Take our 17-Question Quiz to test your knowledge of the U.S. Constitution.

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Take our 17-Question Quiz to test your knowledge of the U.S. Constitution.
(Answer key may be found at the bottom)

1. Constitution Day is observed annually on September 17th because on that date in 1787:

a. The first state ratified the Constitution
b. The last state ratified the Constitution
c. The Constitution was sent to Congress for ratification
d. The Constitution went into effect, having been ratified by 9 states

2. Which one of the following did the U.S. Constitution replace?

a. The Declaration of Independence
b. The Articles of Confederation
c. The Mayflower Compact
d. The Magna Carta

3. Which of the following sets of words begin the U.S. Constitution?

a. “When in the Course of Human Events”
b. “Four Score and Seven Years Ago”
c. “Congress shall make no law”
d. “We the People of the United States”

4. Who was the president of the Constitutional Convention?

a. Benjamin Franklin
b. Thomas Jefferson
c. James Madison
d. George Washington

5. Which one of the following states was the first to ratify the U.S. Constitution, on December 7, 1787?

a. Virginia
b. Delaware
c. Connecticut
d. Massachusetts

6. Which one of the following states, the ninth to ratify, claims the honor of putting the Constitution into effect on June 21, 1788?

a. New York
b. New Jersey
c. New Hampshire
d. North Carolina

7. Which one of the following states sent not a single delegate to the Constitutional Convention?

a. Rhode Island
b. Maryland
c. South Carolina
d. Georgia

8. Which of the following pairs of Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation and the U.S. Constitution?

a. Roger Sherman (CT) and Robert Morris (PA)
b. Benjamin Franklin (PA) and George Washington (VA)
c. Thomas Jefferson (VA) and John Adams (MA)
d. James Madison (VA) and James Monroe (NY)

9. The signers of the U.S. Constitution included two future Presidents.  Who were they?

a. James Madison and James Monroe
b. George Washington and James Madison
c. Thomas Jefferson and John Adams
d. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson

10. The first 10 Amendments to the U.S. Constitution are known collectively as which of the following?

a. The Preamble
b. The Bill of Rights
c. The Proclamation
d. The Bills of Attainder

11. Which one of the following individuals was known as the “Sage of the Constitutional Convention”?

a. Benjamin Franklin
b. Thomas Jefferson
c. James Madison
d. George Washington

12. Adoption of “The Connecticut Compromise” resolved which of the following issues of concern to the Convention delegates?  

a. The border between the U.S. and Canada
b. The number of Senators from each State
c. The title of the Chief Executive
d. The issue of slavery

13. What is a Bill of Attainder?

a. Legislation which singles out an individual or group for punishment
b The tariff for ships entering U.S. ports
c. A marine formation in the South Atlantic
d. What you receive after dinner at a dining establishment

14. How many Amendments to the U.S. Constitution have been repealed?

a. 1
b. 2
c. 3
d. 4

15. Which Amendment to the U.S. Constitution preserves the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech and the freedom to assemble and petition the Government for a redress of grievances?

a. First
b. Second
c. Seventh
d. Ninth

16. The 27th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – which relates to Congressional compensation and was first proposed in 1789 – was finally ratified in which one of the following years?

a. 1865
b. 1918
c. 1971
d. 1992

17. Congress is required to call a Constitutional Convention when how many state legislatures formally request that one be held?

a. One third
b. One half
c. Two thirds
d. Three quarters

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"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."  — The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States of America

Answers:

1 (c), 2 (b), 3 (d), 4 (d), 5 (b), 6 (c), 7 (a), 8 (a), 9 (b), 10 (b), 11 (a), 12 (b), 13 (a), 14 (a), 15 (a), 16 (d), 17 (c)