otters. Instead, the professor offers the theory that the sea otters in North America disappeared because predators have eaten them."
Improved Version:
"The passage discusses the disappearance of sea otters in North America, suggesting pollution as the main cause. The lecture, however, challenges this (or the) explanation, arguing that the decline is more consistent with predation."
Result: The second version avoids repetition, uses varied expressions, and sounds much more academic.
Lexical variety isn’t about using fancy or difficult words. It’s about being smart with your vocabulary and showing range and control, especially with expressions like "the" plus a noun phrase, which we worked on today.
Thank you, and I hope this helps you feel more confident in your writing!
I’m Dr. Nanhee Byrnes, and you can find much valuable information on my website, www.nanheebyrnes.com. Check it out today at www.nanheebyrnes.com.