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TOEIC Link Part 5: notable versus notorious

Notable and notorious both mean "well known," but notable is neutral-to-positive while notorious is negative. Part 5 tests whether the blank praises an achievement or flags something known for a bad reason.

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TOEIC Link Part 5: notable versus notorious

Notable and notorious share the idea of "widely known," so Part 5 uses them to test whether you register the tone of a sentence, not just its topic. Notable is an adjective meaning worthy of attention — remarkable in a neutral or favorable way. Notorious is an adjective meaning widely known for something bad. The item is decided by asking whether the blank marks a positive or neutral distinction or a bad reputation. For the full set of look-alike traps, start with the commonly confused word pairs master index.

The core rule: praised versus infamous

  • notable (adjective) = remarkable, significant, or worth noticing — with a neutral-to-positive tone. The quarter produced several notable gains in market share. It answers worth noticing in a good or neutral way? Anchor it with notable → noteworthy; a notable achievement, a notable increase — attention earned for a legitimate or impressive reason.
  • notorious (adjective) = widely known for something negative — infamous. The airline is notorious for delays. It answers famous for a bad reason? Anchor it with notorious → infamous; notorious for delays, a notorious offender — attention earned for a fault or problem.

A quick anchor: notable = noteworthy (a notable success); notorious = infamous (notorious for delays). The word that praises or simply marks importance is notable; the word that signals a bad reputation is notorious.

Why Part 5 likes this pair

The two words look similar and both mean "well known," so the wrong option fits the topic even when it breaks the tone. Only the sentence's attitude decides the answer. If the surrounding words are positive or neutral — an achievement, a milestone, an expert — you need notable. If they are negative — a fault, a delay, a scandal — you need notorious.

The report highlighted a __ improvement in customer satisfaction scores.

An improvement is a positive result, so it needs notable.

The vendor is __ for missing delivery deadlines.

Missing deadlines is a fault, so it needs notorious.

Spotting the clue

Check whether the sentence frames the subject positively or negatively:

  • Does the sentence describe an achievement, increase, expert, or milestone in a neutral-to-positive light? → choose notable (a notable success, a notable rise in sales).
  • Does the sentence describe a fault, delay, scandal, or problem the subject is known for? → choose notorious (notorious for delays, a notorious bottleneck).

A quick test: can you replace the word with "impressive" or "significant" and keep the meaning? Then it is notable. Can you replace it with "infamous" or "known for something bad"? Then it is notorious. In TOEIC business scenarios, notable appears in passages about strong results, respected professionals, and important announcements, while notorious shows up with complaints, recurring problems, and reputations for poor service. For more pairs where the answer turns on tone and context, see the adjective and adverb confusable pairs study guide.

Common Part 5 patterns

TOEIC Part 5 reuses a few frames for this pair. Recognizing them saves seconds on test day:

  • "a __ achievement / success / increase" → notable (positive). The team posted a notable gain in efficiency.
  • "a __ expert / figure in the field" → notable (respected). She is a notable authority on supply chains.
  • "__ for delays / errors / poor service" → notorious (negative). The route is notorious for congestion.
  • "a __ offender / problem" → notorious (infamous). That server is a notorious source of downtime.

Match the frame first, then confirm with the tone: something praised or important → notable; something known for a fault → notorious.

Practice check

Decide which word fits each blank:

  1. The company made a __ contribution to the industry conference.
  2. The intersection is __ for accidents during rush hour.
  3. Her research earned a __ award from the association.
  4. The software update became __ for introducing new bugs.

Answers: 1. notable (positive); 2. notorious (negative); 3. notable (respected); 4. notorious (infamous).

The takeaway: notable means worth noticing in a neutral or positive way, and notorious means known for something bad. Decide by asking whether the sentence praises a distinction or flags a bad reputation — the tone of the surrounding words settles it every time. For more distinctions like this one, keep working through the commonly confused word pairs master index.