TOEIC Reading Section: Grammar, Vocabulary & Comprehension Tips

The TOEIC Reading section (Parts 5–7) gives you 75 minutes to answer 100 questions. Effective time management and targeted grammar knowledge are the difference between a 650 and an 800+ score.

Reading Section Overview

Part	Name	Questions	Time allocation (recommended)
Part 5	Incomplete Sentences	30	15–18 min (30 sec/question)
Part 6	Text Completion	16	10–12 min
Part 7	Reading Comprehension	54	45–50 min

Part 5: Incomplete Sentences — Top Grammar Rules

Part 5 tests a specific set of grammar points repeatedly. Focus on these:

• Part-of-speech questions: Is the blank a noun, verb, adjective, or adverb? Identify by looking at surrounding words.
• Verb tense: Look for time expressions (yesterday, currently, by next quarter) to determine the correct tense.
• Prepositions: “During / for / since / over the past” — these collocations are frequently tested.
• Pronoun agreement: Singular antecedent → singular pronoun. Watch for collective nouns.
• Connectives: “Despite / Although / Even though / However” — understand the contrast/concession relationships.

Part 6: Text Completion Tips

Unlike Part 5, Part 6 requires reading the whole paragraph for context. The most important technique:

• For the “insert a sentence” question, check that the inserted sentence connects logically to both the sentence before and after it.
• Transition words in inserted sentences (Therefore, However, In addition) are clues to the logical flow.

Part 7: Reading Comprehension Strategy

Part 7 has single documents (Articles, emails, advertisements) and multiple documents (double/triple passages). Strategy by type:

• Single passages: Read the questions first, then skim the document for the relevant section. Most answers are directly stated.
• Double/triple passages: One question per set usually requires synthesising information from both documents. Identify which document answers which question.
• NOT questions: These (“Which is NOT mentioned…”) require checking all four options against the text. Allow extra time.

Vocabulary for Part 5–7

TOEIC vocabulary clusters around business themes: contracts, invoices, hiring, schedules, facilities, shipping, finance. Learning vocabulary in these thematic groups is more efficient than random word lists.

Time Management Rule

If a Part 7 question takes more than 90 seconds, mark a best guess and move on. Running out of time and leaving blanks is the single biggest score-killer in Reading.