Washington DOL Permit Practice Test 1
Test 1 of 10. Pick an answer for each question to see if it is right and why; your score appears at the end. You need 32 correct answers to pass, the same ratio as the real Washington test.
- Questions40
- Correct to pass32
- Passing score80%
- Minimum age15 years
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1. Besides the sunset-to-sunrise window, when else does Washington law require a vehicle to display lighted headlights?
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Answer B: Whenever visibility drops so low that vehicles can't be seen 1,000 feet ahead
Washington also requires headlights any time insufficient light or unfavorable atmospheric conditions keep people and vehicles from being clearly seen at a distance of 1,000 feet.
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2. The divided highway ends warning sign means that
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Answer D: the median separating the directions ends and the road returns to two-way operation
Beyond this sign opposing traffic is no longer separated by a median, so the driver must keep right and expect vehicles approaching in the adjacent lane.
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3. Where is signing of this kind normally placed along a freeway?
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Answer D: Ahead of the interchange and again at the exit, so a driver can reach the correct lane in time
Guide information for an interchange is repeated on the approach and at the ramp, because a driver who learns about the exit only at the last moment has no room left for a safe lane change.
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4. Why is hard braking the wrong response to a tire blowout at speed?
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Answer C: Because it can pull the vehicle further out of line and start it spinning
With one tire gone the braking forces are uneven, so heavy braking increases the pull to one side and can spin the vehicle.
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5. You make eye contact with a driver waiting to pull out of a side street. What should you assume?
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Answer D: The driver may still not have seen you, so stay ready to slow or stop
Drivers can look directly at you and still not register your vehicle, especially a small one. Eye contact helps, but never rely on it.
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6. What does a Washington driver pay for a replacement card if the only change requested is removing the organ donor symbol?
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Answer B: Nothing; it is free
Washington issues a free replacement card when the only change requested is removing the organ donor symbol.
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7. Absent any other posted limit, what speed does Washington law set as the maximum on county roads?
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Answer B: 50 miles per hour
Washington's basic speed statute sets 50 miles per hour as the default maximum on county roads when no other limit is posted.
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8. What is the minimum length of time a Washington driver must hold an ignition interlock restriction after a first DUI conviction?
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Answer D: One year
Washington requires a minimum one-year ignition interlock restriction following a first DUI conviction.
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9. You are waiting to turn left across two oncoming lanes when a driver in the near lane stops and waves you through. What should you do?
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Answer D: Turn only after checking the far lane yourself
The waving driver cannot give away the right of way of the traffic in the second lane, which may not be stopping at all.
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10. Who may sign the certification that a Washington intermediate license applicant completed the required supervised driving hours?
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Answer A: A parent, guardian, employer or other responsible adult
Washington accepts certification of the required supervised driving hours from a parent, guardian, employer or other responsible adult.
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11. Which sign tells you that the vehicles ahead are part of a funeral procession?
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Answer C: Headlights burning in daylight, with small flags or markers on the vehicles
Processions are normally identified by daytime headlights, hazard lights and flags or windshield markers, not by emergency lights or sirens.
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12. You come upon a person riding a horse on the roadway ahead of you. What is the correct way to pass?
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Answer A: Slow down, give plenty of room and do not use the horn
Horses startle easily, and a frightened horse can throw its rider into your path. Pass slowly and wide, and avoid any sudden noise.
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13. What phone rule applies to a Washington instruction permit or intermediate license holder?
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Answer A: No cell phone or mobile electronic device at all, even hands-free, except to report an emergency
Washington bars instruction permit and intermediate license holders from using a cell phone or any mobile electronic device while driving even if it is hands-free, and only allows use to report an emergency.
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14. Where is moped operation prohibited under Washington law?
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Answer D: On a fully controlled limited access highway or a sidewalk
Washington law prohibits operating a moped on a fully controlled limited access highway or on a sidewalk.
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15. Your right wheels have dropped onto a soft shoulder. Why should you not steer straight back onto the pavement?
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Answer A: The tires can catch the pavement edge and throw you across the road
A tire pressed against the edge of the pavement climbs it suddenly, and at speed that jolt can send the vehicle across the center line.
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16. Is it acceptable to watch a video on a screen positioned where you can see it while driving?
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Answer B: No, the screen pulls your eyes and attention away from the road
Moving pictures are among the strongest visual distractions. Video screens must be out of the driver's view while the vehicle is moving.
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17. You want to stop briefly and the only space is in the travel lane alongside a vehicle already parked at the curb. Is this allowed?
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Answer D: No, double parking blocks a travel lane and is prohibited
Stopping in the roadway beside a parked vehicle removes a lane from traffic and forces other drivers to swerve around you, which is why double parking is prohibited.
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18. How should your following distance change in heavy rain?
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Answer D: It should be increased well beyond what you use on dry pavement
Wet pavement lengthens stopping distance and rain cuts visibility at the same time, so a larger gap gives you the extra seconds needed to see a problem and stop for it.
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19. A sign warns that your exit leaves from the left side of the freeway. What should you do?
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Answer D: Move into the left lane in good time before you reach the exit
Left-hand exits are unusual, which is exactly why they are signed well in advance and why the lane changes should be finished early.
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20. You are traveling beside another vehicle on a multilane highway at nearly the same speed. Why is this a poor position?
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Answer B: You may be sitting in that driver's blind spot with nowhere to go if they move over
Driving alongside removes your side escape route and often puts you where the other driver cannot see you. Speed up or drop back to open space beside you.
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21. What exception allows a Washington intermediate license holder to drive outside the normal hour and passenger restrictions?
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Answer D: Driving that is necessary for agricultural purposes
Washington exempts an intermediate license holder from the standard hour and passenger restrictions when driving is necessary for agricultural purposes.
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22. How do stimulant drugs such as amphetamines or cocaine typically affect driving?
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Answer D: They can make the driver overconfident and more willing to take risks
Stimulants create a false sense of alertness and encourage aggressive, risky driving. When they wear off, sudden fatigue can follow.
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23. Two drivers each have three drinks, one over three hours and one in half an hour. What is the difference?
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Answer C: The fast drinker reaches a higher peak level
The liver removes alcohol at a steady rate, so drinking faster than the body can clear it pushes the blood alcohol level much higher.
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24. You are turning right from a one-way street onto a two-way street. Where should the turn end?
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Answer A: In the lane nearest the right curb of the street you are entering
A right turn starts and finishes as close to the right as practical, so you leave the one-way street from the right lane and arrive in the lane nearest the right curb.
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25. How does eating a large meal before drinking affect impairment?
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Answer D: It slows absorption but the alcohol still reaches the blood and impairs you
Food delays how quickly alcohol enters the bloodstream, which can make the peak arrive later, but all of the alcohol is eventually absorbed.
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26. Why is a sign reading BRIDGE ICES BEFORE ROAD worth heeding even when the road itself is merely wet?
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Answer C: Cold air passes under a bridge as well as over it
A bridge deck loses heat from below as well as above, so it can be frozen while the road on either side of it is only wet.
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27. A train has just passed a crossing that carries more than one set of tracks. What should you do?
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Answer B: Wait until the warning devices stop and you can see clearly along every track
A passing train can hide a second one coming on another track, so wait for the signals to clear and check each track before moving.
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28. Every signal head at an intersection is flashing red in all directions. How should you treat the intersection?
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Answer C: As an all-way stop, stopping and then going in turn
Red flashing in every direction means each approach must stop, so the intersection works exactly like an all-way stop.
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29. What is the highest speed limit a Washington local authority may establish on a nonarterial highway?
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Answer A: 20 miles per hour
Washington law caps a locally established nonarterial highway speed limit at 20 miles per hour.
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30. A funeral procession with headlights on is crossing an intersection when your light turns green. What should you do?
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Answer A: Wait and let the whole procession go through
Most states let a funeral procession stay together once the lead vehicle has lawfully entered an intersection, and in every state you must yield to vehicles already in the intersection, so wait until the line has passed.
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31. Does Washington's move-over statute explicitly cover an ordinary disabled vehicle that is only using its hazard lights, with no other warning equipment?
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Answer A: No, the law lists specific qualifying vehicles, and hazard lights alone are not one of them
Washington's move-over statute lists specific categories of qualifying vehicles and equipment, and an ordinary disabled vehicle using only its hazard lights is not one of them.
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32. Your left-turn lane faces a steady green ball and oncoming traffic is heavy. What are you allowed to do?
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Answer C: Move into the intersection and turn when a safe gap appears
A green ball permits the turn but gives no priority, so you may move into the intersection and wait there for a gap in the oncoming traffic.
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33. Your vehicle is stuck in deep snow and you run the engine for heat while waiting for help. What must you check?
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Answer C: That the exhaust pipe is clear of snow
Snow packed around the tailpipe pushes exhaust back into the cabin, and carbon monoxide can kill without warning. Clear the pipe and crack a window open.
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34. The brake pedal goes to the floor and the vehicle does not slow. What should you try first?
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Answer C: Pump the pedal quickly to try to build pressure
Most vehicles have a split braking system, so rapid pumping can often build enough pressure to slow you. If it does not, use the parking brake gradually.
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35. On an overhead guide sign, the small exit number panel sits above the left-hand end rather than the right. What does that placement tell you?
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Answer A: The exit leaves from the left side of the roadway
The exit number plaque is placed on the side from which the ramp leaves, which gives advance notice of the unusual left-hand exit.
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36. A truck ahead of you is spreading salt or grit on the road. What should you do?
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Answer B: Drop back so the material does not reach your car
Spreaders throw material backward and sideways, and following close means stone chips and a screen full of spray, so leave extra distance.
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37. What does a 16-year-old need to legally operate a moped in Washington, beyond meeting the minimum age?
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Answer A: A valid driver's license of any class, with no separate moped exam
Washington allows a person aged 16 or older who holds a valid driver's license of any class to operate a moped without taking a special moped examination.
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38. You have just merged onto a freeway from an entrance ramp. What should you do next?
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Answer C: Settle into the right lane and build up speed before changing lanes
Crossing lanes while you are still below the speed of the traffic forces other drivers to brake, so the speed comes first and the lane change second.
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39. After an hour on a hot highway your tire pressure reads higher than it did in the morning. What should you do?
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Answer D: Nothing, because pressure rises when tires heat up
Air expands as the tire warms, so a hot reading is normally above the cold setting. Bleeding air off would leave the tire underinflated once it cooled.
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40. Does using a hands free device remove the risk of distraction?
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Answer A: No, the conversation still takes attention away from driving
Hands free equipment removes the manual part of the distraction but not the mental part, and a driver deep in conversation can look straight at a hazard without registering it.