Toefl Structure
The topics of the sentences in the Structure
section are usually academic, and many of them express basic numerical,
biographical, geographical, cultural, scientific, or historical facts. Most of
these sentences are factually accurate. However, spesial knowledge of the
subject matter is not required in order to answer them correctly.
The TOEFL tests a wide variety of phrase-level
structures but few whole-sentence structures. When you prepare for the test,
you need to concentrate on noun, verb, adjective, preposional and adverbial
phrases, and subordinate clauses in order to make the most efficient use of
your time.
In the tests adminitered since 1986, the
structures most frequently tested on the TOEFL have been :
1.
The form and function of nouns, verbs, adjectives,
and adverbs;
2.
Parallel structure;
3.
Subordinate clauses, adjectives, adverb, noun
clauses; and
4.
Subject and verb presence and agreement
Other frequently tested areas include :
5.
The active and the passive voice;
6.
Gerunds and infinitives;
7.
Prepositions, repeated meaning, verb tenses,
and complete clauses.
Structure
1 : Form and Function
a.
Nouns
and Noun Phrases
In 1848, Elizabeth Stanton Organized the first .... rights
convention in the United States.
(a) Woman (c) Women’s
(b) Women (d) Woman’s
The
answer is (c). The plural possessive noun women’s indicates rights that belong to women.
Noise
pollution can be controlled in a number of way.
A B C D
The
answer is (D). The phrase a number of implies that a plural noun, ways,
should follow.
b.
Verbs
and Verb Phrases
In the past 200 years, the earth’s atmosphare .... enriched in
carbon dioxide.
(a) Becoming (c) Becomes
(b) Have
become (d) Has become
The
answer is (d). The present perfect tense is usually used with the phrase in the past [time] (e.g., in the past 3
weeks, in the past 2 hours).
In
some religions, people fasts for a period of mouring.
A B C
D
The
answers is (B). Because people is a
plural noun, the verb fast should
reflect the plural subject.
c.
Adjectives
and Adjective Phrases
The earth spins around .... that connects the geographic North and
South Poles.
(a) The
image and line (c)
That line imagined
(b) Imagined
the line (d) The
imaginary line
The
answer is (d). In this sentence, the preposition arround is followed by the
noun phrase the imaginary line.
Sweetly
smelling perfumes are added to soap to
make it appealing.
A
B C D
The
answer is (A). The adjective smelling requires
an adjective, sweet, to describe it,
not an adverb.
d.
Pronouns
Young rabbits learn to feed .... when they are one day old.
(a) So (c) Much
(b) And (d) Themselves
The
answer is (D). The plural form of the reflexive pronoun themselves refers to the noun rabbits.
Instead
of going to a beauty salon, Mary cut hers own hair.
A
B C D
The
answer is (D). The possessive pronoun her
(not hers) should be used when a noun (hair)
follows.
e.
Adverbs
and Adverb Phrases
Art
critics and historians alike claim that Van Gogh’s art .... from that of his
contemporaries.
(a) Is
a considerable difference (c)
The difference is considerable
(b) Is
considerably different (d)
Was considerably and differently
The
answer is (b). In the sentence, the preposition from is a part of the adjective-and-preposition structure different from.
Joseph
Priestly eventual emigrated to the United States in 1794, where
A
he
lived his remaining years in relative
isolation.
B C D
The
answer is (A). An adverb is required to describe the verb emigrated, as in eventually
emigrated.
Structure 2 : Parallel Structure
Before
any food is canned, it is thoroughly .... or sliced.
(a) Clean
cut (c) Clean and cut
(b) Cleaned
and cut (d) Cleaned or cut
The
answer is (b). Only (b) and (d) are possible in this sentence because these
choices contain passive verbs, cleaned
and cut and cleaned or cut, parallel
to sliced. A structure containing two
con junctions, ... or ... or, as in
(d) is not use in most parallel structure.
Many
Americans believe that food additive and other chemicals used
A B
in
the production and processing of foods harm the body.
C D
The
answer is (A). Food additive, a
singular expression, is not parallel to the plural form of other chemicals.
Structure 3 : Subordinate Clauces
Proper
packaging protects food .... in the freezer.
(a) While
it is stored (c) While
storing
(b) Stored
while it (d) Is stored
while
The answer is (a). Because it is only choice
amonng th four that is a complete adverb clause.
Many
couples share the cost of a date and decide together what will
they do.
A
B C D
The
answer is (D). In a noun clause, the word order should be what they will do.
Structure 4 : Subject/Verb Presence and
Agreement; Repeated Subject
None
of the nutrients in soil .... found in sand.
(a) Are
usually (c)
Is usually
(b) That
is usually (d)
Typically
The
answer is (c). None is the singular subject of this sentence, and
the verb should also be the singular is.
Many
old elephants they die after they lose their teeth and can
no longer
A
B C D
chew
food.
The
answer is (A). Having both Many old
elephants and they causes the sentence to
have a repeated subject.
Structure 5 : Active / Passive Voice
Unless
some rare plants ...., they may die out completely.
(a) Protect
them (c) Protected
(b) Are
protected (d) Are protecting
The
answer is (b). Because a plural passive verb is necessary after plants.
Calculus
was invented to deal with problems that could not be solving
using
A B C
algebra or geometry.
D
The
answer is (C). The passive form of the verb is necessary here. The correct
clause would be that could not be solved
using algebra or geomatry.
Structure 6 : Gerund / Infinitives
Most
countries spend a large portion of their budgets .... for their citizens.
(a) Education
provided (c)
To education provides
(b) Provide
education (d)
Providing education
The
answer is (d). The sentence can be correctly completed by the gerund phrase providing education. None of the other
three choices would form a grammatical sentence.
J.
Davis devoted his last years to
write at his home in Biloxi, Mississippi, near
A B C
the
Gulf of Mexico.
D
The
answer is (B). The verb devote takes a noun or a gerund; in this sentence,
the phrase to writing makes the structure correct.
Structure 7 : Repeated Meaning (tested only in
Part B of the Structure and Written Expression section)
Isadora Duncan danced in her bare
feet and wore loose-fitting clothing garments
A B C
that allowed her freedom of movement.
D
The
answer is (C). Clothing and garments
have similiar meanings.
Light rays that enter the eye must come to a point focus for a clear
vision to form.
A B C D
The answer is (C). Come to a point and focus have similiar meanings.
Structure 8 : Prepositions / Prepositional
Phrases
Several
nations may use the same collors ....
(a) Their
flags with (c) In
their flags
(b) By
their flags (d) Flags in their
The
answer is (c). In this sentence, the correct prepositional phrase is in their flags, as colors are used in flags.
Often the bottom of a pan or skillet becomes
black when it is placed among a fire.
A B C D
The
answer is (D). The preposition among
is used with more than two objects, as in among
the students. In a fire would be correct.
Structure 9 : Articles / Article Form
....
who determines similarities in human group behavior lives with a group of
people.
(a) Anthropologists (c) An anthropologist
(b) Anthropologist (d) The anthropologists
The
answer is (c). Because in English most countable singular nouns are used with
articles or pronouns, (b) would not be correct. (a) and (d) are plural, but a
singular subject is necessary.
A
adult elephant has so little hair that it appears almost hairless.
A B C D
The
answer is (A). The correct form of the indefinite article before a word that
begins with with a vowel (a, e, i, o, or
u) is an.
Structure 10 : Verb Tenses / Inversion
Electric
trains travel faster than other types of trains, and they .... smoke or exhaust.
(a) Did
not produce (c)
Had not produced
(b) Do
not produce (d)
Are not produced
The
answer is (b). Because the simple present tense travel is used in the first
part of this compound sentence.
Not
only new ideas change the
development of modern science but
A B
they
also make new inventions a part of daily life.
C D
The
answer is (A). When a sentence begins with a negative such as not, the helping verb (or sometimes the main verb)
should be used before the subject, as in Not
only do new ideas change the development of modern science.
Structure 11 : Adverb Placement
A
guest .... respond to a written invitation by telephone or by mail within five
days of receiving it.
(a) That
should always (c)
Always
(b) Should
always (d)
All ways should
The answer is (b). When a verb phrase consists of a modal and a main
verb, the adverb is placed between them.
Dictatorships
generally lack the approval of the people and are never almost
A B C
Hereditary
when established through violence.
D
The
answer is (c). Almost usually precedes the adverb it describes: almost never.
Structure 12 : Main Clause Structure; Complete
and Partial Clauses
Experts .... feel that they are related to the
deep wishes and fears of th dreamer.
(a)
Study
dreams (c)
Whose dream study
(b)
Who
dream study (d)
Who study dreams
In
(a), the word study can be either a noun or a verb. It cannot
be a noun because the word Experts has two verbs study and dream
without a conjunction. (a) is not a good choice. (b) is also not a good
choise because the phrase dream study includes a verb study, followed by another verb feel.
In (c), dream is a noun because whose precedes nouns, and in
this case, these is no conjuction between study
and feel.
The
answer is (d). The word order in a clause follows the subject-verb-object
pattern: who (subject) study (verb) dreams (object).
Because children grow rapidly, need
food not only to replace worn-out tissue
A B C
but also to provide energy.
D
In
(A), the adverb rapidly follows the verb grow; (A) is correct. In (B), if need is a verb, it has no
subject. If need is a noun, it has no verb. (B) is a possible
answer. (C), to replace, is correct
if need
is a noun, it has no verb. The choice (D) also seems correct because
to replace may be parallel to to provide. The answer is (B). The subject
they is missing from the main clause: they need food...
Sumber :
http://books.google.co.id/books?id=MePytSBVyX8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=penjelasan+structure+toefl&hl=id&sa=X&ei=GVSHU7u9HsiOkAWu8oCgBw&ved=0CFEQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=penjelasan%20structure%20toefl&f=false
