Sign colors — Maryland Permit Test

Sign colors on the Maryland permit test — 7 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.

The rules

Orange signs indicate construction and maintenance work zones.

Orange is reserved for temporary conditions, so it tells you the hazard is people and equipment rather than the road itself.

Red on a sign means stop, yield, do not enter, or wrong way; a red circle with a slash means the movement shown is prohibited.

A red circle and slash is understood without reading, which matters when you have a second to take it in.

White signs with black or red lettering are regulatory signs stating laws such as speed limits and turn restrictions.

Regulatory signs state law rather than advice, so ignoring one is an offense rather than a poor decision.

Green signs give directional and guide information such as destinations and distances.

Green is for navigation, which is information you can safely read at a glance and act on later.

Blue signs point to motorist services such as gas, food, lodging, and hospitals.

Blue is kept for services rather than hazards, so a driver scanning for danger can pass over it and come back to it when there is time.

Brown signs point to recreational and cultural sites such as parks and historic areas.

Brown marks destinations rather than dangers, which is why it is kept visually separate from warnings.

Fluorescent yellow-green signs mark school, pedestrian, and bicycle crossings.

The fluorescent green is used only where people on foot or bicycles cross, so the color itself is the warning.

On the test

What does the marking on this sign mean?

the movement shown is prohibited. A red circle and slash is understood without reading, which matters when you have a second to take it in.

How this works

Most practice tests hand you a bank of questions and leave the manual somewhere else. This one puts them together.

You read one law and the reason behind it, then answer a question on that law while it is still fresh. Get it right and you move on; get it wrong and you have found the gap while it is cheap to fix, not on the morning of the exam.

Learning one rule at a time, and proving it immediately, is what turns a manual you skimmed into something you actually know — and it makes studying feel like getting somewhere rather than like waiting to find out.

All Maryland permit topics

Where these come from

Every rule here is checked against Maryland Driver's Manual, published by the Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-08-29.