Speaking and Understanding
This is the part of the English requirement with no word list, no sample sheet and no separate appointment. That is not because it is informal. It is because the interview itself is the test.
There is no separate speaking exam. The officer determines whether you can speak and understand English while going through your Form N-400 with you. If you are preparing for the reading and writing parts and treating the interview conversation as paperwork, you have the balance backwards: the conversation is the larger half.
Where the test begins
It begins when the officer calls your name. You are placed under oath, walked to the desk, and asked how you are. All of that is the officer forming a judgement, and none of it is announced as a test, which is exactly why people miss it.
There is no moment where the officer says "the speaking portion starts now". There is only the interview, and the finding the officer records afterwards.
What you get asked about
The questions come from your own Form N-400. You already know the answers, because you wrote them. What is being measured is whether you can produce them out loud, in English, when the question is worded differently from the form.
Where you live
Work and school
Time outside the United States
Marital history
Children
The eligibility questions
Why there is no script here. Officers reword questions on purpose. A page that handed you sentences to memorise would be preparing you for the one thing that does not happen, and coaching you to fail the thing that does. Knowing your own N-400 well enough to talk about it is the preparation.
Understanding counts as much as speaking
The requirement is to speak and understand. An applicant who answers fluently but answers a different question than the one asked has shown a problem with the second half. This is where rehearsed answers do damage: a memorised reply arrives intact even when the question has changed underneath it.
Asking the officer to repeat or rephrase something is not a mark against you. It is ordinary English usage and it demonstrates the comprehension being looked for.
Accent, grammar and speed
The standard is whether the officer can understand you. An accent is not a failure. Imperfect grammar is not a failure. Long pauses while you find a word are not a failure. Being unable to convey what you mean is.
If you do not pass
Failing one portion does not fail the whole application. USCIS retests you on the portion you failed, at a second interview scheduled between 60 and 90 days after the first. If you passed reading, writing and civics, those do not get repeated.
Who does not have to take it
Some applicants are exempt from the English requirement entirely, based on age and years as a lawful permanent resident, and there is a separate medical disability exception. The exemptions are set out here.
The parts that do have lists
Reading and writing are the knowable half: fixed vocabulary, published in advance, one sentence each.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a separate speaking test for US citizenship?
No. There is no separate speaking exam and no appointment for one. The officer decides whether you can speak and understand English from the ordinary conversation you have during the eligibility interview, while going through your Form N-400.
When does the speaking test start?
From the moment the officer greets you. The oath you take at the start of the interview, and the small talk on the way to the officer's desk, are part of the same conversation the officer is judging.
What questions does the officer ask?
Questions taken from your own Form N-400: where you live, where you work, how long you have been a permanent resident, your trips outside the United States, and the eligibility questions on the form. The officer may reword them, which is the point, because answering a memorised question does not show understanding.
Can I ask the officer to repeat a question?
Yes. Asking someone to repeat or rephrase something is normal English usage, not a failure. What officers are assessing is whether you can hold the conversation, and asking for clarification is part of holding it.
What happens if I fail the speaking part?
USCIS retests you on the portion you failed. The second interview is scheduled between 60 and 90 days after the first one, and only the failed portion is repeated.
Does my accent matter?
The standard is whether the officer can understand you, not whether you sound like a native speaker. An accent is not a ground for failing the English requirement.
Where this comes from. This page describes the mechanics of the interview as USCIS publishes them. It is not legal advice, it is not a prediction about your own interview, and US Citizenship Test Practice is not connected to USCIS. The official page on the naturalization interview and test governs.