Key points
- Search or jump by letter to any term.
- Up to 15 driving faults is a pass; one serious or dangerous fault is a fail.
- Routines like MSM, POM and LADA are the backbone of safe driving.
- Your DriveSQ Student Portal uses the same terms as the DVSA marking sheet.
Driving instructors and examiners have their own language. "Check your blind spot, find the bite point, POM, then MSM on approach to the mini" makes perfect sense after ten hours and none at all on lesson one. Here are 77 terms you'll hear on lessons and on test day, explained simply.
A
- ADI
- Approved Driving Instructor — a fully qualified instructor registered with the DVSA. Look for the green badge on the windscreen.
- Advanced stop line
- A second white stop line at traffic lights with a box for cyclists in front of traffic. Stop at the first line when the lights are red.
- Anticipation
- Reading the road ahead and predicting what others will do so you can act early and smoothly.
B
- Biting point
- The point where the clutch plates meet and the car wants to move. Finding it smoothly is the key to clutch control in a manual car.
- Blind spot
- Areas around the car you can't see in your mirrors. Check them with a look over your shoulder before moving off or changing lanes.
- Box junction
- A yellow criss-cross area. Don't enter unless your exit is clear — except when turning right and only blocked by oncoming traffic or others turning right.
- Bus gate
- A short stretch of road only buses (and sometimes taxis and cycles) may use. Manchester has several, including on Oxford Road.
- Bus lane
- A lane for buses and other permitted vehicles during the times on the blue sign. No times shown means it operates all day.
C
- Clutch control
- Using the clutch around the biting point to move very slowly — for manoeuvres, queues and hill starts.
- Coasting
- Rolling with the clutch down or in neutral. It reduces control and is marked as a fault.
- Cockpit drill
- The checks you do before driving: doors, seat, steering, seatbelt, mirrors (often called DSSSM).
- Commentary driving
- Saying aloud what you see and plan to do. A great way to improve hazard awareness.
- Creep and peep
- Edging forward slowly at a junction with limited view until you can see properly.
- Crossroads
- Where two roads cross. Watch for vehicles turning right in front of you and make sure of priority.
D
- Dangerous fault
- A fault involving actual danger to you, the examiner, the public or property. One dangerous fault is a fail.
- Defensive driving
- Driving so you're ready for the mistakes of others — space, speed and observation.
- DL25
- The marking sheet examiners use on the practical test to record faults.
- Driving fault
- A minor fault. You can have up to 15 and still pass, as long as none is serious or dangerous.
- Dry steering
- Turning the steering wheel while the car is stationary. It wears tyres and is best avoided.
- Dual carriageway
- A road with a central reservation separating the two directions. The national limit for cars is 70mph.
- Dual controls
- A second brake (and often clutch) pedal on the instructor's side. All SQ lesson cars have them.
- DVLA
- Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency — issues licences and handles medical conditions and eyesight issues.
- DVSA
- Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency — runs theory and practical tests and regulates instructors.
E
- Emergency stop
- Stopping quickly and under control when the examiner signals. Around one test in three includes it.
- Eyesight check
- Reading a number plate from 20 metres at the start of the practical test.
F
- Filter arrow
- A green arrow at traffic lights that lets you go in the arrow's direction even while the main light is red.
- Forward bay park
- Driving forwards into a parking bay and reversing out. One of the test manoeuvres.
G
- Give way
- Let traffic on the major road go first. Shown by a triangle sign and a broken double white line.
H
- Hazard perception
- The video part of the theory test: 14 clips, 75 points, pass mark 44.
- Hierarchy of road users
- The 2022 Highway Code principle that those who can do most harm have the most responsibility to look out for others.
- Hill start
- Moving off uphill without rolling back, using clutch control and the parking brake.
I
- Independent driving
- About 20 minutes of the test where you follow a sat-nav or road signs without turn-by-turn directions.
J
- Junction observations
- Looking properly before emerging at a junction. Consistently one of the most common reasons for failing.
K
- Kickdown
- In an automatic, pressing the accelerator hard to make the gearbox change down for quick acceleration.
L
- L plates
- Red L on a white background, front and back. Required whenever a learner drives.
- LADA
- Look, Assess, Decide, Act — a routine for approaching junctions and hazards.
- Lane discipline
- Staying in the correct lane and following lane markings, especially on roundabouts and multi-lane roads.
M
- Meeting traffic
- Dealing with oncoming vehicles where the road is narrowed, e.g. by parked cars. Decide early who has room.
- Mini-roundabout
- A painted or slightly raised roundabout. Give way to traffic from the right; you may need to go over the markings carefully.
- Mirror–Signal–Manoeuvre (MSM)
- The core routine for any change of speed or direction.
- Mock test
- A full practice test under exam conditions with your instructor. SQ learners do at least one.
- MSPSL
- Mirrors, Signal, Position, Speed, Look — an expanded MSM routine for junctions.
N
- National speed limit
- Shown by a white circle with a black diagonal stripe: 60mph on single carriageways and 70mph on dual carriageways for cars.
- Neutral
- No gear engaged. In an automatic, N. Don't sit in neutral to coast.
- Normal driving position
- About a metre from the kerb in normal conditions — not hugging it, not in the middle.
O
- Observations
- All the looking you do: mirrors, blind spots, junctions, ahead. Examiners watch your head movements.
P
- Parallel park
- Reversing into a space behind a parked car, finishing close and parallel to the kerb within about two car lengths.
- Pass Plus
- An optional post-test course covering motorways, night driving, rural roads and more.
- PDI
- Potential Driving Instructor — someone training to become an ADI. May hold a pink trainee licence.
- Pegasus crossing
- A crossing with extra-high push buttons for horse riders, sometimes alongside a toucan crossing.
- Pelican crossing
- A light-controlled crossing with a flashing amber phase — give way to pedestrians still crossing.
- POM
- Prepare, Observe, Move — the routine for moving off.
- Positioning
- Where you place the car on the road. Poor positioning on right turns and roundabouts is a common fault.
- Progress
- Driving at an appropriate speed and not hesitating unnecessarily. Being too slow can be a fault.
- Provisional licence
- The licence you need before your first lesson. Apply from 15 years 9 months.
- Puffin crossing
- A light-controlled crossing where sensors detect pedestrians. No flashing amber.
- Pull up on the right
- A test manoeuvre: pull up on the right side of the road, reverse about two car lengths, then rejoin traffic.
R
- Response to signals
- Reacting correctly to traffic lights, signs, road markings and other road users' signals.
- Reverse bay park
- Reversing into a parking bay — usually at the test centre car park or a supermarket.
- Roundabout
- A circular junction. Give way to traffic from the right unless signs or markings say otherwise.
S
- Serious fault
- A potentially dangerous fault, or a driving fault repeated so much it shows a habit. One serious fault is a fail.
- Show me, tell me
- Two vehicle-safety questions on the test — one before you drive, one while you drive.
- Signal
- Indicators, brake lights, arm signals or the horn. Signal clearly and in good time, and cancel afterwards.
- Slip road
- The road used to join or leave a motorway or dual carriageway. Build up speed on the slip road to merge.
- Smart motorway
- A motorway using technology to manage traffic, sometimes with the hard shoulder as a live lane. Never drive under a red X.
- Spiral roundabout
- A roundabout with markings that guide you into the correct lane for your exit as you go round.
- Stall
- When the engine cuts out, usually from lifting the clutch too fast. Stay calm: handbrake, neutral, restart.
- Standards check
- The DVSA's periodic check on instructors' teaching. Instructors are graded A or B.
- Stopping distance
- Thinking distance plus braking distance — 23m at 30mph in the dry. Try our calculator.
T
- Tailgating
- Driving too close to the vehicle in front. Use the two-second rule.
- Theory test
- 50 multiple-choice questions (pass 43) and hazard perception (pass 44/75). £23.
- Toucan crossing
- A light-controlled crossing shared by pedestrians and cyclists — 'two can' cross.
- Tram stop
- Metrolink stops in the road: don't block the tracks, and watch for passengers crossing.
- Two-second rule
- The minimum gap behind the vehicle in front on a dry road; double it in the wet.
U
- Undue hesitation
- Waiting when it was safe to go. Repeated, it can be a serious fault.
W
- Wheelspin
- Wheels spinning without grip, usually from too much power on a wet or icy surface.
Z
- Zebra crossing
- Black and white stripes with flashing Belisha beacons. Give way to people on the crossing — and be ready for those waiting.
The terms that matter most on test day
Three words decide your result: driving fault, serious fault and dangerous fault. Up to 15 driving faults is a pass. One serious or dangerous fault is a fail. A driving fault repeated over and over can become serious because it shows a habit — for example, missing mirror checks before every lane change.
Why we teach the vocabulary
Learners progress faster when they understand the instructions. Your DriveSQ Student Portal uses the same terms as the DVSA marking sheet, so "junction observations" or "response to signals: traffic lights" on your progress chart means exactly what the examiner will be looking for.
Free with every SQ lesson
DriveSQ Student Portal
Every SQ Driving School learner gets the DriveSQ Student Portal free — so you always know where you stand, not just how many hours you've had.
- 23 driving skills tracked after every lesson
- Theory library and 50-question mock tests
- Test-readiness checklist and instructor messaging
Part of DriveSQ
Why SQ Driving School?
SQ Driving School is owned and managed by DriveSQ — the Greater Manchester driving school behind the Student and Instructor Portals.
- Manual & automatic, same price: £35/hr
- 10 hours £350 — £320 for NHS staff, students and M16/M18/M19
- Door-to-door pick-up across Greater Manchester
Frequently asked questions
What does MSM mean in driving?
Mirror, Signal, Manoeuvre — the routine you use before any change of speed or direction.
What does POM stand for?
Prepare, Observe, Move — the routine for moving off safely.
What is the difference between a serious and a dangerous fault?
A serious fault could have been dangerous; a dangerous fault involved actual danger. Either one means you fail.
How many minor faults can you get on a driving test?
Up to 15 driving (minor) faults, with no serious or dangerous faults.
What is the biting point?
The point where the clutch starts to connect the engine to the wheels and the car wants to move.
Sources
- GOV.UK — What happens during the driving test
- The Highway Code (GOV.UK)
- GOV.UK — Theory test: hazard perception
Published by SQ Driving School, a brand owned and managed by DriveSQ. Checked on 16 October 2026. Rules, fees and test centres change — always confirm on GOV.UK before you book.