Advanced Grammar Hacks to Boost TOEFL iBT® Writing Score

Mastering grammar can be the difference between an average and a high TOEFL writing score. While basic rules help you pass, it's the advanced grammar that truly sets your essays apart. Many students underestimate how much grammar impacts TOEFL writing clarity and coherence. From sentence structure to verb precision, the right tweaks can raise your score. Let’s explore smart, effective grammar hacks for TOEFL writing that help you write with confidence and accuracy.

Advanced Grammar Hacks to Boost TOEFL Writing Score

Here are advanced grammar hacks to boost your TOEFL writing score and make your essays stand out with clarity and precision: 

1. Use Complex Sentences Effectively: 

One of the most impactful grammar hacks for TOEFL writing is mastering complex sentence structures. Examiners expect more than just simple subject-verb-object patterns. Complex sentences show that you can express relationships between ideas clearly.

• For example:

Simple – The professor gave a lecture. The students took notes.
Improved – While the professor gave a lecture, the students took notes attentively.

This type of structure improves coherence, especially in integrated writing tasks where you’re combining reading and listening material. However, don’t overuse them. One or two complex sentences per paragraph is enough to show control without sacrificing clarity.

2. Master Parallel Structure: 

Parallelism keeps your sentences balanced and easy to follow, which directly supports better scores in coherence and grammar use. In TOEFL writing, you’ll often list reasons, describe actions, or make comparisons—parallel structure makes these smoother.

• For example: 

Incorrect – The lecture was clear, engaging, and it helped students.
Correct – The lecture was clear, engaging, and helpful.

This advanced grammar tip for TOEFL writing not only strengthens your sentence rhythm but also shows that you're capable of organizing your thoughts consistently, which TOEFL scorers look for.

3. Use Transition Words with Sentence Variety:

Many students use basic connectors like "first," "second," and "in conclusion," but scoring higher requires varied and precise transitions. Transitions help with logical flow, which contributes to your overall TOEFL writing score.

Instead of repeating common words, consider:

• Furthermore instead of "and"
  
  
• In contrast instead of "but"
  
  
• Consequently instead of "so"
  
  
• Example in use:

The reading suggests that climate change is caused primarily by human activity. In contrast, the speaker argues that natural factors play a bigger role.

Well-placed transitions show command of academic vocabulary and contribute directly to the tone expected in TOEFL writing tasks.

4. Control Verb Tenses and Agreement: 

Grammar mistakes with verb tenses and subject-verb agreement are among the most common reasons for reduced TOEFL writing scores. In academic writing, tense consistency is critical.

• Example:

Incorrect – The article explains the causes of inflation and discussed its effects.
Correct – The article explains the causes of inflation and discusses its effects.

Stick to present tense when referring to general facts or the content in reading and listening passages, unless quoting past events. This TOEFL grammar hack prevents confusion and reflects grammatical precision.

5. Use Reduced Clauses and Modifiers: 

Advanced grammar in TOEFL writing often includes reduced relative clauses, which help make writing more concise and academic. Instead of writing long, repetitive clauses, reduce them to sharpen your ideas.

• Example:

Full Clause – Students who study consistently perform better.
Reduced Clause – Students studying consistently perform better.

Using reduced clauses is a grammar technique that boosts writing efficiency without losing clarity. This shows examiners that you can express ideas smoothly and with control—key for high-scoring TOEFL writing responses.

6. Vary Your Sentence Openers: 

Beginning every sentence with “I think” or “There is” becomes repetitive and lowers the overall tone of your essay. Instead, vary your sentence openers with prepositional phrases, adverbs, or dependent clauses.

• Example:

Repetitive – I believe technology improves education.
Varied – In recent years, technology has significantly improved education.

This grammar strategy improves sentence rhythm, and combined with vocabulary variety, it contributes directly to a better TOEFL writing score. It also reflects natural fluency and control in English expression.

7. Use Conditional Sentences for Hypothetical Ideas

The TOEFL independent writing task often asks you to explain your opinion or imagine a situation. Using conditionals is a great way to express hypothetical ideas and increase the grammatical range of your response.

• Example:

If students had more access to online resources, they would perform better academically.

This advanced grammar form communicates cause-effect relationships and hypothetical reasoning, which strengthens your argument and improves your TOEFL writing grammar score.

8. Avoid Repetition with Synonyms and Grammar Reforms

Repeating the same words and sentence structures can make your writing sound basic. Instead, use synonyms and change grammatical structure to express similar ideas differently. This increases your lexical and grammatical range, both of which are scoring criteria.

• Example:

Repetitive – The lecture says students must attend class. The professor thinks students must attend.
Improved – According to the lecture, class attendance is mandatory, and the professor emphasizes its importance.

Rephrasing and restructuring your points keep the essay engaging and show that you can present ideas in diverse ways.

9. Practice Nominalization for Formal Tone: 

Nominalization means turning verbs or adjectives into nouns to make your writing more formal and academic. While overuse can make writing stiff, the right balance creates the tone TOEFL writing expects.

• Example:

Basic – The teacher explained clearly, and the students understood.
Nominalized – The teacher’s clear explanation led to better student understanding.

Use this grammar hack in body paragraphs where you want to summarize causes, effects, or key observations in a compact, formal tone.

Mastering advanced grammar is key to boosting your TOEFL writing score. These strategies help you write with clarity, variety, and confidence. Practice them consistently to see real improvement in your essays. Even small changes in sentence structure and tone can make a big difference. Focus on quality, not just quantity, and let your grammar reflect your fluency.

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