Road signs and what they mean

Every state uses the same federal sign standard, the MUTCD. Learn what each shape and color means and you can work out signs you have never seen. Tap any sign for what it requires you to do.

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Shapes tell you the type of sign

Octagon: Stop. Only stop signs use this shape.
Downward triangle: Yield.
Diamond: Warning of a hazard or change ahead.
Pennant: No-passing zone, on the left side of the road.
Pentagon: School zone or school crossing.
Circle: Railroad crossing ahead.
Crossbuck (X): The railroad crossing itself.
Rectangle: Regulatory rules (vertical) or guide information (horizontal).

Regulatory signs

Regulatory signs tell you what the law requires: stop, yield, speed limits, turns and lanes. Most are white rectangles with black or red. Red means stop, yield or a prohibition; a red circle with a slash means “no”.

Warning signs

Warning signs are usually yellow diamonds. They tell you about a hazard or change ahead (curves, intersections, merges, slippery roads) so you can slow down before you get there.

School signs

School zone and school crossing signs use fluorescent yellow-green, the color used for school, pedestrian and bicycle warnings. The five-sided pentagon shape means a school zone or school crossing.

Railroad crossing signs

The round yellow advance sign warns that a railroad crossing is ahead. The white X-shaped crossbuck marks the crossing itself and works like a yield sign.