Can you pass the U.S. Citizenship and Naturalization Test?
Most born U.S. Citizens cannot!
In the last ten years, almost 8 million immigrants became naturalized U.S. Citizens.(1) The naturalization process includes an oral exam with ten questions out of which the applicant must get 6 right in order to pass and move onto the U.S. Citizenship and naturalization ceremony. Applicants study a total of 100 questions and 10 will be randomly selected on the day of the exam.
If you tried to answer the questions below, how many would you get right? Would you pass or fail the citizenship test?
1. What is the supreme law of the land?
Correct answer: The Constitution
Explanation: The Constitution is the highest law in the United States. It is the oldest written Constitution in the world.
2. What does the Constitution do?
Correct answers (choose one):
sets up the government
defines the government
protects basic rights of Americans
3. The idea of self-government is in the first three words of the Constitution. What are these words?
Correct answer: We the People
Explanation: The first three words encompass all American citizens and serve to emphasize that the U.S. government is ruled by the people.
4. What is an amendment?
Correct answers (choose one):
a change (to the Constitution) or
an addition (to the Constitution)
Explanation: The U.S. Constitution is a living document, meaning it can be added to or altered. The Constitution has been amended 27 times.
5. What do we call the first ten amendments to the Constitution?
Correct answer: The Bill of Rights
Explanation: The first 10 amendments to the Constitution were adopted on December 15, 1791. Known as the Bill of Rights, it details the rights of the people in relation to the U.S. government.
6. What is one right or freedom from the First Amendment?*
Correct answers (choose one):
speech
religion
assembly
press
petition the government
Explanation: The First Amendment protects the right to freedom of expression as well as the right to peaceful protest and to petition the government.
7. How many amendments does the Constitution have?
Correct answer: 27
Explanation: Since 1789, there have been 27 amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
8. What did the Declaration of Independence do?
Correct answers (choose one):
announced our independence from Great Britain
declared our independence from Great Britain
said that the U.S. is free from Great Britain
Explanation: Adopted on July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence announced the separation of the United States from Great Britain.
9. What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?
Correct answers (choose two):
life
liberty
pursuit of happiness
Explanation: The Declaration of Independence proclaims that all people are created equal and that everyone has three fundamental rights, namely to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
10. What is freedom of religion?
Correct answer: You can practice any religion, or not practice a religion.
Explanation: The First Amendment states that everyone in the U.S. has the right to choose what religion to follow, including the right to change your religion at any time.
11. What is the economic system in the United States?*
Correct answers (choose one):
capitalist economy
market economy
Explanation: Capitalism is a type of economic system wherein private individuals, and not the government, own the majority of businesses and can generate profit.
12. What is the “rule of law”?
Correct answers (choose one):
Everyone must follow the law.
Leaders must obey the law.
Government must obey the law.
No one is above the law.
Explanation: The notion of the rule of law is a fundamental principle of the U.S. Constitution.
13. Name one branch or part of the government*
Correct answers (choose one):
Congress
legislative
President
Executive
the courts
judicial
Explanation: The United States government is divided into three parts to ensure a separation of powers. The three branches work together to govern the country.
14. What stops one branch of government from becoming too powerful?
Correct answers (choose one):
checks and balances
separation of powers
Explanation: Checks and balances ensure that no one branch in the U.S. government becomes too powerful.
15. Who is in charge of the executive branch?
Correct answer: The President
Explanation: The President of the United States oversees the executive branch, which ensures that the laws of the country are obeyed.
16. Who makes federal laws?
Correct answers (choose one):
Congress
Senate and House of Representatives
U.S. or national legislature
Explanation: Congress is the only branch of government that can create new laws or change existing laws.
17. What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?*
Correct answer: The Senate and House of Representatives
Explanation: The legislative branch of the U.S. government is responsible for making laws, and is comprised of the Senate and House of Representatives.
18. How many U.S. senators are there?
Correct Answer: 100
Explanation: Each of the 50 U.S. states elects two senators to represent them in the Senate. This excludes territories such as Puerto Rico and American Samoa, as well as the federal capital city of D.C., formally the District of Columbia. Fifty states with two senators each = 100 U.S. senators.
19. We elect a U.S. Senator for how many years?
Correct answer: 6
Explanation: The term of office for a U.S. senator is six years, and every two years, one third of the Senate runs for reelection.
20. Who is one of your state’s U.S. Senators now?*
Correct answer: The answer will vary based on where the applicant lives. Note: District of Columbia residents and those living in U.S. territories should answer that D.C. (or the territory where they live) has no senators.
21. The House of Representatives has how many voting members?
Correct answer: 435
Explanation: The House of Representatives has 435 members, who proportionally represent the population of all 50 states.
22. We elect a U.S. Representative for how many years?
Correct answer: 2
Explanation: All U.S. House members serve a two-year term, and may run for reelection every even year.
23. Name your U.S. Representative
Correct answer: The answer will vary based on where the applicant lives. Note: District of Columbia residents and those living in U.S. territories should answer that D.C. (or the territory where they live) has no House representatives.
24. Who does a U.S. Senator represent?
Correct answer: All people of the state
Explanation: Each state has two senators who represent all the residents of that state.
25. Why do some states have more Representatives than other states?
Correct answers (choose one):
because of the state’s population
because they have more people
because some states have more people
Explanation: The number of representatives for a state depends on the state’s population — some states have more people, so those states will have more representatives.
26. We elect a President for how many years?
Correct answer: 4
Explanation: The presidential elections take place every four years, and a president can serve for a total of two terms.
27. In what month do we vote for President?*
Correct answer: November
Explanation: The presidential elections occur every four years on the first Tuesday in November.
28. What is the name of the President of the United States now?*
Correct answer: Go to uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates to learn the name of the current U.S. president.
29. What is the name of the Vice President of the United States now?
Correct answer: Go to uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates to learn the name of the current U.S. vice president.
30. If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
Correct answer: The vice president
Explanation: The U.S. vice president is the head of the Senate, and will take over as president if the president dies or resigns.
31. If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, who becomes President?
Correct answer: The Speaker of the House
Explanation: Next in line is the Speaker of the House if both the president and the vice president cannot serve.
32. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military?
Correct answer: The president
Explanation: In addition to being Chief Executive, the president is also Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy.
33. Who signs bills to become laws?
Correct answer: The president
Explanation: After Congress passes a bill, the President signs the bill into law.
34. Who vetoes bills?
Correct answer: The president
Explanation: Only the president has the power to veto a bill, meaning he or she can prevent a bill from going into effect.
35. What does the President’s Cabinet do?
Correct answer: Advises the president
Explanation: The president’s cabinet consists of the vice president and the heads of the 15 executive departments.
36. Name two Cabinet-level positions
Correct answers (choose two):
Secretary of Agriculture
Secretary of Commerce
Secretary of Defense
Secretary of Education
Secretary of Energy
Secretary of Health and Human Services
Secretary of Homeland Security
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
Secretary of the Interior
Secretary of Labor
Secretary of State
Secretary of Transportation
Secretary of the Treasury
Secretary of Veterans Affairs
Attorney General
Vice President
37. What does the judicial branch do?
Correct answers (choose one):
reviews laws
explains laws
resolves disputes (disagreements)
decides if a law goes against the Constitution
Explanation: The judicial branch is a court system and is made up of different courts, namely the Supreme, Circuit, magistrate, and municipal courts.
38. What is the highest court in the United States?
Correct answer: The Supreme Court
Explanation: The Supreme Court decides whether or not laws align with the U.S. Constitution.
39. How many justices are on the Supreme Court?
Correct answer: Go to uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates to learn the number of justices on the Supreme Court.
40. Who is the Chief Justice of the United States now?
Correct answer: Go to uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates to learn the name of the Chief Justice of the United States.
41. Name one power of the federal government?
Correct answers (choose one):
to print money
to declare war
to create an army
to make treaties
42. Name one power of the states
Correct answers (choose one):
provide schooling and education
provide protection (police)
provide safety (fire departments)
give a driver’s license
approve zoning and land use
43. Who is the Governor of your state now?
Correct answer: The answer will vary based on where the applicant lives (D.C. residents should answer that D.C. doesn’t have a governor).
44. What is the capital of your state?*
Correct answer: The answer will vary based on where the applicant lives (D.C. residents should answer that D.C. isn’t a state and therefore doesn’t have a capital. Residents of U.S. territories must name the capital of their territory).
45. Name two major political parties in the United States?*
Correct answer: Democratic and Republican
Explanation: Two major political parties dominate American politics. The Democratic party traditionally represents a more liberal ideology while the Republican party represents a more conservative ideology.
46. What is the political party of the President now?
Correct answer: Go to uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates to learn the political party of the current president.
47. What is the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives now?
Correct answer: Go to uscis.gov/citizenship/testupdates to learn the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
C: Rights and Responsibilities
48. Describe one of the four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote
Correct answers (choose one):
Citizens 18 and older can vote.
You don’t have to pay a poll tax to vote.
Any citizen can vote.
A male citizen of any race can vote.
Explanation: The 15th, 19th, 24th, and 26th amendments relate to the ability to vote.
49. Name one responsibility that is only for US citizens*
Correct answers (choose one):
serve on a jury
vote in a federal election
50. Name one right only for United States citizens
Correct answers (choose one):
vote in a federal election
run for federal office
51. Name two rights of everyone living in the U.S.
Correct answers (choose one):
freedom of expression
freedom of speech
freedom of assembly
freedom to petition the government
freedom of religion
the right to bear arms
52. What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?
Correct answers:
the United States
the flag
Explanation: The Pledge of Allegiance promises loyalty to the United States. New citizens recite the Pledge of Allegiance at the end of the Oath of Allegiance ceremony.
53. Name one promise you make when you become a U.s.citizen
give up loyalty to other countries
defend the Constitution and laws of the United States
obey the laws of the United States
serve in the U.S. military (if needed)
serve (do important work for) the nation (if needed)
be loyal to the United States
54. What age do citizens have to be to vote for president?*
Correct answer: 18 and older
55. Name two ways that u.s. citizens can participate in their democracy
Correct answers (choose two):
vote
join a political party
help with a campaign
join a civic group
join a community group
give an elected official your opinion on an issue
call Senators and Representatives
publicly support or oppose an issue or policy
run for office
write to a newspaper
56. What date is the last day you can submit federal income tax forms?*
Correct answer: The date is typically on or around April 15
Explanation: Learn more about the basics of filing taxes as an immigrant.
57. When must all men register for the Selective Service?
Correct answers (choose one):
At 18
Between 18 and 26
Explanation: Nearly all men who are U.S. citizens or permanently living in the U.S. must register for the Selective Service within 30 days of their 18th birthday. The Selective Service accepts late registrations up until a male turns 26.
58. Name one reason colonists came to America?
Correct answers (choose one):
freedom
political liberty
religious freedom
economic opportunity
practice their religion
escape persecution
Explanation: The English settlers came to America for different reasons, and they came from various backgrounds and religions.
59. Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?
Correct answers (choose one):
American Indians
Native Americans
Explanation: Before the British settlers arrived, Native Americans lived in tribes across the continent.
60. Which group of people was taken to the u.s. and sold as slaves?
Correct answers (choose one):
Africans
people from Africa
Explanation: It is believed the first African slaves arrived by boat in Virginia in 1619, although some accounts say slaves arrived sooner from Africa.
61. Why did the colonists fight the British?
Correct answers (choose one):
because of high taxes (taxation without representation)
because the British army stayed in their houses
because they didn’t have self-government
Explanation: The American Revolutionary War lasted from 1775 to 1783, which led to the United States’ independence from Britain.
62. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
Correct answer: Thomas Jefferson
Explanation: Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence, which was the formal statement declaring the U.S. its own country independent from Britain.
63. When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?
Correct answer: July 4, 1776
Explanation: On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence. The U.S. now celebrates Independence Day every July 4th.
64. Name three of the 13 original states
Correct answers (choose three):
New Hampshire
Massachusetts
Rhode Island
Connecticut
New York
New Jersey
Pennsylvania
Delaware
Maryland
Virginia
North Carolina
South Carolina
Georgia
65. What happened at the Constitutional Convention?
Correct answers (choose one):
The Constitution was written.
The Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution.
Explanation: The Constitutional Convention took place in Philadelphia from May 14-September 17, 1787 with the goal of redesigning the system of government.
66. When was the Constitution written?
Correct answer: 1787
Explanation: The Constitution was written during the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.
67. Name one of the writers of the Federalist Papers
Correct answers (name one):
(James) Madison
(Alexander) Hamilton
(John) Jay
Publius
Explanation: The Federalist Papers consisted of 85 essays arguing for the ratification of the U.S. Constitution.
68. Name one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?
Correct answers (name one):
U.S. diplomat
oldest member of the Constitutional Convention
first Postmaster General of the United States
writer of “Poor Richard’s Almanac”
started the first free libraries
69. Who is considered the “Father of Our Country”?
Correct answer: (George) Washington
Explanation: George Washington was the commander of the army during the American Revolution, he presided over the Constitutional Convention, and he was the first president of the United States.
70. Who was the first president?*
Correct answer: (George) Washington
Explanation: George Washington was president of the United States from 1789-1797.
B: 1800s
71. What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?
Correct answers (choose one):
the Louisiana Territory
Louisiana
Explanation: Known as the Louisiana Purchase, the United States paid France $15 million for the 828,000 square miles of land.
72. Name one war fought by the U.s. in the 1800s
Correct answers (choose one):
War of 1812
Mexican-American War
Civil War
Spanish-American War
73. Name the U.S. war between the North and the South
Correct answers (choose one):
the Civil War
the War between the States
Explanation: The American Civil War was fought from 1861-1865 between the Union Army and the Confederate States of America.
74. Name one problem that led to the Civil War
Correct answers (choose one):
slavery
economic reasons
states’ rights
75. Name one important thing that Abraham Lincoln did?*
Correct answers (choose one):
freed the slaves (Emancipation Proclamation)
saved (or preserved) the Union
led the U.S. during the Civil War
Explanation: Abraham Lincoln served as U.S. president from 1861 until he was assassinated in 1865.
76. What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?
Correct answers (choose one):
freed the slaves
freed slaves in the Confederacy
freed slaves in the Confederate states
freed slaves in most Southern states
Explanation: President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which went into effect on January 1, 1863.
77. What did Susan B. Anthony do?
Correct answers (choose one):
fought for women’s rights
fought for civil rights
Explanation: Susan B. Anthony was a legendary women’s rights activist and a pioneer of the women’s suffrage movement.
C: Recent American History and Other Important Historical Information
78. Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.*
Correct answers (choose one):
World War I
World War II
Korean War
Vietnam War
(Persian) Gulf War
79. Who was President during World War I?
Correct answer: (Woodrow) Wilson
Explanation: Woodrow Wilson was the 28th U.S. president from 1913-1921.
80. Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?
Correct answer: (Franklin) Roosevelt
Explanation: Franklin Roosevelt, known as FDR, served as president from 1933-1945.
81. Who did the United States fight in World War II?
Correct answer: Japan, Germany, and Italy
82. Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?
Correct answer: World War II
Explanation: Dwight Eisenhower served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953-1961.
83. During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?
Correct answer: Communism
Explanation: The Cold War was an ideological battle fought between the United States and the Soviet Union.
84. What movement tried to end racial discrimination?
Correct answer: Civil rights (movement)
Explanation: The American civil rights movement, which took place during the 1950s and 1960s, demanded an end to racial segregation and discrimination.
85. What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?*
Correct answers (choose one):
fought for civil rights
worked for equality for all Americans
Explanation: Martin Luther King Jr. was a leading civil rights activist and a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.
86. What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the U.s.?
Correct answer: Terrorists attacked the United States.
Explanation: September 11, also known as 9/11, was a series of four coordinated terrorist attacks carried out by Al Qaeda, a Muslim extremist group.
87. Name one Native American tribe in the United States
Correct answers (choose one):
Cherokee
Navajo
Sioux
Chippewa
Choctaw
Pueblo
Apache
Iroquois
Creek
Blackfeet
Seminole
Cheyenne
Arawak
Shawnee
Mohegan
Huron
Oneida
Lakota
Crow
Teton
Hopi
Inuit
Explanation: There are currently 574 federally recognized tribes in the United States.
88. Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States
Correct answers (choose one):
Missouri (River)
Mississippi (River)
89. What ocean is on the West Coast of the U.s.?
Correct answer: Pacific Ocean
90. What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?
Correct answer: Atlantic Ocean
91. Name one U.S. territory
Correct answers (choose one):
Puerto Rico
U.S. Virgin Islands
American Samoa
Northern Mariana Islands
Guam
Explanation: The U.S. has five major territories, meaning pieces of land owned and controlled by the United States.
92. Name one state that borders Canada
Correct answers (choose one):
Maine
New Hampshire
Vermont
New York
Pennsylvania
Ohio
Michigan
Minnesota
North Dakota
Montana
Idaho
Washington
Alaska
93. Name one state that borders Mexico
Correct answers (choose one):
California
Arizona
New Mexico
Texas
94. What is the capital of the United States?
Correct answer: Washington, D.C.
Explanation: Washington D.C., officially called the District of Columbia, is where the White House and the Capitol are located.
95. Where is the Statue of Liberty?
Correct answers (choose one):
New York Harbor
Liberty Island
New Jersey,
Near New York City
On the Hudson River
Explanation: The Statue of Liberty, located on Liberty Island in New York City, was a gift from France to celebrate the friendship between the two countries. It has become a symbol for freedom and justice.
96. Why does the flag have 13 stripes?
Correct answers (choose one):
because there were 13 original colonies
because the stripes represent the original colonies
97. Why does the flag have 50 stars?
Correct answers (choose one):
because there is one star for each state
because each star represents a state
because there are 50 states
98. What is the name of the national anthem?
Correct answer: The Star-Spangled Banner
Explanation: During the War of 1812, an amateur poet named Francis Scott Key was inspired to write what became the Star-Spangled Banner after witnessing an American Flag flying over Fort McHenry in Baltimore.
99. When do we celebrate Independence Day?*
Correct answer: July 4
Explanation: On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence, declaring the United States as a separate country to Britain. The U.S. now celebrates Independence Day every July 4th.
100. Name two national U.S. holidays
Correct answers (choose two):
New Year’s Day
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Presidents’ Day
Memorial Day
Independence Day
Labor Day
Columbus Day
Veterans Day
Thanksgiving
Christmas