Below is our free GED Social Studies practice test, covering the most commonly tested topics on the exam. You’ll work with a variety of sources, including passages, charts, graphs, and maps. Some questions require specific background knowledge, while others can be answered just by carefully studying the provided visuals.
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Question 1 of 20
The following table provides information on Irish immigration during the mid-19th century:
YEAR
NUMBER OF IRISH IMMIGRANTS
1841
37,772
1847
105,536
1848
112,934
1849
159,398
1850
164,004
1851
221,253
1852
159,548
1853
162,649
1854
101,606
Which of the following statements most accurately describes patterns of Irish immigration in the mid-19th century?
Question 2 of 20
The following excerpt is from a speech by President Woodrow Wilson in 1918 endorsing the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote:
“I regard the concurrence of the Senate in the constitutional amendment proposing the extension of the suffrage to women as vitally essential to the successful prosecution of the great war of humanity in which we are engaged…It is my duty to win the war and to ask you to remove every obstacle that stands in the way of winning it.”
How does the constitutional amendment process begin?
Question 3 of 20
The following excerpt is from President Thomas Jefferson’s first inaugural address in 1801:
“Still one thing more, fellow-citizens—a wise and frugal Government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government.”
What ideology best describes Jefferson’s political philosophy?
Question 4 of 20
The following table contains information on urbanization rates in the United States between 1790 and 2010:
YEAR
PERCENT OF TOTAL POPULATION LIVING IN URBAN AREAS
1790
5
1810
7
1830
9
1850
15
1870
25
1890
35
1910
45
1930
55
1950
65
1970
75
1990
77
2010
80
Which of the following statements most accurately describes urbanization patterns in the United States between 1790 and 2010?
Question 5 of 20
The following scenario describes an economic decision:
After graduating from high school, Juan applies to several job advertisements and receives an offer to work as a clerk in a retail store for $8 per hour. However, Juan decides to enroll in a community college and after two years he completes a technical training program that prepares him to become a welder. After completing the program, he finds employment as an apprentice welder and earns $20 per hour.
Which was the opportunity cost in Juan’s decision?
Question 6 of 20
The following is an excerpt from the Triple Alliance Treaty signed between Germany, Austria, and Italy in 1881:
“Article 1: The… Contracting Parties mutually promise peace and friendship… and they further promise one another mutual support…
In what way, if at all, did the Triple Alliance Treaty influence World War I?
Question 7 of 20
The following excerpt is from the 1803 Supreme Court decision Marbury v. Madison , which established the concept of judicial review:
“It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is. Those who apply the rule to particular cases, must of necessity expound and interpret that rule. If two laws conflict with each other, the courts must decide on the operation of each.”
This ruling is an example of which of the following concepts?
Question 8 of 20
The following excerpt is from the Warsaw Security Pact which was signed in 1955 by the Soviet Union, Albania, Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland, Romania, and Czechoslovakia:
“The Contracting Parties… mindful, at the same time, of the situation created in Europe by the… formation of a new military alignment in the shape of [the North Atlantic Treaty Organization] which increased the danger of another war and constitutes a threat to the national security of the peaceable states… have agreed as follows… Article 4: in the event of armed attack in Europe on one or more of the Parties to the Treaty… shall immediately… come to the assistance of the state or states attacked with all such means as it deems necessary, including armed force.”
The following map, created by Alphathon, depicts Europe during the Cold War. Members of NATO are in blue while members of the Warsaw Pact are in Red:
Which of the following statements best describes the motives for creating the Warsaw Security Pact?
Question 9 of 20
The following map and table depicts the 1960 presidential election:
Democrat — John F. Kennedy — 49.72 percent of the popular vote with 303 electoral votes.
Republican — Richard Nixon — 49.55 percent of the popular vote with 219 electoral votes.
Why did Kennedy become president if he received less than 50 percent of the popular vote?
Question 10 of 20
The following excerpt is from a speech by President Harry Truman in 1947:
“The very existence of the Greek state is today threatened by the terrorist activities of several thousand armed men, led by Communists, who defy the government’s authority at a number of points, particularly along the northern boundaries… Meanwhile, the Greek Government is unable to cope with the situation. The Greek army is small and poorly equipped… Greece must have assistance if it is to become a self-supporting and self-respecting democracy.”
What prompted President Truman to provide aid to the Greek government?
Question 11 of 20
The following excerpt is from a speech by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1933:
“We had a bad banking situation. Some of our bankers had shown themselves either incompetent or dishonest in their handling of the people’s funds… It was the Government’s job to straighten out this situation and do it as quickly as possible—and the job is being performed… Confidence and courage are the essentials of success in carrying out our plan. You people must have faith; you must not be stampeded by rumors or guesses. Let us unite in banishing fear.”
Based on the excerpt, how did historical circumstances shape President Roosevelt’s point of view?
Question 12 of 20
The following excerpt is from a speech by Congressman James Madison in 1789 on the introduction of the Bill of Rights:
“There have been objections of various kinds made against the constitution… but I believe that the great mass of the people who opposed it, disliked it because it did not contain effectual provision against encroachments on particular rights, and those safeguards which they have been long accustomed to have interposed between them and the magistrate who exercised the sovereign power… it will be practicable on that ground… to satisfy the public mind that their liberties will be perpetual.”
Why did Madison, and many other Americans, feel that the Bill of Rights was necessary?
Question 13 of 20
The following is an excerpt from a speech by President Barack Obama in 2015:
“Nearly 200 nations have assembled here this week—a declaration that for all the challenges we face, the growing threat of climate change will define the contours of this century more dramatically than any other… Fourteen of the fifteen warmest years on record have occurred since the year 2000—and 2015 is on pace to be the warmest year of all… This summer, I saw the effects of climate change firsthand in our northern-most state, Alaska, where the sea is already swallowing villages and eroding shoreline.”
Which of the following is an opinion and not a fact?
Question 14 of 20
The following cartoon is from Harpers Weekly :
How did the cartoon reflect historical circumstances during Reconstruction in the South?
Question 15 of 20
The following excerpt is a speech by President Franklin Roosevelt on Dec. 8, 1941, the day after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor:
“Yesterday… the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan… As Commander in Chief of the Army and Navy I have directed that all measures be taken for our defense… Hostilities exist. There is no blinking at the fact that our people, our territory, and our interests are in grave danger.”
Under the US Constitution, which body has the sole authority to declare war?
Question 16 of 20
The following table contains data on voter turnout for presidential elections. The turnout percent represents the proportion of the voting age population that cast a ballot in the election:
Year
Voter Turnout
1960
62.77%
1964
61.92%
1968
60.84%
1972
55.21%
1976
53.55%
1980
52.56%
1984
53.27%
1988
50.15%
1992
55.24%
1996
49.00%
2000
51.21%
2004
56.70%
2008
58.23%
2012
54.87%
Which of the following statements best describes the voter turnout patterns?
Question 17 of 20
Arrange the following in correct chronological order from oldest to most recent.
Reorder
Classical Greek Democracy
Move "Classical Greek Democracy" down
Move "Classical Greek Democracy" up
Reorder
Magna Carta
Move "Magna Carta" down
Move "Magna Carta" up
Reorder
Modern Democracy
Move "Modern Democracy" down
Move "Modern Democracy" up
Reorder
American Revolution
Move "American Revolution" down
Move "American Revolution" up
Reorder
Roman Republic
Move "Roman Republic" down
Move "Roman Republic" up
Question 18 of 20
Question 18 refers to the following passage, which is an excerpt from Schenck v. United States (1919).
“The most stringent protection of free speech would not protect a man in falsely shouting fire in a theatre and causing a panic. . . .The question in every case is whether the words used are used in such circumstances and are of such a nature as to create a clear and present danger that they will bring about the substantive evils that Congress has a right to prevent. It is a question of proximity and degree.”
The Supreme Court’s ruling in Schenck restricted the protections guaranteed by which amendment of the Bill of Rights?
Question 19 of 20
Questions 19–20 refer to the following chart.
Based on the information in the chart, which of the following statements is true?
Question 20 of 20
Which of the following actions can override a presidential veto?
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
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17
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20
Current
Correct
Incorrect
