Trick questions in the Italian licence quiz: how to spot them
Trick questions in the Italian licence quiz cannot be spotted by words such as always, never or only. The test has 30 statements in 20 minutes with at most 3 errors, and many rules in the Codice della Strada really are absolute: article 145, paragraph 6, always requires a stop when leaving a private courtyard.
What are trick questions in the licence quiz?
They are statements that are almost right. They describe a real rule but change one detail: a limit, an exception, a verb. In the theory test each statement is marked true or false, and that single detail is enough for an error. It is a matter of precision more than deception: a candidate who knows the rule and its exceptions answers without hesitating; one who studied half of it does not.
The format of the test is described in the guide on how the theory test works. One point matters here: with 3 errors allowed out of 30, four statements read in a hurry are enough to fail.
Why do word lists built on always, never and only fail?
Many pages suggest a shortcut: if the statement says always or never, answer false. It looks convenient but has two flaws. First, it gets wrong every rule that has no exceptions, and the Codice della Strada has many: priority duties, absolute bans, behaviour required in every case. Second, it gives no help with false statements that contain no absolute word, such as the one about a driver speeding up while being overtaken.
A word list turns study into guessing. It may work on a few statements, but no official source is known to say statements with always are more often false. The method that holds up is different: work out which rule the statement is about, then ask whether that rule has exceptions.
Which examples show that one word does not decide the answer?
The statements in the table are original, written for this page. They do not come from the ministerial bank or from commercial quiz sets. Each is tied to the rule that decides the answer.
If a new driver in Salerno misremembers the private courtyard statement and pulls out of a private driveway without stopping, she breaks the duty to stop and give way to traffic on the road and faces 167 to 665 euro (article 145, paragraphs 6 and 10, of the Codice della Strada).
| Statement | Word | Result | Why | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| On a motorway the speed limit is always 130 km/h. | always | False | With precipitation of any kind the limit drops to 110 km/h; on motorways with three lanes plus an emergency lane, average-speed cameras and proper signs, it can rise to 150 km/h. | Art. 142, para. 1 |
| When leaving a private courtyard onto a public road, a driver must always stop and give way. | always | True | At exits from places not open to public traffic the duty to stop and give way has no exceptions. | Art. 145, para. 6 |
| While moving, a driver may never talk on the phone. | never | False | Hands-free or earpiece devices are allowed if the driver has adequate hearing in both ears. | Art. 173, para. 2 |
| A driver must never enter a junction without being able to clear it quickly. | never | True | The Codice forbids entering a junction when the driver cannot continue and clear it in a short time. | Art. 145, para. 7 |
| In built-up areas the speed limit is only 50 km/h. | only | False | On urban roads with suitable features, and with the proper signs, the limit may be raised to 70 km/h. | Art. 142, para. 1 |
| On a foglio rosa, on a motorway with three or more lanes, only the two right-hand lanes may be used. | only | True | A learner practising on motorways with three or more lanes per direction may not use lanes other than the two nearest the right edge. | DL 5/2012, art. 11-bis; MIT DM 294/2025, art. 5 |
| A driver being overtaken may speed up if it seems safe. | none | False | The driver being overtaken must make the manoeuvre easier and must not accelerate. The statement has no absolute word, yet it is false. | Art. 148, para. 4 |
The outcome is clear: three statements with absolute words are true, three are false, and one statement with no absolute word is false. A candidate who marks every always, never or only statement as false gets the three true ones wrong and has no clue at all for the seventh.
How should a quiz statement be read?
- Read to the last word. Conditions often sit at the end: "in rain", "in built-up areas", "where signs say so".
- Identify the topic. Speed, priority, overtaking, phone use: each topic has its article and its exceptions.
- Recall the general rule. For example, 130 km/h on motorways under article 142.
- Look for known exceptions. Weather, signs, vehicle type, place. If the statement excludes them with always or only, it is false; if the rule has none, it is true.
- Check the verb. Must, may, is forbidden, is allowed: changing one of these reverses the answer even without absolute words.
Which other words change the meaning of a statement?
| Words | Why they matter | Example rule |
|---|---|---|
| must / may (deve / può) | A duty is not an option | A driver being overtaken must make the manoeuvre easier (art. 148, para. 4) |
| forbidden / allowed (è vietato / è consentito) | The same action changes result | Phoning hands-free or with an earpiece is allowed (art. 173, para. 2) |
| right / left (destra / sinistra) | One side reverses the rule | Give way to traffic from the right, unless signs say otherwise (art. 145, para. 2) |
| also / only (anche / soltanto) | Widens or narrows the case | The ban covers devices that take the hands off the wheel even briefly (art. 173, para. 2) |
| unless signs say otherwise (salvo diversa segnalazione) | The general rule gives way to signs | Priority to the right, if no other sign applies (art. 145, para. 2) |
If a technical term is unclear, such as carriageway, junction or road exit, check it in the glossary before answering from memory.
If a driver in Florence mixes up "is allowed" and "is banned" and drives holding the phone, he faces 250 to 1,000 euro and a licence suspension of fifteen days to two months; a second offence within two years brings 350 to 1,400 euro and a suspension of one to three months (article 173, paragraph 3-bis, of the Codice della Strada).
What happens if...?
A candidate in Turin marks every statement with always or never as false. Her paper has five such statements and two describe absolute rules, such as the duty to stop when leaving a private driveway. She gets those two wrong. With two more errors on statements without absolute words she reaches four, and the test is failed because the limit is 3.
A young man in Lecce reads "in built-up areas the limit is only 50 km/h" and answers true. He remembers the number but not the article 142 exception: with the proper signs some urban roads allow 70 km/h. The word only excludes that exception and makes the statement false. If, once licensed, he drives at 70 km/h on an urban road without those signs, he is 20 km/h over the limit and faces 173 to 694 euro (article 142, paragraph 8, of the Codice della Strada).
A candidate in Bergamo studied with word lists and meets the overtaking statement. "A driver being overtaken may speed up if it seems safe" contains no suspect word, so she answers true. Knowing article 148, paragraph 4, she would have known that a driver being overtaken must make the manoeuvre easier and not accelerate.
How can a learner practise spotting misleading statements?
By studying topic by topic and reviewing errors. After each mock test, go back to every wrong answer and write next to it the rule and the exception that decide it. The site's licence B quiz offers original statements grouped by topic, with an explanation for each answer; the syllabus is listed in the guide to exam topics.
- Do not answer from a single word: read the whole statement again.
- Learn numbers together with their exceptions: limits, distances, ages.
- Mark the verbs must, may and is forbidden while revising.
- Keep the pace: 20 minutes for 30 statements is 40 seconds each.
Frequently asked questions
Are there really trick questions in the Italian licence quiz?
Not in the sense of statements built to cheat. The theory test has 30 true or false statements in 20 minutes, with at most 3 errors. The difficulty comes from statements that are almost right, where one word changes the meaning of the rule.
Are statements with always or never always false?
No. Many rules in the Codice della Strada are absolute. A driver leaving a private courtyard must stop and give way in every case (article 145, paragraph 6), so a statement with the word always on this point is true.
How can a misleading statement be spotted?
Read the whole sentence, identify the rule it is about and check whether that rule has exceptions: weather, road type, signs, vehicle category. If an exception exists and the statement excludes it, the statement is false.
Is it worth memorising keyword lists?
No. A list that links always to false gets every rule without exceptions wrong and does not help with false statements that contain no absolute word. Studying rules and their exceptions, topic by topic, works better.
How many errors are allowed in the theory test?
At most 3 out of 30 statements. A fourth error means the test is failed, and the time allowed is 20 minutes.
Are the examples on this page real exam questions?
No. They are original statements written to explain the method, each tied to a specific rule. They do not reproduce or paraphrase the ministerial question bank or commercial quiz sets.
Data as of 2026-09-07. Source: Codice della Strada, Legislative Decree no. 285 of 30 April 1992, articles 142, 145, 148 and 173, text on Normattiva; exam format from the MIT page on obtaining licence B.