TOEFL biology vocabulary
156 words in this theme, levelled so you can tell what is worth your time at your band.
Biology is the most common academic subject area on the TOEFL, so its vocabulary — organism, adaptation, pollination, metabolism — appears more often than any other field’s in academic passages and talks.
Why this theme earns your time
You are not being tested on biology. But an academic talk about pollination moves fast, and a word you have to decode is a word you are not listening past — which is why the recurring subject areas are worth pre-loading.
What the words look like
Every entry carries its part of speech, pronunciation, CEFR level, the collocations it actually appears in, and a sentence using it. A sample from the bank:
| Word | CEFR | Meaning | In use |
|---|---|---|---|
| abundantadj. /əˈbʌndənt/ | B2 | existing in large amounts; more than enoughabundant supply · abundant wildlife | Plankton is abundant near the surface, feeding a wide range of ocean life. |
| branchn./v. /bræntʃ/ | B1 | an arm of a tree; a local office; to dividea branch office · branch out | The bank closed its branch on the high street. |
| denn. /den/ | C1 | the home of a wild animala fox den | The fox den sits under the fallen trunk. |
| fierceadj. /fɪrs/ | B2 | aggressive or violent; very strongfierce competition · a fierce storm | Competition for lab places is fierce. |
| herbivoren. /ˈhɜːrbɪvɔːr/ | C1 | an animal that eats only plantsgrazing herbivores | Large herbivores shape the landscape by grazing. |
| keystoneadj./n. /ˈkiːstoʊn/ | C2 | the most important part, on which everything else dependskeystone species · a keystone role | The otter is a keystone species in this ecosystem. |
| multiplyv. /ˈmʌltɪplaɪ/ | B1 | to increase greatly in number; to do multiplicationmultiply rapidly · multiply by two | Bacteria multiply fast in warm broth. |
| peckv. /pek/ | C2 | to strike with a beakpeck at | Hens peck at grit to help digestion. |
| primaten. /ˈpraɪmeɪt/ | C1 | a mammal such as a monkey, ape or humana primate species | Primates rely heavily on colour vision. |
| sapn. /sæp/ | C2 | the liquid inside a planttree sap · sap rises | Maple sap runs in early spring. |
| speciesn. /ˈspiːʃiːz/ | B1 | a group of animals or plants whose members are similar and can produce young togetherendangered species · invasive species | Biologists estimate that millions of insect species remain undescribed in tropical rainforests. |
| tameadj./v. /teɪm/ | C1 | not wild; to make gentletame animals · a tame ending | The island foxes are unusually tame. |
What to learn at your level
Most of this theme sits at CEFR C1 (51% of its words). At band 4 the B1 and B2 entries are the ones that move your score; grinding C1 vocabulary before the B2 layer is solid is the most common way to spend weeks and gain nothing.
| Level | Words | Share |
|---|---|---|
| B1 | 12 | 8% |
| B2 | 44 | 28% |
| C1 | 79 | 51% |
| C2 | 21 | 13% |
Recognising a word is not knowing it
Complete the Words asks you to *produce* a word from context with only its opening letters shown, and the writing tasks ask you to produce it from nothing. That is why the PrepScore drill makes you write the word rather than flip a card, and counts it mastered only after two correct productions in a row. See how the vocabulary drill works.
Drill this theme free
Twenty words a day at no cost, tested by production rather than recognition.
Frequently asked questions
Is biology the most common TOEFL topic?
It is the most common academic-talk subject area in this bank, which reflects how often life-science topics appear on the test.
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By PrepScore · Last reviewed · Editorial standards