Tennessee Permit Practice Test 1
This free Tennessee practice test has 30 multiple-choice questions covering road signs, right-of-way, speed limits, and safe driving — the same topics the TDOSHS tests. The real TDOSHS Driver License Knowledge Test 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. A fluorescent pink diamond is posted after a storm, showing a landslide symbol. What does the unusual color mean?
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Correct answer: B. Fluorescent pink is the MUTCD color for incident and emergency management, used for crashes, floods, or slides. Slow down and expect workers, debris, or a sudden close. Pink means something urgent just happened.
2. A Tennessee school bus has stopped to load or unload students. May you pass on the right?
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Correct answer: A. Tennessee says it is illegal to pass a school bus that has stopped to load or unload students. Never pass on the right side of the bus — that is the door side where children step into the street. On a road that requires both directions to stop, wait until the bus moves and children are clear.
3. You pass a round yellow sign marked with a large black X and the letters R R. What is it telling you?
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Correct answer: A. The round yellow RXR sign is the advance warning for a railroad crossing, posted well before the tracks. It gives you time to slow, quiet distractions, and scan for trains. Round and yellow means railroad ahead, not at, the sign.
4. You are on an entrance ramp about to merge onto a freeway. Who is responsible for yielding?
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Correct answer: A. Drivers merging onto a freeway must yield to traffic already on it, using the ramp to match speed and slide into a gap. Through traffic cannot stop safely at highway speeds, so the entering driver adapts.
5. Your 20-year-old cousin is the designated driver tonight in Tennessee. To obey the zero-tolerance law, they must keep their BAC below what threshold?
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Correct answer: A. In Tennessee, drivers under 21 violate the zero-tolerance law once their BAC reaches 0.02%. A true designated driver drinks nothing at all; that is the whole job, and it keeps every passenger legally and physically safe.
6. Why does NHTSA tell you to slow down in snow or sleet?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA winter-driving guidance says Slow down. It’s harder to control or stop your vehicle on a slick or snow-covered surface. The leftover bridges-ice-first sentence is not on that page; this nearby official slick-surface rule is.
7. Under normal conditions, what is the minimum speed allowed in the right lanes of a Tennessee interstate highway?
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Correct answer: B. Tennessee sets a 45 mph minimum in interstate right lanes because vehicles crawling far below traffic speed become hazards. If you can't safely maintain at least forty-five, choose another road — interstates punish the slow as well as the speedy.
8. Traffic around you on a Tennessee 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 Tennessee's fastest highways it stays 70 mph. Move right and let them pass instead of matching them. Speed limits bind each driver individually, whatever the surrounding traffic does.
9. Why does Ready.gov say to disable cruise control on slippery roads?
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Correct answer: A. Official Ready.gov car-safety guidance says Disable your vehicle’s cruise control when driving on slippery, icy or snowy roads. That’s because if you lose traction or start to skid, the cruise control will accelerate to maintain your vehicle’s speed, causing your wheels to spin even faster.
10. You are on a through street. A driver on a driveway to your right is waiting to enter. Who must yield?
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Correct answer: B. Drivers leaving a driveway, alley, or parking lot yield to all traffic on the street, including bikes and people walking. The street already has the flow. Think: entering traffic waits; through traffic keeps moving unless a sign says otherwise.
11. If it becomes hard to control the car, what does Ready.gov tell you to do?
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Correct answer: A. Official Ready.gov car-safety guidance says If it becomes hard to control the car, pull over, stop the car and set the parking brake. The leftover pump-the-failed-brake list is not on that page; this nearby official loss-of-control sentence is.
12. How does official NHTSA impaired-driving guidance define zero tolerance for underage drivers?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA Uniform Guidelines for State Highway Safety Programs list Zero Tolerance for underage drivers, making it illegal “per se” for people under age 21 to drive with any measurable amount of alcohol in their system (i.e., .02 BAC or greater). State numbers still vary; this leftover uses that official national guideline sentence.
13. On a highway, you look for the way to your destination city. What kind of information do signs with a green background give you?
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Correct answer: D. Green guide signs point the way, listing destinations, how many miles remain, and which exits to take. They inform rather than command, so no action is required. Think of green as the color that says go this way.
14. A friend in Tennessee says, 'I feel fine, so I can drive.' Feelings aside, the law sets the illegal BAC for drivers 21 and older at which number?
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Correct answer: B. Feeling fine proves nothing; alcohol dulls the very judgment you use to check yourself. In Tennessee, 0.08% is the per-se limit for adults, and measurable impairment often shows up well before a driver reaches it.
15. Under Tennessee's zero-tolerance law, what BAC level counts as a violation for a driver under 21?
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Correct answer: B. Tennessee's zero-tolerance law sets the under-21 threshold at 0.02%, far stricter than the adult standard. Underage drinking is illegal to begin with, so the safest and simplest rule is zero alcohol before driving.
16. You are passing a bicyclist on a two-lane road. How much space should you leave when you can?
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Correct answer: B. A common safe-passing standard is at least three feet, and more when you are going fast or the bike is wobbling. If you cannot give the space, wait. Squeezing by is how mirrors hit handlebars.
17. What do open-container laws prohibit, according to NHTSA?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA open-container guidance says Open container laws prohibit the possession of any open alcoholic beverage container and the consumption of any alcoholic beverage by motor vehicle drivers or passengers. Those laws typically exempt passengers in buses, taxis, and the living quarters of mobile homes.
18. 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.
19. How does NHTSA describe the graduated driver licensing system?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA GDL guidance says GDL is a three-phase system for beginning drivers, consisting of a learner’s permit, an intermediate license, and a full license. GDL allows beginning drivers to acquire driving experience in less-risky situations and under direct supervision during the learner’s permit phase.
20. At a BAC of .02, what typical effect does NHTSA list first?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA drunk-driving guidance says .02 Some loss of judgment; relaxation, slight body warmth, altered mood. Testers invent leftover first-skill folklore. Learn that official wording, then answer the knowledge test from those words.
21. You are 25 and had wine at a dinner party in Tennessee. 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 Tennessee, 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.
22. What does Tennessee's Hands Free law (Public Chapter 412) prohibit while you drive?
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Correct answer: A. Since 2019, Tennessee's Hands Free law bans holding a phone, texting, reaching for a device, and watching or recording video while driving. Distraction is the danger, not the conversation — if it's in your hand, it's against the law.
23. A traffic light is circular yellow after you have already entered the intersection on green. What should you do?
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Correct answer: B. Once you are in the intersection on green, a yellow that follows means finish the crossing smoothly. Stopping mid-box blocks others and can get you hit from behind. Yellow before the line means stop if you can; yellow after the line means clear out.
24. Drivers under 21 in Tennessee are over the youth alcohol limit at which level?
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Correct answer: A. Tennessee uses a zero-tolerance style rule for under-21 drivers: 0.02%. Adult limits do not apply to a teen permit holder. If you are under 21 in Tennessee, treat alcohol and keys as incompatible.
25. You see a yellow diamond sign showing an arrow that bends left, then right, then left again. What does this sign tell you about the road ahead?
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Correct answer: C. A winding road sign warns of three or more curves in a row, while a single-bend arrow marks just one curve. Knowing the difference helps you hold a safe speed. Think: a wiggly arrow means the wiggles keep coming.
26. A friend says every US interstate is 80 mph. In Tennessee, the highest posted highway limit is actually:
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Correct answer: A. Interstate limits vary. Tennessee tops out at 70 mph where posted. Learn the number for your state, then obey the sign in front of you, which is often lower.
27. You want to park on a street just before a crosswalk. What minimum clearance do most handbooks require?
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Correct answer: B. A common handbook rule is 20 feet from a crosswalk so turning drivers and pedestrians can see each other. Parking closer hides people in the stripes. Twenty before the walk, then the hydrant's fifteen, is the pair testers expect.
28. You are studying for the Tennessee 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 Tennessee, 15 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.
29. 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.
30. Graduated driver licensing (GDL) in Tennessee moves teens through permit, intermediate, and full-license stages. Entry into the first stage, the learner's permit, begins at what age?
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Correct answer: A. GDL entry in Tennessee starts with a learner's permit at 15. Each stage lifts restrictions as skill grows, because crash risk is highest in a driver's first solo months. The ladder starts at 15; climb it patiently.
Enter or Space also advances.