Understanding Photographs

Introduction

Part 1 is the first thing you meet on the TOEIC Listening and Reading test. It contains 6 questions out of the 200 on the test, so it carries about 3 % of the questions, but it matters more than its size suggests. It is the warm-up for your ears: the way you handle these six items sets your concentration for the other 94 listening questions. It is also the easiest place on the Listening section to collect points if you know the patterns, and the cheapest place to lose them if you panic about vocabulary.

In Part 1 you look at one photograph in your test book. You hear four short statements, (A), (B), (C) and (D), spoken only once. The statements are not printed in the test book. You choose the statement that best describes what you see in the picture. There is no question to read and no passage to follow; the whole task is matching sentences you hear to details you see.

Part 1 is part of Section I: Listening, which lasts about 45 minutes in total and has 100 questions. The photographs show everyday and workplace situations: offices, factories, restaurants, shops, streets, construction sites, airports, parks and homes.

After this lesson you will be able to:

• describe the types of photograph you will see and predict the language they call for;
• sort the statements into correct, plausible but wrong and clearly wrong using a repeatable method;
• recognize the verb forms used to describe people (present continuous, present perfect continuous, passive progressive) and objects (simple present, passive, existence statements);
• avoid the classic sound-alike and "wrong subject" traps;
• build a practical vocabulary of positions, actions, objects and places.

Learning objectives

1. Explain the exact task and timing of Part 1.
2. Classify a photograph as a one-person, two-or-more-people or no-people picture and predict the likely correct statement.
3. Use the three-pass method (scan, predict, eliminate) while the directions are being read.
4. Recognize the verb patterns that describe actions versus states.
5. Identify the common distractor types: wrong action, wrong object, wrong location, wrong time, and sound-alike words.
6. Recall around 150 high-frequency Part 1 words and phrases.

1. The task and the timing

What you hear. The recording gives short directions, then the number of the question ("Number 1"), then four statements with a short pause after each. Each statement is read once. Between questions there is a gap of only a few seconds. Then the next photograph is announced.

What you do. You mark one answer on the answer sheet. If you are unsure, mark your best guess and move on. A blank answer scores nothing, and a guess costs nothing, because the score is based on the number of correct answers.

Stay in the right part. The recording reads the directions for each part. Listen for the start of the question, and do not read ahead into other parts: test rules require you to work on the part being played.

Do not wait for a "perfect" statement. The typical correct answer is a simple, accurate description of a visible detail. It is not interesting, clever or complete. Many candidates reject a correct answer because it feels too obvious.

What the statements are like

The four statements are short, usually 6 to 12 words. They have a subject, a verb and a place or object:

• "A woman is pouring water into a glass."
• "Some chairs have been stacked against the wall."
• "A bicycle is parked beside a building."

Only one statement is true of the picture. The other three fail for a reason. If you know the kinds of failure, you can eliminate them quickly.

2. Three kinds of photograph

You can often predict the language before you hear it, just by classifying the picture.

Type A: one person

A single person is the focus. The correct statement almost always describes what the person is doing or how the person looks.

Example scene. A man in a hard hat stands on a ladder against a building, holding a paint roller.

Likely true statements:

• "A man is painting a wall."
• "A man is standing on a ladder."
• "A man is wearing a helmet."

Likely distractors:

• "A man is climbing down a staircase." (wrong action: a ladder is not a staircase and he is not descending)
• "A man is carrying a box." (wrong object)
• "A man is talking on a telephone." (action not visible)

Strategy. Before the audio starts, name the action in your head with a verb ending in -ing: painting, standing, holding, wearing. Then listen for any of those verbs.

Type B: two or more people

You must now decide whether the correct statement is about the group or about one individual. Look for shared activity (they are all seated at a table) and contrast (one person is writing while another is reading).

Example scene. Four people sit around a meeting table. Two look at a laptop screen; one is pointing at a chart on the wall; another holds a cup.

Likely true statements:

• "They are having a meeting." / "People are seated around a table."
• "One of the men is pointing at a chart."
• "A woman is looking at a computer screen."

Likely distractors:

• "Everyone is standing near the window." (wrong position)
• "They are shaking hands." (action not visible)
• "A man is handing out some papers." (action not visible)

Strategy. If the picture shows people doing different things, a statement with "all of them" or "everyone" is suspicious. If they are doing the same thing, "they" and "people" are safe subjects.

Type C: no people

When no person is visible, the statement describes objects, scenery or arrangement. Verbs are mostly in the simple present or the passive, and many statements use "There is/are".

Example scene. A café terrace in the morning: three round tables, each with two chairs; a menu board on the pavement; no customers; potted plants along the railing.

Likely true statements:

• "Some chairs are arranged around the tables."
• "Plants are lined up along a railing."
• "A sign has been placed on the pavement."

Likely distractors:

• "Customers are ordering food." (people are not in the picture)
• "The tables are being cleaned." (nobody is cleaning)
• "A waiter is carrying a tray." (no person)

Strategy. A statement that contains a person ("a waiter", "customers") cannot be correct in a no-people photograph. This single rule eliminates one or two options almost every time.

3. The verb patterns you must recognize

Part 1 is a test of how well you link verb form to what you can see.

The passive progressive trap

"The windows are being cleaned" says that someone is cleaning them right now. It requires a person doing the cleaning in the picture. If the windows are just clean and nobody is cleaning, the correct form would be "The windows are clean" or "have been cleaned". Many candidates hear "windows" and "cleaned", match the nouns and miss the verb form. Learn this contrast:

Action versus state

For people, English has two descriptions for a similar scene: an action ("She is putting on a jacket") and a state ("She is wearing a jacket"). Putting on means the movement of dressing; wearing means the clothes are on. If a woman stands with a jacket already on, "She is wearing a jacket" is true and "She is putting on a jacket" is false. This pair is one of the most tested contrasts in Part 1. Learn it with its relatives:

4. The distractor types

Understanding why the wrong statements are wrong makes elimination fast.

1. Wrong action. The subject and object are correct, but the action is not. Picture: a man looking at a map. Distractor: "A man is folding a map."
2. Wrong object. The action is correct, but the object is not. Picture: a woman typing on a laptop. Distractor: "A woman is typing on a typewriter."
3. Wrong location. Everything is correct except the place. Picture: bicycles beside a fence. Distractor: "Bicycles are inside a garage."
4. Wrong subject. A person is described with an action that belongs to someone else, or a person is mentioned in a no-people photo.
5. Sound-alike. A word that sounds like a visible word but has a different meaning: ship/sheep, pass/path, walk/work, rail/real, coat/boat, light/right, bear/beer, fan/van. If you hear a word that is not logical for the picture, check if it sounds like something that is.
6. Not visible. The statement describes something plausible for the scene that cannot be seen: the weather, what happened earlier, what the people are thinking or planning. "They are waiting for a train" is risky if you only see people on a platform: you cannot see their purpose. "They are standing on a platform" is safe.
7. Too absolute. "All of the chairs are occupied" when some are empty.

Exam tip. The right answer describes something you can point to in the picture. If you would have to guess a purpose, a time or a feeling, it is almost certainly a distractor.

5. The three-pass method

Use this routine on every photograph. It takes about five seconds before the audio starts.

1. Scan. Find the people (how many), the main action, the main objects and the place. Look at the foreground first, then the background.
2. Predict. Silently build two or three statements in your head, using the verb patterns above.
3. Eliminate. While you listen, cross out options as they are read. Keep a mental mark: ✔ matches, ✘ clearly wrong, ? partly right. After (D), choose from the ✔ and ? options.

Rules while listening:

• Do not wait for (D) if (A) is a perfect match; you must still listen to the others, but you can relax. In practice, listen to all four, because a statement can start well and fail on the last word ("A man is reading a newspaper at a bus stop" when he is at a desk).
• When you hear a word you do not know, decide whether the rest of the statement matches. Often the unfamiliar word is the object, and the rest of the sentence already gives you enough to decide.
• Never look at the previous picture while the next one is being announced. Move on.

6. Worked example 1: one person

Scene. A woman in an apron stands behind a counter in a bakery. She is placing bread into a paper bag. Shelves of bread are behind her. A customer's hand is visible, holding a wallet.

Audio. (A) The woman is wrapping a gift. (B) The woman is putting bread into a bag. (C) The customer is baking bread. (D) Some shelves are being repaired.

Step 1: Scan. One main person (woman), a bakery, a paper bag, bread, shelves. A customer's hand only.

Step 2: Predict. "A woman is bagging bread", "A woman is working in a bakery", "A woman is standing at a counter".

Step 3: Eliminate.

• (A) ✘ Wrapping a gift: wrong object. She handles bread, not a gift.
• (B) ✔ Putting bread into a bag: action and object match exactly.
• (C) ✘ The customer is baking: wrong subject; the customer is not baking.
• (D) ✘ Shelves are being repaired: passive progressive requires someone repairing; nobody does.

Answer: (B).

Why the others are weaker. Each distractor reuses a word from the scene (wrapping ~ bag, baking ~ bread, shelves) but misses a detail, which is exactly how Part 1 is built.

7. Worked example 2: no people

Scene. A harbor at dawn. Four small boats are tied to a wooden dock. A coil of rope lies on the dock. In the background there are hills, and a lighthouse stands at the end of the pier. No people.

Audio. (A) Fishermen are mending a net. (B) Several boats are docked in a harbor. (C) A lighthouse is being built. (D) Some passengers are boarding a ferry.

Eliminate.

• (A) ✘ A person is mentioned ("fishermen"); there are none.
• (B) ✔ Docked describes the state of the boats; the location is correct.
• (C) ✘ Is being built needs workers and construction activity.
• (D) ✘ Passengers are people; none visible.

Answer: (B). Notice how the "no persons" rule removed (A) and (D) without needing to understand every word.

8. Worked example 3: two people

Scene. In an office, one man sits at a desk and holds a phone to his ear. A woman stands beside him and points at his computer monitor. A plant is on the desk.

Audio. (A) They are shaking hands. (B) The man is using the telephone. (C) The woman is sitting at a desk. (D) A plant is being watered.

Eliminate.

• (A) ✘ Not visible.
• (B) ✔ Matches the man, the action and the object.
• (C) ✘ Wrong position. She stands; he sits.
• (D) ✘ Passive progressive with no one watering.

Answer: (B). Note how (C) swapped the positions of the two people: always keep track of who does what.

9. Vocabulary for Part 1

Learn the words in groups; the test repeats the same scenes.

Positions of people

Actions in offices and shops

Places and objects

Prepositions of place

Above, beneath, beside, next to, in front of, behind, across from, along, against, on top of, between, among, alongside. Part 1 uses prepositions heavily, because they are the easiest way to describe a visible arrangement. A common trap changes the preposition: "The books are under the table" versus "on the table".

10. Frequent pitfalls

• Matching a single word. Choosing the option because you heard "table" is the most common error. Test the entire sentence.
• Over-thinking a simple picture. Part 1 does not ask for inference. The correct answer is visible.
• Being thrown by an unknown word. Rare vocabulary is typically in a distractor, but sometimes the correct answer. Rely on the other elements of the sentence.
• Dwelling on a missed question. The next question is announced seconds later. Mark a guess and refocus.
• Ignoring the background. Some correct answers describe a minor but clear detail: "Vehicles are parked along the street".
• Mixing up -ing and -ed. Parked (state) versus parking (action) is a typical contrast.

11. Mini case study with solution

Situation. Hana, a customer service coordinator, scores very well on Reading but misses 4 of the 6 Part 1 items in her practice tests. She tells her coach: "I always hear the right nouns, but I still choose wrong."

She reviews her mistakes:

1. Photo: a woman putting a jacket on a hook. Hana chose "A woman is wearing a jacket." (she heard woman and jacket).
2. Photo: empty restaurant tables. Hana chose "The tables are being set for lunch."
3. Photo: three men at a table, all looking at a laptop. Hana chose "They are drinking coffee." (There were cups on the table.)
4. Photo: a man crossing a street. Hana chose "A man is waiting for a bus."

Tasks. For each item, name the trap and the correct strategy.

Solution.

1. Action versus state. "Wearing" means the jacket is on her body. She is hanging it, so the right statement is something like "A woman is hanging up a jacket". Strategy: listen to the verb first.
2. Passive progressive without a person. "Are being set" requires a person setting tables; none is visible. The right statement is "The tables have been set" or "Tables are arranged in rows". Strategy: associate being + participle with a visible worker.
3. Not the main action. Cups are objects, but nobody is drinking; they look at a laptop. Strategy: choose what the people are actually doing.
4. Not visible and wrong action. There is no bus stop, and the man is moving. Strategy: describe the movement with crossing, walking.

Training plan. Hana does 10 photographs a day for a week: before listening she writes two predicted sentences; after listening she identifies the trap type of each wrong option. After a week, her error rate falls to one item per test, because she is now judging verb forms and visible details instead of single words.

Key terms

• Present continuous: is/are + verb-ing, an action in progress.
• Passive progressive: is/are being + past participle, an action done to something right now.
• Present perfect passive: has/have been + past participle, a completed state.
• Distractor: a wrong option designed to look attractive.
• Sound-alike: a word similar in pronunciation to the correct word (e.g. ship/sheep).
• Action vs. state: putting on versus wearing.
• Existence statement: There is/are….

Summary checklist

• Part 1 has 6 questions; each has one photograph and four spoken statements that are not printed.
• I classify the photograph: one person, several people, no people.
• For no-people photographs I eliminate any statement that mentions a person.
• I distinguish action (putting on) from state (wearing).
• I know that is being + participle needs someone doing the action.
• I check subject, verb, object and place in each statement, not just one word.
• I watch for sound-alike words and for details that cannot be seen.
• I guess and move on when unsure.

Official sources

• ETS, About the TOEIC Listening and Reading Test: https://www.ets.org/toeic/about/listening-reading.html (opens in a new tab)
• ETS, TOEIC Listening and Reading Examinee Handbook: https://www.ets.org/pdfs/toeic/toeic-listening-reading-test-examinee-handbook.pdf (opens in a new tab)
• ETS, test taker information: https://www.ets.org/toeic/test-takers/listening-reading/about.html (opens in a new tab)