Hawaii Permit Practice Test 1
This free Hawaii practice test has 30 multiple-choice questions covering road signs, right-of-way, speed limits, and safe driving — the same topics the County DMV tests. The real County DMV Learner's Permit Written Examination has 30 questions, and you need 24 correct (80%) to pass.
Tap an answer. The explanation opens so you can learn it, then go on. Keyboard: A–D or 1–4 to answer, then Enter or Space.
Question 1 of 30
1. You are 25 and had wine at a dinner party in Hawaii. Before driving home, you check the law. At what BAC does driving become illegal for you?
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Correct answer: D. For adult drivers in Hawaii, driving is illegal at a BAC of 0.08% or above. Because impairment starts before the limit, the safest plan after drinking is a ride share, taxi, or sober designated driver.
2. You are in a left-turn lane facing oncoming traffic, and the signal shows a steady red arrow. What does the arrow mean?
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Correct answer: A. A steady red arrow prohibits the movement it points toward; you must stop and stay put until the signal changes. It shields turning drivers from crossing busy oncoming lanes. Think of a red arrow as a closed gate.
3. You approach an intersection with no signs or signals, and another vehicle approaches from a cross street at about the same time. Who should yield?
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Correct answer: A. At an uncontrolled intersection, slow down and yield to any vehicle that reaches it at about the same time from your right. Without signs, this default rule sorts out conflicts. Same tiebreaker as a four-way stop: right goes first.
4. What is the safest way to handle your speed through a sharp curve?
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Correct answer: B. Slow to a safe speed before the curve begins, then hold steady or gently accelerate through it. Braking mid-curve can break tire grip and cause a skid. Do your slowing on the straightaway, your steering in the bend.
5. You are comparing Hawaii with a neighboring state that uses 0.08%. For an adult driver in Hawaii, driving is a per-se offense at which BAC?
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Correct answer: A. Do not assume every state still uses the same adult number. In Hawaii the per-se line is 0.08%. Utah famously uses 0.05%; most others use 0.08%. Learn your own state's figure.
6. What does NHTSA say about over-the-counter and prescription drugs and driving?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA drug-impaired-driving guidance says Some prescription and over-the-counter medicines can cause extreme drowsiness, dizziness, and other side effects. Warnings against operating heavy machinery include driving a vehicle.
7. A parent in Hawaii wants to start permit practice as soon as the law allows. The earliest learner's-permit age is:
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Correct answer: C. Hawaii opens the learner's-permit door at 15½. Starting then, with a supervising adult, is how GDL is supposed to work. Younger than that, the answer is still wait.
8. When you pass a bicyclist in Hawaii, how is the three-foot gap measured?
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Correct answer: A. Hawaii Revised Statutes § 291C-43 counts at least three feet of separation between the right side of the driver’s vehicle — including all mirrors or other protuberances — and the left side of the bicyclist. A mirror that clips the rider still fails the Hawaii test. Stay out until you are safely clear.
9. If your tire drops off the edge of the pavement onto the shoulder, what does official ND driver-manual wording (nationally taught drop-off technique) tell you?
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Correct answer: A. Official North Dakota Noncommercial Driver’s Manual wording — taught the same way in many state manuals — says If your tire drops off the edge of the pavement onto the shoulder, do not try to swerve back onto the pavement because you may lose control of your vehicle. Grip the steering wheel and ease up on the accelerator. After you have slowed down and are in complete control, look for traffic behind you, signal, and turn gently back onto the pavement.
10. What can happen if you refuse an alcohol test after a police stop on a Hawaii highway?
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Correct answer: B. Driving on Hawaii's public highways means you have already consented to alcohol testing. Refuse, and your license can be revoked for one, two, or four years depending on prior alcohol enforcement contacts, and you can still be charged. Hook: refusal costs years.
11. Can prescription or over-the-counter medicine make driving illegal, according to NHTSA?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA drug-impaired-driving guidance says it’s illegal everywhere in America to drive under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, opioids, methamphetamines, or any potentially impairing drug–prescribed or over the counter.
12. A yellow diamond shows a bicycle and the words SHARE THE ROAD. What is it asking you to do?
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Correct answer: B. Share-the-road warnings remind you that bicyclists are legal traffic. Slow, wait for a clear gap, and pass with generous space. The sign exists because drivers otherwise squeeze bikes toward the gutter.
13. When should you avoid high-beam headlamps in Hawaii?
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Correct answer: A. Hawaii tells drivers not to use high-beam headlamps when approaching or following other vehicles. If an oncoming driver’s lights are too bright, flash high beams once, then look toward the right edge of the road and use lane markings as a guide until the glare passes.
14. Why do most GDL programs limit teen passengers in the first months of licensure?
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Correct answer: A. Crash data show that extra teen passengers raise risk more than almost any other GDL factor. The limit is a safety rule, not a punishment. Fewer friends in the car means more attention on the road.
15. An officer in Hawaii stops a driver who is 18. A test shows a very small amount of alcohol. The under-21 threshold that can trigger a violation is:
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Correct answer: C. Under-21 drivers in Hawaii are not judged by the adult 0.08%-style line. The threshold is 0.02%. That is why testers keep asking the youth number separately from the adult number.
16. What is double parking, and why is it against the rules?
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Correct answer: D. Double parking means standing or parking in the roadway alongside a vehicle already parked at the curb. It blocks a travel lane, hides pedestrians, and pins in the parked car, so the practice is prohibited on public streets.
17. You are driving past a school crossing just as classes let out. What must you be prepared to do?
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Correct answer: C. Near school crossings you must slow to any posted school speed and stop whenever children or crossing guards are in the crosswalk. Kids are small, quick, and unpredictable, so extra caution is required. Expect the unexpected wherever students gather.
18. Your car starts to skid on a wet curve. What is the first correct response?
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Correct answer: B. In a skid you need the tires to grip again: ease off the gas, avoid a hard stab at the brake if you can, and steer toward your intended path. Sudden inputs make the slide worse. Slow hands, slow feet, look where you want to go.
19. You see a red-and-white triangular sign reading YIELD as you approach a traffic circle. What should you do?
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Correct answer: B. A yield sign tells you to slow down, check for traffic with the right-of-way, and stop only when necessary to let it pass. It keeps merges smooth without forcing pointless stops. Think of yield as give way, not a full stop every time.
20. Why do speed limits drop in highway work zones?
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Correct answer: A. Work zones squeeze traffic past workers, machinery, narrowed lanes, and sudden stops, so limits drop to give everyone more reaction time. Many places also raise fines there. Slow down where people are standing next to moving traffic.
21. When a vehicle with flashing lights is stopped on or next to a roadway, what does official NHTSA Move Over guidance say drivers should do?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA Move Over guidance says all 50 states have Move Over laws. When a vehicle with flashing lights is stopped on or next to a roadway, drivers approaching the vehicle should change into a lane not immediately adjacent to the vehicle, or slow down to a reasonable speed if you’re unable to safely make a lane change.
22. You are studying for the Hawaii permit knowledge exam and want to schedule it as early as the law allows. You can hold a learner's permit beginning at which age?
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Correct answer: C. In Hawaii, 15½ is the earliest age for a learner's permit, so plan your knowledge exam around that date. Study the official handbook, since permit questions come from it, and arrive with the required documents ready.
23. An ice-cream truck is stopped ahead and children are gathered around it. How should you drive past?
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Correct answer: C. Slow way down and cover your brake near children or a stopped ice-cream truck, because kids chase treats and forget traffic completely. Expect someone small to dart out. Around children, drive as if one already has.
24. Which pair of official NHTSA NDR codes records driving while a license is revoked versus suspended?
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Correct answer: A. Official 23 CFR 1327 Appendix A (NHTSA NDR) lists B25 Driving while license revoked and B26 Driving while license suspended as separate codes. The leftover temporary-versus-erased definition is state terminology; this nearby official national code pair is.
25. Hawaii enforces 'zero tolerance' for underage drinking and driving. In practice, a driver under 21 violates this law at what BAC?
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Correct answer: A. Zero tolerance in Hawaii means the under-21 line sits at 0.02%, so even one drink can end in a suspended license. The memory hook is simple: under 21 means zero drinks before you drive.
26. Without reading any words, what does a yellow, diamond-shaped sign tell you?
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Correct answer: C. Yellow diamonds are warning signs: they alert you to hazards or changing conditions such as curves, intersections, or merging traffic. They advise rather than order. Shape and color alone should make you lift off the gas.
27. Who sets the enforceable maximum speed limits on Hawaii's roads?
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Correct answer: B. Hawaii statute names no single statewide default speed number; maximum and minimum limits come from county ordinances and official signs placed by the state director of transportation. That is why you must always watch posted signs. Hook: in Hawaii, the sign is the law.
28. Traffic around you on a Hawaii highway posted at the state maximum starts flowing faster than the signs allow. Your personal legal limit remains which speed?
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Correct answer: C. Other drivers speeding does not raise your limit; on Hawaii's fastest highways it stays 60 mph. Move right and let them pass instead of matching them. Speed limits bind each driver individually, whatever the surrounding traffic does.
29. What is the highest posted highway speed you should expect to see in Hawaii?
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Correct answer: C. Hawaii's top posted highway limit is 60 mph. Most roads are lower. Do not treat the state maximum as the speed for every freeway ramp or work zone.
30. A yellow diamond sign shows a side lane curving in to join the main road ahead. You are on the main road. What does the sign mean?
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Correct answer: C. A merge sign warns that another roadway joins yours ahead. Entering drivers must yield, but you should adjust your speed or change lanes when safe to open a gap. Merging works best when both drivers cooperate like a zipper.
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