Maryland Permit Practice Test 3
A third full-length Maryland practice test: 30 more questions with zero repeats from Tests 1 or 2 — including extra Maryland-specific rules. The real MVA Knowledge Test (25-question noncommercial Class C test for the Learner's Instructional Permit) has 25 questions, and you need 22 correct (88%) 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. An 18-year-old in Maryland has one beer at a graduation party and then drives. At what BAC could this driver already be violating the zero-tolerance law?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C. One beer can push a young driver to 0.02%, the level where Maryland's zero-tolerance law kicks in. The rule protects new drivers, whose crash risk rises quickly with alcohol. Skip every drink if you plan to drive.
2. A passenger claims some Maryland highways have unlimited speed like the German autobahn. In reality, the state's highest legal limit is which of these?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D. Every road in Maryland has a limit, and the statewide ceiling is 70 mph on designated highways. Higher speeds multiply crash energy dramatically, so no US state allows unlimited speed. Follow whatever limit is actually posted.
3. Unless a sign posts another limit, the usual residential or city default in Maryland is:
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Maryland's typical unposted residential / city default is 30 mph. School zones and work zones drop lower. If houses line the street and no sign argues, start at 30 mph and watch the next plaque.
4. A work zone is posted 45 mph with workers on foot beside the cones. Why should you treat that number as a hard ceiling?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Work-zone limits protect people standing inches from traffic, and many states double the fine. Slow to the posted number before the first cone. Orange zone, orange alert: the speed is real and the penalty is steeper.
5. What does NHTSA say is the only true way to protect yourself against drowsy driving?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA drowsy-driving guidance says Getting adequate sleep on a daily basis is the only true way to protect yourself against the risks of driving when you’re drowsy. Coffee and energy drinks last only a short time.
6. What does NHTSA say about over-the-counter and prescription drugs and driving?
Show answer & explanation
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. May you drive unsupervised on a learner’s permit, according to NHTSA?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA GDL guidance says A learner’s permit allows driving only while supervised by a fully licensed driver. GDL reduces the amount of unsupervised driving by 16-year-olds. The leftover empty-road exception is not on that page.
8. After two drinks at a barbecue in Maryland, you consider driving home. For a driver 21 or older, that becomes illegal starting at which BAC?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Driving in Maryland becomes a per-se DUI at a BAC of 0.08%. Drinks affect people differently, so you cannot reliably guess your number. When you have been drinking, the smart decision is simply to skip driving.
9. You are 25 and had wine at a dinner party in Maryland. Before driving home, you check the law. At what BAC does driving become illegal for you?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D. For adult drivers in Maryland, 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.
10. 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?
Show answer & explanation
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.
11. You are parking facing uphill on a street with a curb. Which way should you turn your front wheels?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B. When parking uphill with a curb, turn the wheels away from the curb and let the car roll back until a tire rests against it. The curb then works as a block. Up and away is the memory cue.
12. A GPS in Maryland suggests 40 mph on a residential block with no posted limit. The handbook-style default you should prefer is:
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Apps guess; Maryland's default for this kind of street is 30 mph unless a sign posts otherwise. Believe the sign first, then the state's default, then the gadget.
13. What license penalty does NHTSA list among impaired-driving consequences?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA drunk-driving guidance says penalties for impaired driving can include driver’s license revocation, fines, and jail time. The leftover implied-consent wording is not on that page; this nearby official penalty list is.
14. An orange sign with a black arrow reads DETOUR. What is this sign telling you?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Detour signs guide you along a temporary route when the normal road is closed, often for construction or an emergency. Keep following the arrows until the detour ends, and the route will return you to your original road.
15. An orange triangle with a red border is mounted on the back of a vehicle ahead. What is that vehicle doing?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B. The slow-moving-vehicle emblem marks farm and other equipment that usually travels 25 mph or less. Give it a wide berth and pass only when you can see far enough ahead. Orange triangle equals slow vehicle.
16. Which of these phone uses is legal for a fully licensed adult driving in Maryland?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Maryland bans handheld phone use, including texting, statewide; only hands-free calls are allowed, and drivers under 18 may not use phones at all except to call 911. If your hand is holding it, it is illegal.
17. A white regulatory sign reads NO TURN ON RED. You have a circular red light and want to go right. What must you do?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B. NO TURN ON RED cancels the usual after-stop right turn. Wait for green. Cities post this where pedestrians or poor sightlines make a red-light turn dangerous. The sign overrules the general permission.
18. You are approaching an intersection and the traffic light turns steady red. What must you do?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C. A steady red light requires a full stop before the stop line or crosswalk, or before entering the intersection if there is no line. Stopping at the line protects people crossing. Remember: red means stop, every time.
19. You are 16 and just received your Maryland learner's permit. How long must you hold it without any violations before you are eligible for a provisional license?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Maryland requires drivers under 18 to hold the learner's permit for at least nine violation-free months before moving up to a provisional license. A conviction restarts the wait, so think nine clean months to grow a new driver.
20. In Maryland, supervised behind-the-wheel practice with a permit can begin once a teen reaches which age?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Supervised practice starts at 15 years, 9 months in Maryland, once the teen holds a learner's permit. Every practice hour with a licensed adult builds judgment that classroom study alone cannot teach, which is why the permit stage exists.
21. You are passing a slow truck on a Maryland highway posted at the state's maximum limit. Even while passing, your legal ceiling stays at which speed?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B. Passing grants zero extra speed allowance; in Maryland the ceiling on those top-posted highways stays 70 mph. If you cannot complete the pass within the limit, wait for a better gap. The limit binds every maneuver.
22. Wide white stripes cross the pavement ahead, marking a crosswalk. What do these markings require of you as a driver?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Crosswalk stripes show where pedestrians are expected to cross, and drivers must yield to people within them. You stop only when someone is crossing or a sign or signal requires it. Painted stripes mean feet ahead.
23. A school bus is stopped with red lights on the opposite side of a divided highway that has a concrete median. Must you stop?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B. The median exception is the item testers and Reddit threads say people miss. A painted line is not a median. A real barrier or unpaved median means the far side typically may proceed with care. When in doubt, stop.
24. You approach a car stopped on a Maryland shoulder with its hazard lights flashing. What does the state's Move Over law require?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Maryland's Move Over law covers any vehicle stopped with flashing lights, not just police cars. Move over when it is safe; if you cannot, slow down. The base violation costs $110 and one point. Flashing lights mean shift or slow.
25. Your car starts to skid on a wet curve. What is the first correct response?
Show answer & explanation
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.
26. A parent in Maryland wants to start permit practice as soon as the law allows. The earliest learner's-permit age is:
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Maryland opens the learner's-permit door at 15 years, 9 months. Starting then, with a supervising adult, is how GDL is supposed to work. Younger than that, the answer is still wait.
27. The vehicle ahead displays an orange triangle with a red border on its rear. What does that tell you?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D. The orange triangle is the slow-moving vehicle emblem, common on farm equipment and horse-drawn wagons. You close in on these vehicles faster than you expect, so back off early and pass only with a clear, legal gap.
28. You are parking near railroad tracks. What distance do most state manuals require from the nearest rail?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C. Fifty feet from the nearest rail is the usual keep-clear distance so trains and crossing gates have room and drivers can see. Do not park on or immediately beside the tracks. Fifty for rails, thirty for signs, twenty for walks, fifteen for hydrants.
29. A pedestrian is crossing your half of the street in a crosswalk at an intersection without signals. What must you do?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. Drivers must yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk, and crosswalks legally exist at intersections even when no lines are painted. People on foot have no protection in a collision, so treat every corner as a possible crosswalk.
30. A round yellow sign with a black X and the letters RR is posted well before a crossing. What does that advance sign tell you?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A. The circular railroad advance sign gives you time to slow, scan both ways, and be ready to stop. Do not stop on the tracks. Circle plus X means rails are coming; the crossbuck at the tracks is the actual yield-to-train sign.
Enter or Space also advances.