Washington Permit Practice Test 1
This free Washington practice test has 30 multiple-choice questions covering road signs, right-of-way, speed limits, and safe driving — the same topics the DOL tests. The real DOL knowledge test has 40 questions, and you need 32 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. Besides nighttime, when should you turn on your headlights?
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Correct answer: D. Turn on your headlights whenever conditions cut visibility, including rain, fog, snow, dusk, or dawn, because lights help other drivers spot you as much as they help you see. Handy habit: wipers on or gray sky means lights on.
2. What would a NHTSA brake-throttle override require when a pedal is stuck?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA FMVSS 124 NPRM text says a brake-throttle override (BTO) system would require that input to the brake pedal in a vehicle must have the capability of overriding input to the accelerator pedal. The leftover shift-to-neutral mnemonic is not on that page; this nearby official stuck-accelerator rulemaking sentence is.
3. 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.
4. You are delivering food to a house on an unposted residential street in Washington. Unless a sign changes it, what speed limit applies?
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Correct answer: A. Unposted residential streets in Washington carry a default limit of 25 mph. The rule exists so drivers can stop for the unexpected, like a car backing out of a driveway. When a sign is posted, obey the sign instead.
5. A parent in Washington 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. Washington opens the learner's-permit door at 15. Starting then, with a supervising adult, is how GDL is supposed to work. Younger than that, the answer is still wait.
6. A yellow diamond shows two arrows pointing toward each other. What conflict is ahead?
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Correct answer: A. The two-way traffic warning tells you opposing cars will soon share the road, often after a divided or one-way segment. Keep right and expect headlights in the other lane. Two arrows, two directions.
7. What space does NHTSA tell you to give a speeding driver?
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Correct answer: A. Official NHTSA speeding guidance says Give speeding drivers plenty of space. Speeding drivers may lose control of their vehicle more easily. The leftover slow-vehicle-blocks-flow sentence is not on that page; this nearby official space rule is.
8. 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.
9. A 30-year-old driver in Washington takes a chemical test after a crash. Prosecutors can prove DUI from the test result alone once the BAC is at least which value?
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Correct answer: D. A test showing 0.08% or higher proves per-se DUI in Washington without any other evidence of impairment. Lawmakers chose that threshold because crash risk climbs sharply near it, though alcohol degrades driving skills at lower levels too.
10. Unless a sign posts another limit, the usual residential or city default in Washington is:
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Correct answer: A. Washington's typical unposted residential / city default is 25 mph. School zones and work zones drop lower. If houses line the street and no sign argues, start at 25 mph and watch the next plaque.
11. 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.
12. A yellow diamond sign shows a truck tilted nose-down on a black slope. You are about to descend a long, steep grade. What is the proper technique?
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Correct answer: C. On a steep downgrade, shift to a lower gear before descending so engine braking holds your speed, and use the brakes sparingly. Constant braking overheats the pads until they fade and fail. Gears save brakes; brakes alone can quit.
13. 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.
14. Traffic around you on a Washington 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 Washington'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.
15. Which official NHTSA NDR code records driving with an expired or missing license?
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Correct answer: A. Official 23 CFR 1327 Appendix A lists B51 Expired or no driver license (includes DL, CDL, and Instruction Permit). The leftover impound-and-delay sentence is state sanction wording; this nearby official national code is.
16. A classmate insists everyone must wait until 18 to start driving in Washington. The real minimum age for a learner's permit is which of these?
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Correct answer: D. Your classmate is wrong: Washington grants learner's permits at 15. Starting earlier gives you months of supervised practice while risk is lowest. When rules feel fuzzy, confirm them in the official state driver handbook.
17. You hit a stretch of heavy rain and patchy fog on the highway. How should you adjust your speed?
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Correct answer: B. In rain or fog, reduce speed until you could stop within the distance you can actually see, since wet pavement stretches stopping distance and fog hides hazards. Drive by sight distance: if you cannot see it, slow for it.
18. A Washington traffic signal is temporarily without power on all approaches, or shows no green, red, or yellow to your approach. What must you do?
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Correct answer: A. RCW 46.61.183 says that except when a flagger, police officer, or firefighter directs you to proceed, a driver approaching a signal that is without power on all approaches, or that shows no green, red, or yellow to that approach, shall treat the intersection as an all-way stop.
19. A tow truck sits on a Washington shoulder with lights flashing where the limit is 60 mph. If you can't safely change lanes, what must you do?
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Correct answer: C. Washington's move-over law says slow at least 10 mph below the posted limit near an emergency zone, and never above 50 mph where limits are 60 or higher. Give roadside workers room to survive. Move over or slow way down.
20. How many questions must you answer correctly to pass the Washington knowledge test?
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Correct answer: A. Washington requires 32 correct out of 40 on the knowledge test. That is the DOL's published bar, not a rumor. Practice until you clear it with room to spare so one misread question does not fail you.
21. In places where marijuana can be bought legally, how do the laws treat driving while high?
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Correct answer: D. Legal to use does not mean legal to drive impaired. Marijuana slows reactions and distorts judgment of time and distance, so impaired-driving laws still apply everywhere. Treat being high exactly the way you would treat being drunk.
22. You plan to leave the freeway at exit 12. How will you know which ramp is yours?
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Correct answer: B. Freeway exits carry green guide signs topped with a numbered exit panel, and the number usually matches the nearest milepost. Match the posted number to your planned exit, then move into the exit lane early.
23. It is late at night and the unposted residential streets in your Washington neighborhood are empty. The legal maximum for these streets remains which speed?
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Correct answer: C. Empty or busy, day or night, the default limit on unposted residential streets in Washington stays 25 mph. Darkness actually cuts how far you can see and react, so conditions may call for less, not more, than the limit.
24. A school bus ahead stops with its red lights flashing on a two-lane road with no median. Which vehicles must stop?
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Correct answer: D. On a road without a dividing median, traffic in both directions must stop for a school bus with flashing red lights and remain stopped until the lights turn off. Children may cross from either side, so every lane freezes.
25. Headed uphill at a curb, which way does the official CA handbook (nationally taught hill technique) turn the front wheels?
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Correct answer: A. Official California Driver Handbook parking technique — taught the same way nationwide — says Headed uphill: Turn your front wheels away from the curb (left-towards the center of the road) and let your vehicle roll back a few inches. The wheel should gently touch the curb.
26. In Washington, a driver who is 21 or older breaks the law by driving with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) at or above what level?
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Correct answer: A. Washington law makes it illegal to drive with a BAC of 0.08% or higher. Alcohol slows judgment and reaction time, and impairment can begin well below that number. Treat 0.08% as a legal line, not a safe target.
27. You are driving at night and can only make out the eight-sided outline of a sign ahead. Even before reading it, what does that shape tell you to do?
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Correct answer: C. The octagon is reserved for stop signs alone, so the shape itself orders a full stop. This lets you obey the sign even when snow, glare, or darkness hides the word. Eight sides always equals stop.
28. 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.
29. Drivers under 21 in Washington are held to a stricter alcohol standard than adults. What is the BAC threshold for these younger drivers?
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Correct answer: B. Adults have a higher per-se number, but the under-21 standard in Washington is 0.02%. Alcohol is already off-limits for minors, so the driving rule matches: for young drivers, the practical limit is zero drinks.
30. You are low on fuel on a long highway drive. Signs of which color point you to services such as gas, food, lodging, and hospitals?
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Correct answer: B. Blue signs mark motorist services, including fuel, food, lodging, rest areas, and hospitals. They let travelers plan a stop before leaving the highway. When your body or your car needs something, look for blue.
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