TIME: 70 minutes
DIRECTIONS: Mark your answers on the answer sheet provided.
Questions 1–5 refer to the following passage, which is excerpted from CliffsQuickReview U.S. History I, by P. Soifer and A. Hoffman (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.).
Industry and Trade in the Thirteen Colonies
The colonies were part of an Atlantic trading network that linked them with England, Africa, and the West Indies. The pattern of commerce, not too accurately called the Triangular Trade, involved the exchange of products from colonial farms, plantations, fisheries, and forests with England for manufactured goods and the West Indies for slaves, molasses, and sugar. In New England, molasses and sugar were distilled into rum, which was used to buy African slaves. Southern Europe was also a valuable market for colonial foodstuffs.
Colonial industry was closely associated with trade. A significant percentage of Atlantic shipping was on vessels built in the colonies, and shipbuilding stimulated other crafts, such as the sewing of sails, milling of lumber, and manufacturing of naval stores. Mercantile theory encouraged the colonies to provide raw materials for England’s industrializing economy; pig iron and coal became important exports. Concurrently, restrictions were placed on finished goods. For example, Parliament, concerned about possible competition from colonial hatters, prohibited the export of hats from one colony to another and limited the number of apprentices in each hat maker’s shop.
1. What did England, Africa, and the West Indies have in common?
(A) They all had fisheries.
(B) They all bought slaves.
(C) They all distilled rum.
(D) They all exchanged products.
2. What was rum used for?
(A) colonial farms
(B) milling of lumber
(C) purchase of slaves
(D) molasses and sugar
3. Why were the colonies important to Atlantic trade?
(A) They built the ships.
(B) They sewed sails.
(C) They had naval stores.
(D) They milled lumber.
4. How did the colonies support British industry?
(A) They took part in sewing.
(B) They produced finished goods.
(C) They developed mercantile theory.
(D) They provided raw materials.
5. What product was threatened by colonial competition?
(A) coal
(B) pig iron
(C) hats
(D) lumber
Questions 6–11 refer to the following passage, which is excerpted from The Declaration of Independence, 1776.
Charges against the King
He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the legislature — a right inestimable to them, and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing, with manly firmness, his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused, for a long time after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large, for their exercise, the state remaining in the meantime exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavored to prevent the population of these states; for that purpose obstructing the laws for naturalization of foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new appropriations of lands.
He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers.
He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers, to harass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing armies, without the consent of our legislature.
He has affected to render the military independent of, and superior to, the civil power.
6. The king neglected the colonies in many ways, especially by
(A) failing to provide money
(B) failing to pass laws
(C) removing their right of condemnation
(D) giving power to his governors
7. Which of the listed methods did the king use in an attempt to enforce compliance by legislative bodies to his wishes?
(A) He never called them together.
(B) He made them comfortable.
(C) He made sure they were well rested.
(D) He made meeting places unusual, distant, and uncomfortable in order to fatigue them into compliance.
8. The main measure used by the king that was seen as a threat to the colonists’ rights was
(A) He dissolved representative houses.
(B) He abdicated the throne.
(C) He annihilated them.
(D) He returned them to the people.
9. The king was very concerned about the growth of the colonies, so much so that he
(A) gave away free land to people willing to settle
(B) encouraged people to settle
(C) settled there himself
(D) discouraged people from settling
10. How did the king obstruct the judicial system?
(A) He made it independent of his authority.
(B) He erected new offices.
(C) He refused to enact certain laws.
(D) He harassed the people.
11. What was one way the freedom of the people was threatened? 
Questions 12 and 13 refer to this map.
12. People tend to live in areas with employment opportunities. Look at the areas with the lowest male population density. In these areas, the tourist industry is very important. Based on that information, what factors might explain lower male population density?
(A) Tourist areas have more service-industry jobs, which are mostly female.
(B) Because women have a greater life expectancy, there would be more elderly female tourists.
(C) Men dislike working in the tourist industry.
(D) Insufficient information is provided.
13. If the area shaded lightly around Miami has a population of 5.6 million people, approximately how many more females are there in the population than males?
(A) 2.7 million
(B) 2.9 million
(C) 400,000
(D) 1.2 million
Questions 14–16 are based on this chart.
14. Of the various racial groups shown, the group with the highest earning if employed full-time over the past 12 months was .
15. Which group, working full time, had the lowest annual income?
(A) Female, Black or African American
(B) Female, American Indian and Alaskan Native
(C) Female, Asian
(D) Male, Hispanic or Latino (any race)
16. Where in this chart would a 15-year-old male of Chinese background find statistical information about his income group?
(A) under Male, Asian
(B) under Some Other Race
(C) under Male, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander
(D) He could not.
Questions 17–22 refer to the following passage, which is excerpted from Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, November 19, 1863.
Gettysburg Address
Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth upon this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here ….
17. The issue of primary importance in this great civil war is
(A) happiness and friendship
(B) safety and security
(C) liberty and equality
(D) peace and prosperity
18. Where was President Lincoln’s speech delivered?
(A) on a train
(B) at the White House
(C) on a battlefield
(D) on the radio
19. What does “little note nor long remember” mean?
(A) The audience is not taking notes.
(B) Lincoln has a bad memory.
(C) The soldiers are not there to hear the speech.
(D) People around the world will not remember the speech.
20. According to the address, a portion of the battlefield is used for .
21. Who has “hallow[ed] this ground”?
(A) President Lincoln
(B) those who fought there
(C) the Confederate government
(D) the Union government
22. What does “four score and seven” refer to?
(A) soldiers
(B) consecration
(C) time
(D) the war
Questions 23–28 refer to the following passage, which is excerpted from CliffsQuickReview U.S. History II, by P. Soifer and A. Hoffman (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.).
Causes of World War I
On June 28, 1914, a Serbian nationalist assassinated the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary. Austria demanded indemnities from Serbia for the assassination. The Serbian government denied any involvement with the murder and, when Austria issued an ultimatum, turned to its ally, Russia, for help. When Russia began to mobilize its army, Europe’s alliance system, ironically intended to maintain the balance of power on the continent, drew one country after another into war. Austria’s ally, Germany, declared war on Russia on August 1 and on France (which was allied with Russia) two days later. Great Britain entered the war on August 4, following Germany’s invasion of neutral Belgium. By the end of August 1914, most of Europe had chosen sides: the Central Powers — Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) — were up against the Allied Powers — principally Great Britain, France, Russia, and Serbia. Japan joined the Allied cause in August 1914, in hopes of seizing German possessions in the Pacific and expanding Japanese influence in China. This action threatened the Open Door Policy and led to increased tensions with the United States. Originally an ally of Germany and Austria-Hungary, Italy entered the war in 1915 on the side of Britain and France because they had agreed to Italian territorial demands in a secret treaty (the Treaty of London).
23. The assassin of Archduke Ferdinand came from the country of .
24. Austria initially reacted to the assassination by
(A) denying any involvement
(B) demanding indemnities
(C) asking for Russian help
(D) declaring war
25. Which countries were not allies?
(A) Serbia and Russia
(B) Austria and Hungary
(C) Germany and France
(D) France and Great Britain
26. What caused Great Britain to enter the war?
(A) Germany invaded Belgium.
(B) Russia attacked Serbia.
(C) Germany declared war on France.
(D) Austria invaded Hungary.
27. Which country was not an Allied Power?
(A) Great Britain
(B) France
(C) Germany
(D) Serbia
28. Place the events in the proper sequence.
(A) Italy enters on the Allied side.
(B) Germany declares war on Russia.
(C) Great Britain declares war on Germany.
(D) Germany invades Belgium.
Questions 29–32 refer to the following political cartoon.
29. How is President Barack Obama portrayed in the cartoon?
(A) stand-up comedian
(B) inspiring teacher
(C) stern disciplinarian
(D) fashion model
30. What do the smiling faces of the students symbolize?
(A) happy voters
(B) a receptive public
(C) the bright future the President is hoping for
(D) issues that can be solved
31. Why are two issues written in much smaller print on the spines of two textbooks?
(A) These issues are very important but often overlooked.
(B) These issues are less important.
(C) Not enough room to draw more students.
(D) They are just decoration.
32. What problems are the students facing in the future?
(A) unemployment
(B) shortage of energy
(C) escalating debt
(D) all of the above
Questions 33–36 refer to this table.
33. What percentage of the world’s soybean production came from the United States in 2010?
34. In 2010, approximately how much of the U.S. production of cotton was exported?
(A) all of it
(B) most of it
(C) just under half
(D) almost none
35. Between 2000 and 2010, world exports of corn
(A) increased
(B) decreased
(C) decreased a lot
(D) stayed about the same
36. What is the weight of a bale of cotton, according to the table?
Questions 37–41 refer to the following timeline.
Timeline of Major Events in U.S. History
1900: Gold standard for currency adopted by United States.
1914: World War I begins.
1918: World War I ends.
1929: Stock market crashes; Great Depression begins.
1933: Gold exports banned; daily price established; U.S. citizens ordered to turn in all gold.
1934: Price of gold fixed at $35 per troy ounce.
1939: World War II begins.
1945: World War II ends.
1950: Korean Conflict begins.
1953: Korean Conflict ends.
1965: Vietnam War begins.
1973: Vietnam War ends; gold prices allowed to float; U.S. currency removed from gold standard.
1974: U.S. citizens allowed to own gold again.
1979: Soviet Union invades Afghanistan; U.S. hostages seized in Iran.
1980: Historic high prices for gold.
1987: Stock market crashes.
1989: Berlin Wall falls.
1990: Gulf War begins.
1991: Gulf War ends.
2001: Terrorist attacks on the United States.
2002: Invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq.
2008: United States elects first black president.
2009: United States slips into a recession.
37. In 1900, the value of the United States’ dollar was based on
(A) stock market
(B) value of gold
(C) value of silver
(D) trade surplus
38. What, if anything, is the connection between the stock market crash and the Great Depression in 1929?
(A) It was the trigger.
(B) Very little; economic problems had been building for some time before the crash.
(C) Pure coincidence.
(D) The stock market crash actually delayed the Great Depression.
39. What does “U.S. citizens ordered to turn in all gold” mean?
(A) Citizens got to keep their gold.
(B) Citizens had to tell the government about their gold.
(C) Citizens could buy gold from each other, for profit.
(D) Citizens had to take all their gold to government offices.
40. When was U.S. currency removed from the gold standard?
41. Based on what you see in the timeline, what likely caused the price of gold to reach an historic high?
(A) Citizens were allowed to hold bullion.
(B) Gold stocks were sold.
(C) The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan.
(D) The Gulf War began.
Questions 42–44 refer to the following newscast.
World Environmental News
Good evening and welcome to World Environmental News.
Our stories this evening: cyclones in Korea, hurricane near Mexico, flooding in Europe and India, volcanic eruptions in New Guinea, drought in Australia, tornadoes in the United States, hailstorms in Italy, earthquakes in Iran, and locusts in Denmark.
Now, let’s look at our top stories.
Drought in Australia: The wheat fields west of Canberra, New South Wales, are in great danger today because of the ongoing drought. If the drought continues, farmers may have to write off this year’s entire crop, and this will likely lead to financial ruin for many of them. To add to the misery, hundreds of thousands of sheep had to be sold because there was not enough water for them to drink.
Locusts in Denmark: The unseasonably warm weather in Denmark is proving to be inviting to the lowly locust, a major crop-eating pest. Normally found along the Mediterranean coast, the locust recently has been found far from its normal habitat. These discoveries in southwest Denmark are causing concern because locusts have not been seen in Denmark for more than 50 years.
Hurricane near Mexico: Hurricane Herman is losing force off the Pacific coast of Mexico. The country is giving a collective sigh of relief as the hurricane winds down.
For wine drinkers: And a last note for you wine drinkers. The recent violent hailstorms in Italy have devastated vineyards, and wine producers are warning of a poor grape harvest. This means lower wine production and, consequently, higher prices.
There’s more as nature lashes out. Tune in again for more World Environmental News.
42. The newscast says “cyclones in Korea, hurricane near Mexico”; what is the difference between cyclones and hurricanes?
(A) Location. Meteorologists call these storms hurricanes in the Atlantic and northeast Pacific and cyclones in the eastern Pacific and Indian Ocean.
(B) Cyclones are a form of tornado.
(C) Cyclones are much more severe.
(D) Unlike hurricanes, cyclones are always associated with flooding.
43. How does extreme drought cause financial problems for farmers?
(A) Farmers lose their entire year’s crop and income.
(B) Selling off large herds of sheep at once leads to much lower prices and fewer sheep for future breeding stock.
(C) There may be a minor problem, but crop insurance covers these losses.
(D) Choices (A) and (B).
44. Why is the finding of locusts in Denmark significant?
(A) It reinforces the idea of climate change and global warming.
(B) Prevailing winds have shifted.
(C) Foreign ships carried insects, and more stringent inspections of ships are required.
(D) It is an isolated incident and has no real significance.
Question 45 refers to the following passage, which is excerpted from the Central Intelligence Agency website (www.cia.gov).
By the time World War I started in 1914, the United States’ ability to collect foreign intelligence had shrunk drastically because of budget cuts and bureaucratic reorganizations in the government. The State Department began small-scale collections against the Central Powers in 1916, but it wasn’t until the United States declared war on Germany in 1917 that Army and Navy intelligence finally received more money and personnel. By that time, it was too late to increase their intelligence output to aid the cause very much.
The most significant advance for U.S. intelligence during the war was the establishment of a permanent communications intelligence agency in the Army, what would become the forerunner of the National Security Agency. Meanwhile, the Secret Service, the New York Police Department, and military counterintelligence aggressively thwarted numerous German covert actions inside the United States, including psychological warfare, political and economic operations, and dozens of sabotage attempts against British-owned firms and factories supplying munitions to Britain and Russia.
45. How effective was U.S. foreign intelligence gathering during World War I?
(A) Very effective; it stopped much domestic sabotage.
(B) Not very effective; it depended on the New York Police Department.
(C) It was limited because of pre-war budget cuts.
(D) It was excellent at psychological warfare.
Questions 46 and 47 refer to the following excerpt from a speech given by Frederick Douglass (an African-American reformer, statesman, and former slave) on July 5, 1852.
What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July? I answer: a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciations of tyrants, brass fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade, and solemnity, are, to him, mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy—a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages.
46. The main point of this excerpt is that
(A) Even tyrants should give slaves the day off from work to celebrate the Fourth of July.
(B) It is hypocritical to expect slaves to celebrate the Fourth of July when they remain enslaved.
(C) This great nation should cancel all celebrations because the whole idea of independence is fraudulent.
(D) Those who are listening to this speech must give sermons, sing hymns, and persuade their fellow Americans to abolish slavery.
47. Frederick Douglass most likely asks the question in the first line of the excerpt to
(A) make his listeners question their patriotism.
(B) suggest that more celebrations incorporate African-American heritage.
(C) enlist support for his alternative celebration.
(D) point out disparities between ideals and realities.
Questions 48 and 49 are general questions about the United States government.
48. The first ten amendments to the Constitution are called
(A) The Parts of Ten
(B) The Bill of Rights
(C) The Articles of Confederation
(D) We the People of the United States
49. All of the following are branches of the U.S. government EXCEPT:
(A) executive.
(B) environmental
(C) judicial
(D) legislative
Question 50 refers to the excerpt below from the Declaration of Sentiments written in 1848 at the Seneca Falls Convention.
We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights governments are instituted, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of those who suffer from it to refuse allegiance to it, and to insist upon the institution of a new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness
50. The authors of the Declaration of Sentiments used which of the following documents to support their claims?
(A) The Declaration of Independence
(B) The Federalist Papers
(C) The Emancipation Proclamation
(D) The Magna Carta
Unless you require accommodations, you’ll be taking the GED test on a computer. Instead of marking your answers on a separate answer sheet, as you do for the practice tests in this book, you’ll see clickable ovals and fill-in-the-blank text boxes, and you’ll be able to click with your mouse and drag and drop items where indicated. We formatted the questions and answer choices in this book to make them appear as similar as possible to the real GED test, but we had to retain some A, B, C, D choices for marking your answers, and we provide an answer sheet for you to do so.
