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TOEIC Speaking: describe a picture task practice

B1Speaking & Writing40 questionsUpdated

The TOEIC Speaking picture task gives you one photograph, a short preparation window and then a fixed recording time you are expected to fill. Silence costs more than a small grammatical error, so the task is won with a template: where it is, who is there, what they are doing, what else is in the frame. This page builds that template and the language each slot needs.

What this task tests

  • Present continuous used accurately for everything happening in the frame.
  • Position language: in the foreground, on the left, behind, next to, across from.
  • Vocabulary for common settings: office, warehouse, street, restaurant, waiting area.
  • Describing people by role and clothing rather than by guesswork about their lives.
  • Hedging when you are unsure: it looks like, they seem to be, it might be.
  • Producing continuous speech for the whole recording with no long silences.
  • Ordering the description so the listener can follow it, rather than jumping around the frame.
  • Adding detail — colours, numbers, weather, time of day — to fill the remaining seconds.
  • Self-correcting briefly and moving on instead of restarting.
  • Preparing a reusable opening and closing sentence that fit any photograph.

How to do it

  1. Step 1:

    Open with the setting in one sentence

    *This picture was taken in an office* or *…at a construction site*. It is always available, it uses no thinking time, and it orients the listener immediately.

  2. Step 2:

    Say how many people there are

    *There are three people in the picture.* This sentence is free, it is never wrong if you have counted, and it gives you a structure for the next part.

  3. Step 3:

    Describe the main action in the present continuous

    *The man on the left is pointing at a screen.* Take the most obvious action first; the rater wants accuracy, not the most interesting observation.

  4. Step 4:

    Work in one direction across the frame

    Left to right, or foreground to background. A systematic sweep stops you repeating people you have already described and stops you drying up.

  5. Step 5:

    Add the background objects when the people run out

    Windows, shelves, signs, vehicles, the weather. These sentences exist to fill the time and they are easy to produce accurately.

  6. Step 6:

    Hedge instead of guessing

    *It looks like a training session* is safe; *they are training new employees* may simply be wrong. Hedging costs nothing and protects accuracy.

  7. Step 7:

    Keep talking through a mistake

    If a word will not come, describe around it: *the thing they use to lift the boxes*. A short paraphrase beats several seconds of silence.

  8. Step 8:

    Hold a closing sentence in reserve

    *Overall, it looks like a normal working day at a busy warehouse.* Use it if you finish early, so the recording ends on a complete thought.

  9. Step 9:

    Practise the template until it is automatic

    Setting, people, main action, sweep, background, close. Once the order is a habit, the preparation seconds go on vocabulary instead of structure.

Mistakes that cost marks

  • Not thisA man works at a desk.

    ThisA man is working at a desk.

    The present simple describes a routine, not what is in front of you. Almost everything in a photograph needs the present continuous.

  • Not thisThere is two women in the picture.

    ThisThere are two women in the picture.

    *There is* and *there are* follow the noun that comes after them, and this sentence is used so often in the task that the error is very visible.

  • Not thisHe is angry because his order was late.

    ThisHe looks frustrated about something.

    The photograph cannot support a backstory. Inventing one loses accuracy marks that a hedge would have protected.

  • Not thisStopping at twenty seconds because you have run out of ideas.

    ThisMoving to background objects and colours.

    The recording is scored partly on whether you sustain speech. Silence is the most expensive mistake on this task.

  • Not thisIn the front of the picture there is a table.

    ThisIn the foreground there is a table.

    *Foreground* and *background* are the expected pair, and the task rewards the specific vocabulary it was designed around.

  • Not thisDescribing the same person three times in different words.

    ThisSweeping the frame in one direction.

    Repetition is easy to hear and adds nothing. A systematic sweep produces new content with no extra thinking.

Language this task keeps reusing

in the foreground
At the front of the picture, nearest the viewer.
in the background
At the back of the picture, furthest away.
on the left / right
At one side of the frame.
in the middle
At the centre of the picture.
next to
Beside; immediately at the side of.
across from
Opposite, facing.
It looks like…
A hedge for a reasonable guess about the scene.
They seem to be…
A hedge about what people are doing.
be seated
Formal *sitting*: several people are seated at a long table.
be lined up
Arranged in a row.
crowded
Full of people.
casual clothes
Informal clothing, as opposed to business attire.
business attire
Formal work clothing such as suits.
under way
Already in progress: a meeting is under way.

Practice: describe a picture

40 original questions. The first 10 are open to everyone. Answers are checked in your browser and never sent to us, so you can share this page with a class as it is.

1Complete with the past simple passive of *take*.

This picturein a busy warehouse.
Which opening sentence is the most useful for any photograph?

3Complete with the present form of *be* that agrees with *three people*.

Therethree people in the picture.
Which sentence correctly describes what is happening in a photograph?

5Complete with one word meaning *the front of the picture*.

In the, there is a table covered with papers.
Decide whether each statement about the picture task is true or false.
  • The recording has a fixed length that you are expected to fill.
  • A short silence is less costly than a small grammar mistake.
  • Preparation time is given before you start speaking.
3 to go

7Complete with the -ing form of *point*.

The woman on the left isat a screen.
Which is the safest way to describe people you cannot be certain about?

9Complete with a two-word phrase meaning *opposite*.

Two colleagues are seatedeach other at a narrow table.

10Write the four-part template you would use for any photograph in this task.

Keep going

30 more questions on this page

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Frequently asked questions

How much should I say?

Enough to fill the recording. A workable target is eight to ten sentences, which the four-part template produces without inventing anything.

Do I need advanced vocabulary?

No. Accurate position language and clear present continuous score better than rare words used shakily. The safest strong vocabulary is the setting's own nouns.

What if I misidentify something in the picture?

Hedge with *it looks like* and keep going. A hedged description of the wrong object costs far less than silence or a long correction.

Should I describe people's emotions?

Only with *looks* or *seems*. Attributing feelings and motives as fact is where candidates lose accuracy in an otherwise fluent answer.

How do I practise this alone?

Take any photograph, set a timer for the recording length and describe it without stopping. Note where you dried up; that is where the template needs another slot.