Civics question 82 of 128
What founding document was written in 1787?
Official answer
- (U.S.) Constitution
Source: official USCIS question list for the 2025 version of the civics test. This site is independent and not affiliated with USCIS.
Background
The U.S. Constitution was written in 1787. Fifty-five delegates met in Philadelphia from May to September, formally to revise the Articles of Confederation and in practice to replace them, since the Articles had given the national government no power to tax and no real executive. The sessions were held in secret so that delegates could change their minds without having committed publicly. The result is remarkably short, a little over four thousand words, and it took effect in 1789 once nine states had ratified. Ratification was contested, and the promise of a bill of rights was what carried it in several states; those ten amendments arrived in 1791. Keep the dates apart: the Declaration in 1776, the Constitution written in 1787, the Bill of Rights in 1791.
This background section is written by US Citizenship Test Practice to explain the civics fact. It is not part of the USCIS question list, and the official answer above is the one to give at the interview.
Where this question sits
It is part of Colonial Period and Independence, inside the American History section of the test.
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