Why does the flag have 50 stars?

On the 2008 test

The 2008 test asks this as Question 97, in the same words.

Answers listed for the 2008 question (3), next to the 3 above. Compare them before you study from an older list.

• because there is one star for each state
• because each star represents a state
• because there are 50 states

Background

The flag has 50 stars, one for each state. Stars have been added as new states joined, growing from 13 to 50.

From this site's page for 2008 Question 97.

The 65/20 special consideration

Question 122 is not one of the 20 asterisked questions, so an applicant who qualifies for the 65/20 special consideration would not be asked it. Everyone else studies all 128.

Answers that get mixed up with this one

These are the wrong options the 2025 practice test puts beside this question. Each one is the correct answer to a different 2025 question.

• Light bulbanswers Question 118: Name one example of an American innovation.
• (Because there were) 13 original coloniesanswers Question 121: Why does the flag have 13 stripes?
• Amendmentsanswers Question 5: How are changes made to the U.S. Constitution?

More Symbols questions

• Question 119: What is the capital of the United States?Washington, D.C.
• Question 120: Where is the Statue of Liberty?New York (Harbor) · Liberty Island [Also acceptable are New Jersey, near New York City, and on the Hudson (River).]
• Question 121: Why does the flag have 13 stripes?(Because there were) 13 original colonies · (Because the stripes) represent the original colonies
• Question 123: What is the name of the national anthem?The Star-Spangled Banner
• Question 124: The Nation’s first motto was “E Pluribus Unum.” What does that mean?Out of many, one · We all become one