Ontario signs are designed so shape and colour tell you what kind of sign it is before you even read it:
- Regulatory signs (white or red background, often rectangular, octagonal, or triangular): tell you what you must or must not do — stop (red octagon), yield (red/white triangle), speed limits, one-way, no parking, turn restrictions.
- Warning signs (yellow, diamond-shaped): alert you to conditions ahead — curves, intersections, pedestrian crossings, school zones, merging traffic.
- Guide signs (green for directions/distances, blue for services, brown for recreation/tourism): help you navigate — highway exits, town names, hospitals, rest areas.
- Construction signs (orange, diamond or rectangular): mark temporary conditions in work zones — reduced speed limits, lane closures, detours. Fines are typically higher for speeding in an active construction zone.
See the full illustrated sign chapter in the Driver’s Handbook for every individual sign.