New Hampshire: Sign shapes and colors Practice Test
What the shape and color of a traffic sign tell you before you can read it, from the red octagon to purple E-ZPass signs.
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Questions are original and based on the official manual "New Hampshire Driver’s Manual" (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV).
All 17 questions in this practice test
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What do the shape, color, symbols, and words of a traffic sign give a driver?
- Clues to the type of information the sign provides
- The exact speed limit in every lane of the road
- Permission to ignore other traffic control devices
- The name of the agency that put the sign up
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Correct answer: Clues to the type of information the sign provides
The shape, color, symbols, and words of traffic signs give clues to the type of information they provide.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 20 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 20)
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What kind of message do red road signs give?
- Prohibition
- Direction or guidance
- General warning
- Law or rule of the road
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Correct answer: Prohibition
Red is the standard color for prohibition: stop or do not do something.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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What kind of message do green road signs give?
- Prohibition
- General warning
- Direction or guidance
- Road repair work warning
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Correct answer: Direction or guidance
Green is the standard sign color for direction or guidance.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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What kind of information do blue road signs give?
- Incident management
- Driver services
- Tourist and recreation guidance
- Law or rule of the road
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Correct answer: Driver services
Blue is the standard sign color for driver services.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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What kind of message do yellow road signs give?
- Road repair work warning
- Incident management
- Direction or guidance
- General warning
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Correct answer: General warning
Yellow is the standard sign color for general warning.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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What kind of message do white road signs give?
- Tourist and recreation guidance
- Road repair work warning
- Incident management
- Law or rule of the road
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Correct answer: Law or rule of the road
White is the standard sign color for a law or rule of the road.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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Which standard color is used for road repair work warning signs?
- Yellow
- Orange
- Brown
- Pink
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Correct answer: Orange
Orange is the standard color for road repair work warning.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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Which standard sign color is used for tourist and recreation guidance?
- Purple
- Pink
- Brown
- White
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Correct answer: Brown
Brown is the standard sign color for tourist and recreation guidance.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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Which standard sign color is used for incident management?
- Pink
- Purple
- Blue
- Yellow
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Correct answer: Pink
Pink is the standard sign color for incident management.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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Which standard sign color is used for EZPass?
- Purple
- Pink
- Blue
- Brown
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Correct answer: Purple
Purple is the standard sign color for EZPass.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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Which sign shape is used for a stop sign?
- A pentagon (5 sides)
- A diamond
- An octagon (8 sides)
- A down pointed triangle
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Correct answer: An octagon (8 sides)
The standard shape for a stop sign is the octagon, which has 8 sides.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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Which sign shape means yield?
- An octagon (8 sides)
- A down pointed triangle
- A pennant (sideways triangle)
- A pentagon (5 sides)
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Correct answer: A down pointed triangle
The down pointed triangle means yield: slow down and give other vehicles the right of way.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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A sideways triangle (pennant) sign is found on the left side of the road. What does it warn the driver of?
- A school zone ahead
- A railroad crossing ahead
- A merging lane ahead
- No passing zones ahead
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Correct answer: No passing zones ahead
The pennant, or sideways triangle, is the no passing shape. Found on the left side of the road, it warns of no passing zones ahead.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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What does a diamond-shaped sign indicate?
- A school zone or school crossing
- Traffic regulations or directions to drivers
- Where a railroad crossing is
- A warning that special hazards are ahead
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Correct answer: A warning that special hazards are ahead
The diamond shape warns that special hazards are ahead; pictures or words describe the hazard.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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In the manual's list of standard sign shapes, what does a rectangle stand for?
- Advance warning of a railroad crossing
- Traffic regulations or directions
- A no passing zone warning
- A stop or yield message
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Correct answer: Traffic regulations or directions
The rectangle is the standard shape for traffic regulations or directions to drivers.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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Which sign shape is used for a school zone and school crossing?
- An octagon (8 sides)
- A diamond
- A pentagon (5 sides)
- A circle
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Correct answer: A pentagon (5 sides)
The pentagon, with 5 sides, is the standard shape for a school zone and school crossing.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)
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What does a circular sign give drivers?
- Advance warning of a railroad crossing
- Warning of a school zone or school crossing
- A no passing warning
- A stop or yield message
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Correct answer: Advance warning of a railroad crossing
The circle is the standard shape for advance warning of a railroad crossing.
Source: New Hampshire Driver’s Manual (DSMV 360 (Rev. 11/25)), page 21 · Open this page in the manual (Manual page 21)