USCIS 100 Civics Questions for the Naturalization Test

These 100 question-and-answer flashcards cover all topics included in the USCIS Civics (History and Government) Questions for the Naturalization Test.

1. What is the supreme law of the land?

The Constitution

2. What does the Constitution do?

Sets up the government, defines the government, and protects basic rights of Americans

3. The idea of self-government is in the first three words of the Constitution. What are these words?

“We the People”

4. What is an amendment?

A change or addition to the Constitution

5. What do we call the first ten amendments to the Constitution?

The Bill of Rights

6. What is one right or freedom from the First Amendment?

Speech (other correct answers: religion, assembly, press, petition the government)

7. How many amendments does the Constitution have?

Twenty-seven (27)

8. What did the Declaration of Independence do?

Declared our independence from Great Britain

9. What are two rights in the Declaration of Independence?

Life and liberty (pursuit of happiness is also correct)

10. What is freedom of religion?

You can practice any religion, or not practice a religion.

11. What is the economic system in the United States?

Capitalist (market) economy

12. What is the “rule of law”?

Everyone, including leaders and government, must follow the law; no one is above the law.

13. Name one branch or part of the government.

Congress (other correct answers: legislative, President, executive, the courts, judicial)

14. What stops one branch of government from becoming too powerful?

Checks and balances or separation of powers

15. Who is in charge of the executive branch?

The President

16. Who makes federal laws?

Congress (the Senate and House of Representatives)

17. What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?

The Senate and the House of Representatives

18. How many U.S. Senators are there?

One hundred (100)

19. We elect a U.S. Senator for how many years?

Six (6)

20. Who is one of your state’s U.S. Senators now?

Ted Cruz and John Cornyn

21. The House of Representatives has how many voting members?

Four hundred thirty-five (435)

22. We elect a U.S. Representative for how many years?

Two (2)

23. Name your U.S. Representative.

Wesley Hunt

24. Who does a U.S. Senator represent?

All people of the state

25. Why do some states have more Representatives than other states?

Because of the state’s population (some states have more people)

26. We elect a President for how many years?

Four (4)

27. In what month do we vote for President?

November

28. What is the name of the President of the United States now?

Donald J. Trump

29. What is the name of the Vice President of the United States now?

JD Vance

30. If the President can no longer serve, who becomes President?

The Vice President

31. If both the President and the Vice President can no longer serve, who becomes President?

The Speaker of the House

32. Who is the Commander in Chief of the military?

The President

33. Who signs bills to become laws?

The President

34. Who vetoes bills?

The President

35. What does the President’s Cabinet do?

Advises the President

36. Name one Cabinet-level position.

Secretary of State (other correct answers include Secretary of Defense, Education, Energy, Homeland Security, Attorney General, Vice President, etc.)

37. What does the judicial branch do?

Reviews laws, explains laws, resolves disputes, and decides if a law goes against the Constitution

38. What is the highest court in the United States?

The Supreme Court

39. How many justices are on the Supreme Court?

nine (9)

40. Who is the Chief Justice of the United States now?

John Roberts 

41. Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the federal government. What is one power of the federal government?

To print money (other correct answers: declare war, create an army, make treaties)

42. Under our Constitution, some powers belong to the states. What is one power of the states?

Provide schooling and education (other correct answers: protection, safety, driver’s license, zoning/land use)

43. Who is the Governor of your state now?

Greg Abbott

44. What is the capital of your state?

Austin

45. What are the two major political parties in the United States?

Democratic and Republican

46. What is the political party of the President now?

Republican

47. What is the name of the Speaker of the House of Representatives now?

Mike Johnson

48. There are four amendments to the Constitution about who can vote. Describe one of them.

Citizens eighteen (18) and older can vote

49. What is one responsibility that is only for United States citizens?

Serve on a jury (vote in a federal election is also correct)

50. Name one right only for United States citizens.

Vote in a federal election (run for federal office is also correct)

51. What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?

Freedom of speech and freedom of religion (other correct rights include expression, assembly, petition, and the right to bear arms)

52. What do we show loyalty to when we say the Pledge of Allegiance?

The United States (the flag)

53. What is one promise you make when you become a United States citizen?

Obey the laws of the United States (other correct answers: defend the Constitution, give up loyalty to other countries, serve if needed, etc.)

54. How old do citizens have to be to vote for President?

Eighteen (18) and older

55. What are two ways that Americans can participate in their democracy?

Vote and join a political party (other correct activities include helping with a campaign, writing to a newspaper, running for office, etc.)

56. When is the last day you can send in federal income tax forms?

April 15

57. When must all men register for the Selective Service?

At age eighteen (18) (between 18 and 26)

58. What is one reason colonists came to America?

Freedom (other correct answers: political liberty, religious freedom, economic opportunity, escape persecution)

59. Who lived in America before the Europeans arrived?

American Indians / Native Americans

60. What group of people was taken to America and sold as slaves?

Africans

61. Why did the colonists fight the British?

Because of high taxes (taxation without representation)

62. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?

Thomas Jefferson

63. When was the Declaration of Independence adopted?

July 4, 1776

64. There were 13 original states. Name three.

New York, Virginia, and Massachusetts (any three of the original 13 are correct)

65. What happened at the Constitutional Convention?

The Constitution was written.

66. When was the Constitution written?

1787

67. The Federalist Papers supported the passage of the U.S. Constitution. Name one of the writers.

James Madison (other correct answers: Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, Publius)

68. What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?

First Postmaster General of the United States (other correct answers: U.S. diplomat, writer of “Poor Richard’s Almanac,” started the first free libraries, etc.)

69. Who is the “Father of Our Country”?

George Washington

70. Who was the first President?

George Washington

71. What territory did the United States buy from France in 1803?

The Louisiana Territory (Louisiana)

72. Name one war fought by the United States in the 1800s.

The Civil War (other correct answers: War of 1812, Mexican-American War, Spanish-American War)

73. Name the U.S. war between the North and the South.

The Civil War (the War between the States)

74. Name one problem that led to the Civil War.

Slavery (other correct answers: economic reasons, states’ rights)

75. What was one important thing that Abraham Lincoln did?

Freed the slaves with the Emancipation Proclamation (saved the Union, led the U.S. during the Civil War are also correct)

76. What did the Emancipation Proclamation do?

Freed the slaves in the Confederate states

77. What did Susan B. Anthony do?

Fought for women’s rights

78. Name one war fought by the United States in the 1900s.

World War II (other correct answers: World War I, Korean War, Vietnam War, Persian Gulf War)

79. Who was President during World War I?

Woodrow Wilson

80. Who was President during the Great Depression and World War II?

Franklin Roosevelt

81. Who did the United States fight in World War II?

Japan, Germany, and Italy

82. Before he was President, Eisenhower was a general. What war was he in?

World War II

83. During the Cold War, what was the main concern of the United States?

Communism

84. What movement tried to end racial discrimination?

The civil rights movement

85. What did Martin Luther King, Jr. do?

Fought for civil rights and equality for all Americans

86. What major event happened on September 11, 2001, in the United States?

Terrorists attacked the United States.

87. Name one American Indian tribe in the United States.

Cherokee (other correct answers include Navajo, Sioux, Chippewa, Choctaw, Apache, etc.)

88. Name one of the two longest rivers in the United States.

Mississippi River (Missouri River is also correct)

89. What ocean is on the West Coast of the United States?

Pacific Ocean

90. What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?

Atlantic Ocean

91. Name one U.S. territory.

Puerto Rico (other correct answers: U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Northern Mariana Islands, Guam)

92. Name one state that borders Canada.

Alaska (other correct answers: Maine, New York, Michigan, Minnesota, etc.)

93. Name one state that borders Mexico.

Texas (other correct answers: California, Arizona, New Mexico)

94. What is the capital of the United States?

Washington, D.C.

95. Where is the Statue of Liberty?

New York Harbor (Liberty Island)

96. Why does the flag have 13 stripes?

Because there were 13 original colonies

97. Why does the flag have 50 stars?

Because there is one star for each state

98. What is the name of the national anthem?

“The Star-Spangled Banner”

99. When do we celebrate Independence Day?

July 4

100. Name two national U.S. holidays.

Thanksgiving and Christmas (other correct answers: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day)