Quiz patente for foreigners: how to study the theory when Italian is not your language

For the A1, A2, A, B1, B and BE licences, the theory exam is on a computer. 30 statements appear on the screen. For each one you must choose True or False. You have 20 minutes.

You pass the exam with at most 3 wrong answers. Knowing this helps you train in the right way: few statements, little time, few mistakes possible.

The list of questions for the A and B licences is split into 25 topics. They go from warning signs to right of way (precedenza), from safe distance to seat belts, up to vehicle maintenance.

Do not study everything together. Take one topic, read the explanation and then answer only the questions of that topic. When it becomes easy, move on to the next one. In this way, the new words of each topic stay together and are easier to remember.

The same words come back often in the statements. If you recognise them right away, reading becomes faster.

Some important words:

• carriageway (carreggiata), that is the part of the road where you travel
• junction (incrocio) and right of way (precedenza)
• overtaking (sorpasso)
• stopping (fermata), parking (sosta), halting (arresto) and starting off (partenza)
• safe distance (distanza di sicurezza)
• level crossing (passaggio a livello)

When you find a word you do not know, write it down with the translation in your language. The Ministero publishes the lists of exam questions for the AM, B, higher and CQC licences on the Portale dell'Automobilista, in Italian, French and German. If you know one of these languages, comparing them helps you understand the meaning of the sentences.

In the exam you read the statements in Italian, so it is good to get used to it from the start. Help in your language, however, stops you from studying sentences that you understood wrongly.

On PatenteInTasca the statements are in Italian, as in the exam. Under each statement there is help in English, Turkish, Romanian, Albanian, Arabic and Ukrainian. First read the sentence in Italian and try to answer. Then look at the help and check if you had understood well. Day after day, you will need the help less and less.

When you have finished the topics, move on to the exam simulations (simulazioni d'esame). A simulation is a practice test that copies the real one, with 30 statements to finish in 20 minutes. To pass it you need at most 3 mistakes, as in the exam.

Look for timed online patente quizzes and redo them often. After each simulation, look at the wrong answers and go back to studying the topic of those questions.

PatenteInTasca is not affiliated with the Ministero delle Infrastrutture e dei Trasporti (MIT) (Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport) or with the Motorizzazione (the vehicle licensing office), and it is not a driving school. The material is for practice and does not replace the driving lessons required by law.