There are three parts to the 2026 TOEFL Writing Section – Build a Sentence, Write an Email and Write for an Academic Discussion. Read on for guides to each one!
Build a Sentence
In the first task, you must reorder some words to form grammatically correct sentences. Here’s how it works:
- You will see nine sentences (one a time). Some will be questions. Others will just be statements.
- There will be a response for each one, but the words will be in the wrong order.
- You must click and drag to put the words in the right order.
- You will re-order 5-7 words each time.
- You’ll get about six minutes for everything (probably).
Build a Sentence Samples
What did she ask about your future plans?
_____ _____ _____ _____ ______ _____ I’m _____.
Considering she to wanted know colleges which
Answer: SHE WANTED TO KNOW WHICH COLLEGES I’M CONSIDERING.
I just got out of a job interview.
_____ _____ _____ _____ ______ _____ you a _____?
position offer do you will they think
Answer: DO YOU THINK THEY WILL OFFER YOU A POSITION?
Write an Email
In the second task, you must write an email about a campus or social situation. Here’s how it works:
- A social or academic scenario will be described.
- You must write an email about the scenario and you must include three specific elements indicated in the description.
- You will have seven minutes to write (probably).
- You will be judged on adherence to social conventions (politeness), cohesion, completeness, grammar, vocabulary and punctuation.
- I recommend writing 130+ words.
- This is scored by AI (probably).
Write an Email – Strategies
- Remember to include all three of the required details.
- You should add additional details and explanations to strengthen your email. Don’t limit yourself to just what is in the prompt. Use your imagination!
- Write about 130 to 150 words in total.
- Include compound and complex sentences to increase your overall grammar level.
- Avoid repeating words too many times. Use synonyms where possible.
- Be very polite. For instance, use hedging phrases like “would it be possible to…” instead of just asking for the reader to do something. And try saying “please let me know” instead of just telling them to let you know.
- Try some templates for this task.
Write an Email – Sample Question
You are a student in Professor Kim’s sociology class. Last week, you submitted your midterm essay via the class website. Yesterday, you checked your grade and were surprised to see it was much lower than you expected. When you opened the file that was graded, you realized it was an older draft of your essay, not the final version. You still have the correct final version saved on your computer.
Write an email to Professor Kim. In your email, do the following:
- Clearly explain the problem and how you noticed that the wrong version was graded.
- Ask if you can send the final version and have your grade changed.
- Ask when you can expect a reply.
Write an Email – Sample Response
Hello Professor Kim,
I’m writing because of a problem I experienced when submitting the midterm essay last week. I was surprised by my low score on the essay, and after I checked your comments I noticed that I accidentally uploaded an old draft and did not submit my final version. Would it be possible for me to send the final version this week and get a new grade for the assignment? I know this is an unusual request, but it is very important that I do well in this class, and a poor score on the midterm essay will have a major impact on my final result. Please let me know when you will decide if this is acceptable to you.
Thank you very much,
Lisa Paulus
Write for an Academic Discussion
In the third task, you must write a response to a question posted by a professor on a class message board. Here’s how it works:
- You will see a question about an academic topic posted by a professor.
- You will also see two student responses.
- Your job is to answer the question, and contribute to the overall discussion.
- You will have ten minutes to read everything and write your response.
- You will be judged based on your content, grammar and vocabulary.
- This is scored by AI (probably).
- Write about 120 words. Or more.
- This is the same as on the old TOEFL (2023-2025)
My master guide to this task is here. You can also try some templates for this task.
Write for an Academic Discussion – Sample Question
Professor: Next, we’ll be discussing the possibility of reviving extinct species. As new developments in genetic engineering are made, it seems more likely that at some point in the future, species that have been extinct for a long time might be revived and reintroduced into nature.
What do you think? Should scientists bring back extinct species? Why or why not?
Juan: I believe that scientists should be encouraged to bring back species, even if they have been extinct for a long time. Keep in mind that humans are the main reason why certain species of plants and animals no longer exist, so we almost have a responsibility to revive them if possible. Doing so could create richer and more vibrant ecosystems all over the planet.
Alice: Personally, I’m concerned about the possible side effects of this possibility, so I don’t support it. We don’t know what will happen if a particular species is reintroduced, even in its original habitat. In fact, it could actually cause harm to the populations of other species. Therefore, I think the potential risks could outweigh the benefits.
Write for an Academic Discussion – Sample Response
While Juan has raised some interesting points, I share Alice’s opinion that reviving extinct species is a terrible idea. As she indicated, it could lead to unintended consequences. For example, if we reintroduce a predator that has long been extinct, it could prey on other animals and cause irreparable harm to the overall food chain. Even herbivores could have a major impact on a habitat, as they might reproduce quickly and consume large amounts of plants that other animals depend on for their survival. Moreover, reintroduced species might even cause the spread of diseases in certain areas. Unfortunately, I think we just have to accept that some species have died off and realize that it is important to focus on protecting species that do exist rather than trying to bring back ones that do not.
Get Help – TOEFL Essay Evaluation
Sign up today to have your practice essays evaluated by a TOEFL writing expert (that’s me). I’ll check your answers line by line and comment on your grammar, development, argument and vocabulary. I’ll even guess your score. More importantly, I’ll tell you what you need to do better next time. Check it out.