Arkansas General Knowledge CDL Practice Test

This is a free 20-question practice test for the General Knowledge portion of the Arkansas Commercial Driver's License knowledge exam. Questions are pulled from a pool of 97 drawn from the AAMVA CDL Manual, which is the source document the Arkansas Office of Driver Services uses to write its actual exam.

How it works: Click an answer. The correct choice highlights in green, and you'll see a short explanation. Aim for 85% or better before you sit for the real test in Arkansas.

Question 1 of 20

Which of these is the best way to communicate that you are slowing down?

Tap the brake pedal a few times to flash the brake lights
Use the horn
Put on the parking brake
Wave at drivers behind

Correct. Lightly tapping the brake pedal flashes the brake lights, alerting drivers behind that you are slowing.

Question 2 of 20

Doubling your speed roughly:

Doubles your stopping distance
Triples your stopping distance
Quadruples your stopping distance
Has no effect on stopping distance

Correct. Braking distance is proportional to the square of speed. Doubling speed roughly quadruples braking distance.

Question 3 of 20

Which of the following can cause the wheels of your vehicle to skid on a curve?

Driving below the posted speed limit
Driving too fast for the curve
Slowing down before entering the curve
Driving with a light load

Correct. Posted curve advisory speeds assume cars; a heavy commercial vehicle with a high center of gravity may roll over or skid even at the posted speed. Slow before the curve, accelerate gently through it.

Question 4 of 20

Which of the following is true about the front-end shock absorbers?

They have nothing to do with handling
Worn shock absorbers can cause poor handling and uneven tire wear
They are part of the brake system
They affect only ride comfort, never safety

Correct. Shock absorbers control suspension oscillation. Worn shocks contribute to poor handling, uneven tire wear, and reduced control on rough roads.

Question 5 of 20

What is the only effective way to remove alcohol from the body?

Drinking coffee
Cold showers
Eating a heavy meal
Time

Correct. Only time eliminates alcohol from the body — at roughly one drink per hour. Coffee, food, and showers do not speed up the process.

Question 6 of 20

Which of the following is the best way to prevent a fire in your vehicle?

Carry extra fuel
Smoke only with the windows open
Inspect the vehicle, watch the gauges, and use safe driving practices
Run the engine hot to burn off carbon

Correct. Most fires are preventable through inspection (electrical, fuel-system, tire) and watching gauges, plus prohibiting smoking near fuel and observing safe loading/refueling rules.

Question 7 of 20

A driver should look down the road how far when driving at highway speeds?

One block
One-quarter mile (about 12-15 seconds ahead)
Just past the hood
To the horizon only

Correct. Look 12-15 seconds ahead — about a quarter mile at highway speeds. This gives time to identify and react to hazards.

Question 8 of 20

Which of these is a major cause of crashes in heavy vehicles?

Driver fatigue
Heavy traffic
Following too closely
All of the above

Correct. Fatigue, heavy traffic, and following too closely are all leading factors in commercial vehicle crashes.

Question 9 of 20

You are driving in a work zone. You should:

Drive faster to clear the zone
Slow down, increase following distance, watch for workers
Use the shoulder
Honk repeatedly

Correct. Work-zone fines double or more in most states. Slow down, give the vehicle ahead extra space, watch for workers and equipment, and follow signed speed reductions.

Question 10 of 20

If your vehicle hydroplanes, what should you do?

Brake hard immediately
Steer sharply to recover
Release the accelerator and push in the clutch
Accelerate to push through

Correct. Release the accelerator and push in the clutch. Do not brake or steer hard until the tires regain contact.

Question 11 of 20

When driving down a long, steep downgrade, you should:

Hold the brakes lightly the whole way down
Select the proper gear before starting down and use intermittent firm brake applications
Coast in neutral
Use only the engine brake

Correct. Select a low gear before starting down. Use the brakes in firm, intermittent applications: brake until 5 mph below safe speed, release until safe speed is regained, repeat. Continuous brake application overheats the brakes.

Question 12 of 20

To recover from a drive-wheel skid, you should:

Brake harder to slow down
Steer in the opposite direction of the skid
Stop accelerating, push in the clutch, and counter-steer
Apply the parking brake

Correct. Stop applying power, push in the clutch (or shift to neutral) to let the wheels turn freely, and counter-steer in the direction you want the front of the vehicle to go.

Question 13 of 20

Which lane is generally the best for a commercial vehicle on a multi-lane highway?

The far left (passing) lane
The middle lane
The right lane (slow lane)
Whichever has the lightest traffic

Correct. The right lane is generally best — it limits lane changes, reduces conflict with merging traffic only on the right, and matches commercial-vehicle speed.

Question 14 of 20

What is "black ice"?

Ice that has been salted
A thin layer of ice clear enough that you can see the road through it
Ice on a black-painted road
Ice formed under the truck

Correct. Black ice is a thin, clear sheet of ice that looks like wet pavement. Suspect it whenever the temperature is at or below freezing and the road appears wet.

Question 15 of 20

How many red reflective triangles must you carry in your commercial vehicle for emergency warning?

One
Two
Three
Six

Correct. You must carry three red reflective triangles, six fusees, or three liquid-burning flares for emergency warning use.

Question 16 of 20

The blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) at or above which a CDL driver is considered to be driving under the influence in a commercial motor vehicle is:

Correct. The federal BAC limit for CDL drivers operating a commercial vehicle is .04 — half the .08 limit for non-commercial drivers in most states.

Question 17 of 20

You are driving on a two-lane road. An oncoming driver drifts into your lane. You should:

Steer right onto the shoulder
Flash your high beams
Honk your horn
Brake hard and stop in your lane

Correct. When an oncoming driver drifts into your lane, the safer escape is right onto the shoulder. Steering left risks a head-on if the other driver corrects.

Question 18 of 20

A safe practice when entering a freeway is to:

Stop at the end of the on-ramp and wait
Use the entire on-ramp to accelerate to traffic speed and merge into a gap
Slow to 25 mph regardless of traffic
Force traffic to make space

Correct. Use the on-ramp to match traffic speed before merging. Stopping at the end of an on-ramp is dangerous.

Question 19 of 20

The four-way flashers on a commercial vehicle should be used:

Anytime you are stopped or moving slowly enough that other drivers might not expect
Only when parked
Only at night
Only on the interstate

Correct. Use four-way flashers anytime your vehicle is stopped on or near the roadway, or moving slowly enough that approaching traffic might be surprised.

Question 20 of 20

How can you tell if you are driving in mountains?

You see deer
Your engine works harder on grades, both up and down
Roads are paved
It is colder

Correct. Mountain driving demands attention to grade-related challenges: gear selection on upgrades, speed control on downgrades, escape ramp awareness.

About the Arkansas General Knowledge exam

Most state DMVs administer 50 General Knowledge questions and require 80% (40 correct) to pass. Questions are pulled from a much larger pool, so two applicants taking the test on the same day will see different mixes. The questions on this site are drawn from the AAMVA CDL Manual chapters that every state's exam is built from.

The Arkansas Office of Driver Services follows the federal CDL standards established by FMCSA. To earn the General Knowledge credential, you must answer at least 80% of the questions correctly. Many candidates score lower the first time because the test pulls from a large pool — refreshing this page will give you a different mix of questions, drawn from the same authoritative source.

Want more practice? Try the full General Knowledge question bank or browse all Arkansas CDL practice tests.