Can Watching American Movies Improve Your TOEFL Score?

[AbdulBasit Odurinde]

You have probably heard it before, “just watch American movies and your English will improve.” Maybe a friend told you, maybe you read it somewhere online. And as a Nigerian student preparing for the TOEFL, you are probably wondering if there is any truth to it.

The honest answer? Yes, but only if you do it the right way. Watching movies without a strategy is just entertainment. Watching them with intention is preparation. Let’s break down the difference.

Why Movies Can Actually Help

Let’s start with the good news. It is no secret that consuming audiovisual content in a foreign language can help you improve easily. This technique is effective because videos and movies are entertaining meaning you learn without feeling like you are studying.

Research backs this up too. Studies have shown that watching movies and TV series in their original English improved the listening test scores of students learning English as a second language, and that the overall ability to process information increased significantly after the use of film media in the learning process.

For Nigerian students specifically, there is another important benefit. The TOEFL is built around North American English the accent, the rhythm, the vocabulary. If you studied British English or any other variety, you will definitely need to familiarise yourself with the North American accent, and one easy way to do this is to watch movies and TV shows from the US and Canada. This alone can make a real difference in your Listening section performance.

What Movies Actually Help With in TOEFL

Movies and TV shows are most useful for three specific areas of the TOEFL:

• Listening: This is where movies help the most. You get exposure to natural speech patterns, pacing, and pronunciation. The more American English you hear before exam day, the less foreign it sounds when the Listening section begins.
• Speaking: Hearing how native speakers construct sentences, express ideas, and transition between points trains your ear and eventually your mouth to do the same. You start picking up natural phrases without even realising it.
• Vocabulary: English TV shows on platforms like Netflix help teach vocabulary to TOEFL takers in a natural, contextual way. You will pick up idiomatic expressions, phrasal verbs, and slang that make your spoken and written answers sound more natural which is far more memorable than memorising word lists alone.

The Catch – Not All Movies Are Equal

Here is where many students go wrong. They spend hours watching action films, comedy series, or romantic dramas and wonder why their TOEFL score does not improve. The problem is content mismatch.

Watching casual sitcoms like Friends for hours might help with everyday conversation, but it is of little use in preparing for an academic language test like TOEFL. The TOEFL Listening section features academic lectures and campus discussions not street conversations or movie dialogue.

The trick is to find movies and TV shows that have TOEFL-like features. In the TOEFL Listening section, a single speaker talks for a long time in what is called a monologue and you need to look for movies and TV where a single character does the same.

Also, it is not advisable to watch historical drama shows or series set in old time periods, because the accent and usage of words have changed significantly since then. Stick to modern content.

What You Should Watch Instead

Here is a smarter watchlist for TOEFL preparation:

• TED Talks: These are as close to TOEFL Listening passages as you can get. One speaker, one topic, academic vocabulary, clear structure. Watch them regularly and you are essentially practising the Listening section without realising it.
• Documentaries: Nature, science, history, and social documentaries use formal English in an academic style. BBC and National Geographic documentaries on YouTube are excellent options and most are free.
• News Programmes: CNN, NBC, and PBS News use clear, structured American English. Great for both vocabulary and accent exposure.
• Academic YouTube Channels: Channels that explain science, economics, or psychology topics in depth are perfect. The language closely mirrors what you will hear in TOEFL Listening passages.

The Right Way to Watch

Watching passively will not move your score. You need to engage actively. Here is how:

Start with subtitles on to understand what is being said. Then, as you get more comfortable, turn the subtitles off and train your ears to catch the meaning without them. Watching without captions is particularly important because in most TOEFL Listening passages, you hear the audio once with no text support, so you need to build that skill before exam day.

Pause when you hear a word or phrase you do not understand.Write them down, look them up and use it in a sentence. That one habit alone can significantly build your vocabulary over 30 days.

The Bottom Line

Watching American movies and shows will not replace proper TOEFL preparation, but it is a powerful supplement that makes studying feel less like a chore. The key is choosing the right content and engaging with it actively rather than passively.

Think of it this way: every TED Talk you watch is a free Listening practice session. Every documentary you follow is vocabulary building in disguise.

So the next time someone asks if watching American content helps your TOEFL score, the answer is: absolutely if you are watching smart.

You can also improve your TOEFL Score by visiting the Best Nigerian TOEFL community , which we are currently building at Odurinde eLearning site.
Check this post out.
More useful Nigerian TOEFL information you may find interesting includes :

– Common mistakes Nigerian make in the listening section of TOEFL

– The TOEFL score accepted by UK universities

– University, Colleges and countries that accept TOEFL scores

– Win N20,000 by sharing your TOEFL experience

– How hard is TOEFL for Nigerian students

– New to TOEFL? Join FREE TOEFL taster course at Odurinde eLearning

– What Is the Best English Language Test for Canadian University: TOEFL, IELTS or Others?

– Why Joining the Odurinde TOEFL Forum Can Improve Your TOEFL Preparation

– Can I Prepare for TOEFL in 30 Days?

– Understanding How TOEFL Scores Are Calculated

– Which Are the Best TOEFL Centres in Lagos?

– Why Confidence Matters More Than Accent in TOEFL

– I Speak Good English in School — So Why do I Struggle to Pass TOEFL

• This topic was modified 1 month, 2 weeks ago by AbdulBasit Odurinde.

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