Can We Guess if You're a Veteran?

By: Zoe Samuel
Estimated Completion Time
4 min
Can We Guess if You're a Veteran?
Image: Shutterstock

About This Quiz

The decision to put your life on the line for your country is a big one. While American citizens are required to register for the draft - in a bizarre gendered tradition, only if they are male - they have not been required to actually come good on that hypothetical promise for some decades now. That means the decision is one that is made voluntarily, which is the essence of heroism: a sacrifice that a person did not have to make, but chose to, in order to serve a higher good than their own pleasure or glory.

Obviously, not everyone who joins the military comes at it from such a selfless beginning. Some just look on it as a good job. Others desire to learn skills or build a resume that will help them market themselves in the wider job market later on. Still, others are looking to the GI bill to help them pay for college. However, all of these folks, once they are serving, will invariably pick up a particular pride in their unit and in the mission that the American military performs all over the world.

Can we tell if you are one of these brave souls? Take this quiz and let's find out!

Do you like to travel?
I like being in a place, but not going there.
I love to travel and do it all the time.
I'm okay with travel.
I hate travel.
Have you ever gotten a sunburn?
I've had plenty of them.
I've been burned a few times as an adult.
Only a couple times.
No, never.
Do you use a lot of acronyms?
Probably more than I should.
I use quite a few.
One or two.
None.

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Did you change jobs in your late 30s?
That I did.
Actually, I did in my 40s.
No.
I changed career in my late 20s.
How do you feel about the GI bill?
It's a great idea.
It's an absolute must for our nation.
It's an idea that needs to adjust to the times.
I don't know what that is.
Have you added pages to your passport?
A few.
No, but it's getting pretty full.
No need!
I don't have a passport.

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Have you lived far from civilization?
Oh, yeah.
I lived far enough away that I couldn't get any radio stations.
Mostly I've lived near some sort of city.
No, I'd freak out if I was too far from other people.
Do you speak any foreign languages?
Yes, and they're unusual in the US.
Yes, a couple.
Just one.
No, none.
How do you look in khaki?
I looked better in it when I was younger.
I look pretty good.
I look okay.
I look like someone going to a boarding school.

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Which hand would you use to wave at someone in an Arab country?
The right, obviously.
Probably the right one.
That depends on if I'm friendly towards them.
The left one, obviously.
Do you have government provided health care?
Yes, I do.
I used to.
I do, but I don't use it.
No, I do not.
Do you have a security clearance?
Yes I do, but it's not great.
I do, and it's pretty impressive.
I've never needed one.
I don't even know how one would get one.

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Could you survive in the wilderness?
Maybe, if I had the right supplies.
Probably.
Maybe, if I had the right gear.
No, I think not.
How many push-ups can you do in one go?
40.
25.
20.
3.
How many times have you moved?
4.
3.
1.
0.

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What's the highest number of room mates you've ever had?
4.
7.
2.
1.
Can you fix a flat?
Sure, on any vehicle.
Yes, on certain vehicles.
Only on cars.
No.
Can you off-road?
Only specialist off road vehicles.
Sure, any SUV will do.
Not well.
Not at all.

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Do you know the phonetic alphabet?
Yankee echo sierra.
Yankee echo papa.
Yes.
No.
How do you tell time?
I use the 24 hour clock.
I use euphemisms, especially for times after midnight.
I use my watch.
I use my phone.
Can you read a map?
Yeah, I haven't been rendered lazy by a phone yet.
Yes, but I need a compass to navigate.
I can, but it's been a while.
No, it's the 21st century and we should embrace the screens!

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Do you know Morse code?
I'm a little rusty, but I know it.
It's been a long time since I've used it.
It never took.
No! It's not 1875!
Do you unconsciously know which way is north?
Come to think of it, yes!
Yeah, I always know my 0 bearing.
Sometimes, when I'm outside.
No.
What is a cadence?
A tool for keeping the team working as one.
A song for keeping a group in a rhythm.
A song.
A dance routine.

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How many tattoos do you have?
5.
4, but I had to get one removed for a job.
1.
9!
What's a number 2?
A haircut.
An XO.
It wouldn't be polite to say.
A poop.
What does FUBAR man?
F-ed up beyond all recognition.
Fouled up beyond all recognition.
Fouled up beyond all reason.
F-ed up.

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If you meet a woman you don't know, what do you call her?
Ma'am.
Ma'am, or miss, or missus, depending on context.
I introduce myself and ask her name.
Lady, as in "Hey, lady!"
Have you ever heard of trench foot?
They don't get that in the desert.
Yeah, and I almost got it once.
Yes, but I make sure I don't get it.
No, what is it?
What's your idea of a lot of money?
Anything over $100,000.
$80,000.
$65,000.
$25,000

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