GED Geography Practice
Geography and the world makes up about 15 percent of the GED Social Studies test, and much of it is map-reading rather than place-name recall.
Question 1 of 16
0 answered
A physical map shows a mountain range running north to south. Winds blow in from the ocean on the west. The western slopes receive heavy rainfall, while the land east of the mountains is dry. What best explains this pattern?
Geography and the world study guide
Geography questions are among the most visual on the GED. They test whether you can read a map or chart accurately and reason about how people and places affect each other. This guide covers the map skills and concepts that come up most.
Reading maps
Start with the title, the legend, and the scale. The legend explains symbols and colors. The scale converts map distance to real distance. A compass rose or north arrow shows direction.
Latitude lines run east and west and measure distance north or south of the equator. Longitude lines run north and south and measure distance east or west of the prime meridian. A location written as 40°N, 75°W is 40 degrees north of the equator and 75 degrees west of the prime meridian.
Worked example
On a map, 1 inch represents 50 miles. Two towns are 3.25 inches apart. How far apart are they?
- Multiply map distance by the scale: 3.25 × 50.
- The towns are 162.5 miles apart.
Types of maps
Political maps show borders and cities. Physical maps show landforms and elevation. Thematic maps show one topic, such as population density, rainfall, or election results, often with shading. Questions frequently ask what a thematic map shows and what it does not show.
Regions and population
A region is an area defined by shared features, which can be physical (a desert), cultural (a language area), or economic (a farming belt). Population tends to cluster near water, fertile land, and moderate climates, and it has shifted over time from rural areas to cities.
Population pyramids show the age and sex makeup of a population. A wide base means many young people and a growing population; a narrow base means fewer births and an aging population.
Migration
Migration is explained by push factors that drive people away, such as war, poverty, or disaster, and pull factors that attract them, such as jobs, safety, or family. Examples in U.S. history include the westward movement and the Great Migration of African Americans from the South to northern and western cities in the 1900s.
People and the environment
People adapt to their environments and also change them. Irrigation makes dry land farmable, dams provide power but flood valleys, and cutting forests can lead to erosion. Questions often describe a change and ask about its likely effects, both intended and unintended.
Natural resources shape economies and trade. A region rich in one resource may export it and import what it lacks, which links places around the world.
Climate zones and what shapes them
Climate is the usual pattern of temperature and precipitation in a place over many years. Weather is what happens on a single day. GED questions often give you a climate chart or a short description and ask you to name the climate or explain why it occurs.
Latitude is the biggest factor. Places near the equator get direct sunlight all year, so they stay warm. Tropical rainforest climates are hot and wet in every month, while tropical savannas have a wet season and a long dry season. Moving toward the poles, sunlight strikes at a lower angle, winters grow colder, and the difference between summer and winter grows larger. Temperate climates, like much of the United States, have four clear seasons. Polar climates stay cold most of the year.
Several other factors change the pattern. Elevation matters because air cools as it rises, so a mountain town is cooler than a lowland town at the same latitude. Water matters because oceans and large lakes warm and cool slowly, which keeps coastal places milder than inland places. Ocean currents can carry warm or cold water along a coast. Mountains can block moist air, leaving a dry area, called a rain shadow, on the side away from the wind.
Deserts are defined by low precipitation, usually less than about 10 inches a year, not by heat. Some deserts, such as parts of Antarctica and central Asia, are very cold.
Worked example
A climate chart for a city shows average temperatures from 25°F in January to 75°F in July and about 35 inches of precipitation spread across the year. What type of climate does the city most likely have, and where is it?
- Check the temperature range. A 50-degree gap between winter and summer rules out a tropical climate, which stays warm all year.
- Check the coldest month. A January average below freezing rules out a mild coastal climate.
- Check precipitation. About 35 inches spread across the year is too wet for a desert.
- Put the clues together: four distinct seasons with cold winters and warm summers point to a humid continental climate.
- This climate is found in the middle latitudes, away from the moderating effect of an ocean, such as the Great Lakes region of the United States.
Checklist before test day
These skills cover most geography items.
- Read the legend and scale before any map question.
- Locate a place from latitude and longitude.
- Convert map distance to real distance.
- Tell what a thematic map shows and what it leaves out.
- Read a population pyramid for growth or aging.
- Sort reasons for migration into push and pull factors.
Geography practice set 1: 16 questions with answers
Work each question on paper first, then open the answer to check your reasoning.
1.A physical map shows a mountain range running north to south. Winds blow in from the ocean on the west. The western slopes receive heavy rainfall, while the land east of the mountains is dry. What best explains this pattern?
- A.Moist air cools and drops rain as it rises over the mountains
- B.Rain falls mainly where elevation is lowest in a region
- C.Mountains block sunlight from reaching their eastern slopes
- D.Eastern slopes are closer to the ocean and its moist air
Show answer
Answer: A. Moist air cools and drops rain as it rises over the mountains
Ocean air rises up the western slopes, cools and releases its moisture, leaving dry air for the eastern side. This is called a rain shadow; the map places the ocean to the west, so the eastern side is farther from it.
2.A geography text describes the area around a large city where most people commute to work in the city, read its newspaper, and use its airport. What type of region is this?
- A.A functional region
- B.A perceptual region
- C.A formal region
- D.A climate region
Show answer
Answer: A. A functional region
A functional region is organized around a central place and the connections to it, such as commuting. A formal region is defined by a shared trait, like a language or climate, across an area.
3.Ask people across the country to draw the borders of “the South,” and the maps will not match. Some will include Texas and Kentucky, while others will leave them out. What type of region is “the South” in this example?
- A.A formal region
- B.A perceptual region
- C.A functional region
- D.A political region
Show answer
Answer: B. A perceptual region
A perceptual region is based on people’s feelings and ideas about a place, so its borders vary from person to person. A formal region has clear borders based on a measurable shared trait.
4.A hiker wants a map that shows each trail, stream and footbridge in a small state park. Two maps are available: one with a scale of 1:5,000 and one with a scale of 1:1,000,000. Which map should she choose, and why?
- A.The 1:1,000,000 map, because larger numbers show more detail
- B.The 1:5,000 map, because it shows a larger area of the state
- C.The 1:5,000 map, because it shows a small area in more detail
- D.The 1:1,000,000 map, because it shows the whole park on one page
Show answer
Answer: C. The 1:5,000 map, because it shows a small area in more detail
At 1:5,000, one unit on the map equals only 5,000 units on the ground, so small features appear clearly. The 1:1,000,000 map covers a much larger area with far less detail, so it would not show footbridges.
5.A country’s population pyramid is narrow at the bottom (ages 0 to 14) and widest in the middle and upper age groups (ages 45 to 75). Which challenge is this country most likely to face in the coming decades?
- A.Rapid population growth caused by very high birth rates
- B.Too many young workers competing for a small number of jobs
- C.Rising costs for pensions and elder care with fewer young workers
- D.A shortage of schools for a fast-growing number of young children
Show answer
Answer: C. Rising costs for pensions and elder care with fewer young workers
A narrow base and wide top show low birth rates and an aging population, so fewer workers will support more retirees. A shortage of schools for many children fits a wide-based pyramid, the opposite shape.
6.In the mountains of Peru and the Philippines, farmers have cut flat steps called terraces into steep hillsides for centuries. The terraces hold soil and water in place so crops can grow. What does this practice show about how people interact with the environment?
- A.People avoid farming in mountains because the land is too steep
- B.The steep land forces people to move to cities to find any food
- C.People change the land to make farming possible in hard terrain
- D.Mountain climates are too cold for any crops to be grown at all
Show answer
Answer: C. People change the land to make farming possible in hard terrain
Terracing is a way of reshaping the land so that steep slopes can be farmed. The passage shows farmers using the mountains, not avoiding them.
7.A thematic map of a state uses one dot for every 500 dairy farms. The western half of the state has many dots close together, while the eastern half has only a few scattered dots. What does the map show?
- A.Each dairy farm in the west is larger than those in the east
- B.Dairy farms are concentrated in the western half of the state
- C.The eastern half of the state has no farms of any kind
- D.The western half of the state has more people than the east
Show answer
Answer: B. Dairy farms are concentrated in the western half of the state
On a dot density map, a tight cluster of dots means many of the mapped items are located there. The map counts dairy farms only, so it tells nothing about farm size, other farms or people.
8.Earth turns 360 degrees in about 24 hours, so it rotates about 15 degrees of longitude each hour. City A is at 30°E longitude and City B is at 75°E longitude. About how many hours apart are the two cities in solar time?
- A.3 hours
- B.5 hours
- C.2 hours
- D.7 hours
Show answer
Answer: A. 3 hours
The cities are 75 − 30 = 45 degrees apart, and 45 ÷ 15 = 3 hours. Choosing 7 hours comes from adding the longitudes and dividing by 15.
9.A weather map draws lines that connect places with the same average January temperature. A town lies between the line labeled 20°F and the line labeled 30°F. What is the town’s average January temperature most likely to be?
- A.Below 20°F
- B.Above 30°F
- C.Exactly 50°F
- D.Between 20°F and 30°F
Show answer
Answer: D. Between 20°F and 30°F
Lines of equal value (isotherms) mark set temperatures, so a place between two lines falls between their values. Adding the two labels to get 50°F misreads how the lines work.
10.A map’s scale bar shows that 1 centimeter equals 25 kilometers. Two cities are 7.2 centimeters apart on the map. About how far apart are they on the ground?
- A.32 kilometers
- B.250 kilometers
- C.180 kilometers
- D.172 kilometers
Show answer
Answer: C. 180 kilometers
Multiply the map distance by the scale: 7.2 × 25 = 180 kilometers. Choosing 32 comes from adding 7.2 and 25 instead of multiplying.
11.From 1970 to 2020, states such as Texas, Florida, Arizona, and Georgia grew much faster than states in the Northeast and Midwest. This band of fast-growing southern and southwestern states is called the Sun Belt. Which factor most helped draw people to this region?
- A.Heavy snowfall made winter tourism the main industry
- B.Northeastern states banned new homes from being built
- C.Most of the nation’s steel mills opened in the Southwest
- D.Air conditioning made hot summers easier to live with
Show answer
Answer: D. Air conditioning made hot summers easier to live with
Widespread air conditioning, warm winters, and new jobs pulled people south and west. Heavy snowfall is typical of the northern states people were leaving, not of the Sun Belt.
12.A table shows a country’s birth and death rates per 1,000 people: 1950: birth 45, death 25 1980: birth 40, death 12 2010: birth 20, death 7 The rate of natural increase is the birth rate minus the death rate. In which year was the population growing fastest from natural increase?
- A.1950, when the birth rate was highest
- B.2010, when the death rate was lowest
- C.All three years grew at the same rate
- D.1980, when births most exceeded deaths
Show answer
Answer: D. 1980, when births most exceeded deaths
Natural increase was 45 − 25 = 20 in 1950, 40 − 12 = 28 in 1980, and 20 − 7 = 13 in 2010, so 1980 was fastest. The highest birth rate alone does not decide growth, because deaths were also high in 1950.
13.Beginning in the 1960s, the two main rivers that fed the Aral Sea in Central Asia were diverted to irrigate cotton fields. Over the next decades, the sea lost most of its water, its fishing industry collapsed, and dust storms carried salt from the dry seabed. What was the main cause of the Aral Sea’s shrinking?
- A.A sudden rise in sea level along the coast
- B.People diverted the rivers to water farms
- C.An earthquake drained the sea into a cave
- D.Heavy rains flooded the cotton-growing region
Show answer
Answer: B. People diverted the rivers to water farms
Diverting river water for irrigation cut off the sea’s main supply, a clear case of human-environment interaction. Heavy rains would have added water, not removed it.
14.In much of South Asia, summer winds blow from the Indian Ocean toward land, and heavy monsoon rains fall from June to September. In winter, winds blow from the dry interior of the continent toward the sea, and little rain falls. What best explains the heavy summer rain?
- A.Winter winds carry cold air down from the mountains
- B.Winds from the ocean bring moist air over the land
- C.The region has no oceans or seas near its coasts
- D.Summer winds blow from the dry interior toward the sea
Show answer
Answer: B. Winds from the ocean bring moist air over the land
Moist ocean air moving inland in summer produces the monsoon rains. Winds from the dry interior toward the sea describe the winter pattern, which brings little rain.
15.Mexico, Central America, much of the Caribbean, and South America are often grouped as Latin America. Most people there speak Spanish or Portuguese, languages brought by European colonizers, and many share Roman Catholic traditions. What kind of region is Latin America in this description?
- A.A cultural region based on shared language and history
- B.A physical region defined by one shared landform
- C.A climate region where every place has the same weather
- D.A political region ruled by one national government
Show answer
Answer: A. A cultural region based on shared language and history
The grouping rests on shared languages, religion, and colonial history, which makes it a cultural region. The area includes deserts, rainforests, and mountains, so it is not defined by a single climate or landform.
16.Many workers who migrate from Central America to the United States send part of their earnings back to relatives at home. These payments, called remittances, add up to a large share of the income of some Central American countries. What is one likely effect of remittances on the home countries?
- A.The home countries lose population because remittances force people out
- B.Prices in the United States fall because the money leaves the country
- C.Workers in the home countries must pay a special tax to the United States
- D.Families back home have more money to spend on food, housing, and school
Show answer
Answer: D. Families back home have more money to spend on food, housing, and school
Remittances raise household income in the home country, which pays for basic needs and education. The money flows to relatives; it does not force people to leave or create a tax owed to the United States.
More practice sets
Geography has 2 practice sets. None of these questions appear in the full practice tests.
- Set 1: 16 questions (this page)
- Set 2: 16 questions
Reading a map correctly on the GED
Every map question starts with the legend and the scale. The legend decodes symbols, shading, and line types. The scale converts map distance to real distance. If one inch equals 50 miles, then three inches is 150 miles. Check the compass rose before answering any direction question.
Thematic maps carry data rather than terrain: population density, rainfall, election results, resource distribution. Read the title first, because it tells you what the shading actually means.
Why people live where they live: GED geography themes
Early settlements clustered along rivers because water supported drinking, irrigation, and transport before roads existed. The same logic explains why coastal ports grew into major cities and why arid interiors stayed sparse.
Urbanization describes population shifting from rural areas into cities, usually pulled by work. It brings its own consequences (housing pressure, infrastructure strain, changing labor markets), which the test asks you to identify.
Migration push and pull factors on the GED
Push factors drive people out of a place: drought, conflict, unemployment, persecution. Pull factors draw them toward another: jobs, safety, family, education. Most real migrations involve both, and GED questions typically ask you to sort a listed cause into the right category.
Human-environment interaction covers how people alter landscapes through farming, damming, mining, and building, and how physical geography constrains them in return. Answers usually describe a tradeoff rather than a clear benefit or harm.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need to memorize world capitals for the GED?
- No. Geography questions focus on reading maps and understanding patterns of settlement, migration, and resource use.
- What is a push factor?
- A condition that drives people to leave an area, such as drought, conflict, or lack of work.