temperature

CNA
Basic Nursing Skills
Multiple choice
Difficulty 3 of 5

Question

A nursing assistant prepares an oral temperature for a cooperative resident. Where should the thermometer be positioned for a reliable result?

Under the tongue near the artery✓ Correct

Placement near the artery beneath the tongue supports reliability.
Against the outside of the cheek✗ Incorrect

The outside of the cheek is not the recommended oral site.
On top of the tongue✗ Incorrect

The recommended site is beneath the tongue.
Against the forehead✗ Incorrect

The forehead is not the oral site.

Answer

A. Under the tongue near the artery

Rationale

Placement near the artery beneath the tongue supports reliability. This protects the accuracy or safety of care.

RememberPlace an oral thermometer near the sublingual artery on either side of the tongue’s base.

Sources

Sources marked “Adapted from” are licensed under CC BY 4.0. We changed the material: its facts are rewritten into an original question, answer options and rationale. The original authors and publishers do not endorse SwipeExam.

Adapted from Open RN Nursing Skills, 2nd edition: Chapter 1 General Survey Open RN (Chippewa Valley Technical College) · License: CC BY 4.0 · Retrieved November 2, 2026 · Temperature › Oral Temperature · 2nd edition, 2023
Adapted from Open RN Nursing Assistant: Chapter 7: Demonstrate Reporting and Documentation of Client Data Open RN (Chippewa Valley Technical College) · License: CC BY 4.0 · Retrieved November 2, 2026 · Temperature › Oral Temperature · 2022

Last verified: November 4, 2026 2 independent automated checks Question cna-bns-00593, version 1

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