The first TOEIC Writing task shows a picture and gives you two words or phrases. You write one sentence that describes the picture and uses both, and you may change their form but not their meaning. Ambition is not rewarded here: a short, correct sentence beats a long one with an error in it. This page drills the patterns that make each pair easy.
Which is the verb and which is the noun? *Wait / bus* gives you a subject and an action immediately: people are waiting for a bus.
Almost every picture shows something in progress. Unless a given word forbids it, *is/are + -ing* is the safest tense on this task.
Subject, verb, object, place. Add nothing until that sentence is correct, and add only if you have time.
You may write *waiting* for *wait* or *boxes* for *box*, but not *waiter* for *wait*. Changing the part of speech is allowed; changing the idea is not.
If the pair does not fit one clause — *because / repair* — use two clauses: the elevator is closed because a technician is repairing it.
The two errors that appear most in quick writing are a missing article and a wrong verb ending. Two seconds of checking catches both.
*Next to*, *behind*, *in front of* come free from what you can see and make a bare sentence look complete.
The task asks for one. A second sentence adds risk without adding marks, and may be treated as not following the instruction.
These items are short and there are several of them. Time saved here is time available for the written request, which carries far more content.
Not thisGiven *wait / bus*: "The people wait a bus."
This"The people are waiting for a bus."
Wait takes *for* before its object, and a picture needs the continuous. Both errors are common and both are avoidable.
Not thisGiven *because / repair*: "Because the technician is repairing the elevator."
This"The elevator is out of service because a technician is repairing it."
*Because* introduces a subordinate clause, which cannot stand alone. The sentence needs a main clause as well.
Not thisGiven *discuss / document*: "They are discussing about the document."
This"They are discussing the document."
Discuss is transitive and takes no preposition, one of the errors this task exposes most reliably.
Not thisGiven *wait / bus*: "The waiter is at the bus stop."
This"A man is waiting at the bus stop."
Changing *wait* to *waiter* changes the meaning, which the instructions do not allow. Only the grammatical form may change.
Not thisWriting three clauses to show range.
ThisWriting one clear clause.
The scale rewards a correct sentence. Length adds opportunities for error without adding credit.
Not thisDescribing something that is not in the picture.
ThisDescribing only what you can see.
Relevance to the picture is part of the task. An elegant sentence about the wrong scene scores badly.
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.
2Complete with the preposition used after *wait*.
4Complete with the -ing form of *carry*.
6Complete with the given conjunction.
8Complete with the -ing form of *unload*.
10Write one sentence for a picture of a man painting a wall, using the given words *paint / ladder*.
One good answer
A man is painting a wall while standing on a ladder.
11Complete with the given conjunction.
13Complete with the -ing form of *point*.
15Complete with a three-word preposition.
17Complete with the -ing form of *deliver*.
19Complete with a two-word conjunction of purpose.
21Complete with the -ing form of *look*.
23Complete with a two-word preposition.
24Write one sentence for a picture of a technician working under a raised car, using *repair / vehicle*.
One good answer
A technician is repairing a vehicle that has been raised on a lift.
26Complete with a three-word phrase of purpose.
28Complete with the -ing form of *wear*.
30Complete with the -ing form of *hold*.
32Complete with one preposition.
34Complete with the -ing form of *sit*.
35Given *deliver / because*, write one sentence about a picture of boxes left outside a locked shop.
One good answer
The boxes were left outside because the courier could not deliver them while the shop was closed.
37Complete with the -ing form of *cross*.
Note
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You can change their grammatical form — plural, tense, participle — but not their meaning or their word family in a way that changes the idea.
No. One accurate observation that uses both words is enough, and trying to summarise the whole scene usually produces errors.
Use two clauses joined by a conjunction. *Because*, *while* and *so that* solve almost every awkward pair.
As long as it needs to be and no longer. A clean main clause with a place or a reason attached is the reliable target.
Not much. The later writing task carries more content, so speed here is what protects your score there.