TOEIC Vocabulary: Building Workplace English

TOEIC has a narrower focus than most English tests. It is not about academic English, and it is not about casual conversation. ETS, the organization that runs it, describes it as measuring English used in the workplace. That narrowness is what makes it different to prepare for. A strong general vocabulary helps, but it is not the same thing as being ready for English as it is used in offices, meetings, emails and business travel. This guide explains what ETS says and then turns it into a way of building workplace vocabulary. For test formats, timings and scores, check the ETS pages, because details change.

What ETS says the tests are

ETS's TOEIC page names three tests. TOEIC Listening and Reading is described as assessing intermediate to advanced English listening and reading skills needed in the workplace. TOEIC Speaking and Writing is described as helping candidates demonstrate intermediate to advanced speaking and writing proficiency needed in the workplace. TOEIC Bridge is for beginner to intermediate learners, for everyday use, and covers listening, reading, speaking and writing. ETS calls TOEIC the global standard for measuring workplace English proficiency, and says the tests are aligned with the CEFR. What the CEFR is explains that scale.

The page used for this guide does not give score ranges, question counts or timings, so this guide does not either. If you see those figures elsewhere, confirm them on the ETS site. The sample questions on the test taker pages are the best way to see what the language looks like.

Why workplace vocabulary is its own skill

Workplace English overlaps with general English, and it also has a character of its own. Three features stand out.

It is specific. Many workplace words are not rare. They are precise. Deadline, invoice, agenda, colleague, schedule, budget, client, supplier and quarterly are ordinary in an office and may never come up in a general conversation course.

It runs on set phrases. A great deal of workplace language comes in ready-made chunks: attach a document, reschedule a meeting, meet a deadline, place an order, raise a concern, follow up. Knowing the phrase is more useful than knowing each word separately. Cambridge Dictionary defines the idea as a collocation, a combination of words that sounds natural.

It is polite in particular ways. Workplace requests are usually softened: Could you send me the report? instead of Send me the report. I was wondering whether we could move the meeting. The tone is part of the vocabulary.

Build vocabulary by situation

Instead of one long list, build groups around situations you or the test might involve. Here are some starting points, with a few words and phrases for each.

Emails and messages. attach, forward, reply, attachment, subject line, Dear Ms Lee, I am writing to, please find attached, at your earliest convenience, thank you for your prompt reply.

Meetings. agenda, minutes, chair a meeting, item, propose, approve, postpone, reach an agreement, action point, follow up.

Schedules and travel. itinerary, departure, delay, book a flight, confirm a reservation, check in, board, arrange transport, be on a business trip.

Orders, shipping and stock. place an order, deliver, shipment, warehouse, out of stock, refund, receipt, track a parcel, invoice, payment due.

People and organizations. colleague, manager, supervisor, client, supplier, department, personnel, recruit, promote, resign.

Money and planning. budget, expenses, profit, revenue, forecast, quarterly, increase, decline, cut costs, invest.

Learn each group in small pieces, five to eight items at a time, and say a sentence for each. Words you use in your own sentences stay longer than words you only read.

Listening and the sound of workplace words

Listening sections and meetings move at natural speed, so hearing words matters as much as reading them. Some words look like others and are easy to mix up when heard, such as personal and personnel, or principal and principle. The way to deal with this is to listen to words as you learn them. Wordabulary's hear button reads each word aloud in British or American English, which helps you connect spelling and sound, though a synthesized voice is not a perfect model. Listen to short business recordings too, such as a recorded voicemail, a short announcement or a company update, and note words you did not catch.

A routine that fits a working day

You can do this in short sessions. Spend five minutes at the start of the day on review, testing yourself on yesterday's phrases and covering the meaning before checking. Spend five minutes during a break learning one situation group, with a sentence for each. Spend five minutes in the evening using what you learned: write one short email in English about something real, such as confirming a meeting or asking for information, and underline the new phrases. What micro learning is explains why short sessions can work well, and how spaced repetition works explains how to space reviews.

Once a week, read something real from the workplace in English, such as a company newsletter, a product page or a news report on business, and collect five phrases. Real texts show how the words are used, which no list can.

Using real material

Textbooks and lists give you words, and real workplace material shows you how the words behave. If you work in English, notice the phrases colleagues use in emails and meetings, and copy a few into your own notes with the sentence they appeared in. If you do not, read business news, product pages and company announcements, and listen to short interviews with managers or recordings of workplace dialogues. Aim to collect five phrases a week, and review them in your short sessions. After a month you will have twenty or more phrases that you have seen in context and used yourself, which is worth more than a long list you only read once.

Common mistakes

Some learners study only words for jobs and industries and neglect the small, frequent words that glue business English together, such as regarding, due to, in order to, as soon as possible and on behalf of. Others learn a word but not its partner, and write make a deadline or do a decision. A third group learns formal email phrases and then uses them in speech, where they can sound stiff. Match the register to the situation.

How Wordabulary fits in

Wordabulary can help with the vocabulary part of your preparation. Its words are tagged from A1 to C2, so you can build workplace vocabulary at your level, practice shows definitions and example sentences, quizzes include a typing format that asks you to produce words, and every word can be heard. It does not predict a TOEIC score and has no connection with ETS. Use it alongside the sample questions on the ETS site.