Updated 2026-09-12easy

New TOEFL Reading: Read in Daily Life Practice #027 — Weekend Trains, a Coffee Machine, a Club Card, and a Birthday Gift

Free practice for the new TOEFL Reading section's short daily-life texts: 4 everyday texts and 12 questions with an answer key.

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How to use this practice: Each text is something you could actually receive — an email, a notice, a memo, a post. Read it once at normal speed, then answer the three questions under it. Watch the options that reuse a word from the text: matching words are the most common trap in this part.
1

Text 1 — Schedule

Read the text, then answer the three questions below it.

Weekend trains - Northline

Saturday and Sunday, 4 to 26 May

Trains run every hour instead of every 30 minutes while the track is repaired.

  • From Central: 06:10, then every hour until 22:10
  • From Riverton: 06:45, then every hour until 21:45
  • No trains between Oakfield and Riverton. A free bus runs instead.

The bus takes 25 minutes, ten minutes longer than the train.

Tickets bought for the train are valid on the bus. Do not buy a new ticket.

Bicycles cannot go on the bus. Cyclists should travel on weekdays if possible.

Staff in orange jackets are at Oakfield and Riverton to show you where the bus stops.

Q1 · Detail
How often do trains run on these weekends?
  1. A. Every 10 minutes
  2. B. Every 25 minutes
  3. C. Every 30 minutes
  4. D. Every hour
Answer
Correct: D
Q2 · Detail
What should passengers do about tickets for the bus?
  1. A. Buy a bus ticket at the station
  2. B. Use the train ticket they already have
  3. C. Pay the driver in cash
  4. D. Show an orange card
Answer
Correct: B
Q3 · Inference
Someone wants to travel with a bicycle between Oakfield and Riverton on Saturday. What does the notice suggest?
  1. A. Take the bus with the bicycle
  2. B. Take the 06:45 train from Riverton
  3. C. Ask staff in orange jackets for help
  4. D. Travel on a weekday instead
Answer
Correct: D
2

Text 2 — Workplace Memo

Read the text, then answer the three questions below it.

Memo: The coffee machine

To: Everyone on floor 3

From: Facilities

The coffee machine on floor 3 is fixed and working again.

It stopped because of coffee grounds in the waste drawer. The drawer must be emptied when the red light comes on.

Emptying it takes one minute. Pull the drawer out, empty it into the brown bin, and push it back until it clicks.

If the drawer is not pushed back fully, the machine will not start and shows the same red light.

Please do not pour water into the bean container. Beans go in the container on the left, water in the tank at the back.

The repair cost $180 this time. A second repair of the same kind will not be paid for, and the machine will not be replaced.

Q4 · Detail
What does the red light mean?
  1. A. The waste drawer needs emptying
  2. B. The water tank is empty
  3. C. The beans are finished
  4. D. The machine is too hot
Answer
Correct: A
Q5 · Inference
The drawer has been emptied but the machine still will not start. What is the likely reason?
  1. A. The drawer is not pushed back fully
  2. B. The beans are in the wrong container
  3. C. The repair was not finished
  4. D. The machine needs another $180 repair
Answer
Correct: A
Q6 · Purpose
Why does the memo mention the repair cost?
  1. A. To ask staff to share the cost
  2. B. To explain why the machine was slow
  3. C. To warn that the same fault will not be repaired again
  4. D. To compare it with a new machine
Answer
Correct: C
3

Text 3 — Email

Read the text, then answer the three questions below it.

Subject: Your club card for next year

From: Kingsmere Tennis Club

To: Members

Membership for next year starts on 1 September. The price is $210, the same as this year.

Pay before 20 August and you pay $190. After 1 September the price is $230.

You can pay online or at the club office on Saturday mornings.

Your card will be sent by post. If you do not receive it by 5 September, tell us and we will send another.

Court booking opens to members only for the first hour each morning. Non-members can book after 8 AM.

If you want to stop your membership, you do not need to do anything. Cards simply stop working on 31 August.

Q7 · Detail
How much does a member pay on 15 August?
  1. A. Nothing
  2. B. $210
  3. C. $230
  4. D. $190
Answer
Correct: D
Q8 · Expected Action
What should a member do if the card does not arrive?
  1. A. Pay $230 for a new one
  2. B. Book a court and ask there
  3. C. Tell the club after 5 September
  4. D. Wait until 31 August
Answer
Correct: C
Q9 · Inference
What happens to someone who decides not to renew?
  1. A. They must send an email to cancel
  2. B. Their card stops working by itself
  3. C. They pay a small leaving fee
  4. D. They can still book before 8 AM
Answer
Correct: B
4

Text 4 — Message Thread

Read the text, then answer the three questions below it.

Gift for Dad

Lea (12:30): Dad's birthday is on the 9th. Shall we buy one gift together?

Marco (12:35): Good idea. What is the budget?

Lea (12:37): Forty each, so eighty in total.

Marco (12:40): He said his walking boots leak. Boots cost about that.

Lea (12:44): He also mentioned a coffee grinder, but he says that about everything.

Marco (12:47): Boots then. Do you know his size?

Lea (12:49): 44. I saw it in the old pair last month.

Marco (12:52): I will order today so they arrive before the 9th. Send me your half when you can.

Lea (12:54): Sending now. Keep the receipt in case the size is wrong.

Q10 · Detail
What will they buy?
  1. A. A coffee grinder
  2. B. Walking boots
  3. C. Two separate gifts
  4. D. Nothing yet
Answer
Correct: B
Q11 · Detail
How much will each person pay?
  1. A. Forty
  2. B. Eighty
  3. C. Forty-four
  4. D. Nine
Answer
Correct: A
Q12 · Purpose
Why does Lea ask Marco to keep the receipt?
  1. A. To split the cost later
  2. B. To prove the gift arrived on time
  3. C. In case the size is wrong
  4. D. To return the coffee grinder
Answer
Correct: C