MoCA Naming 5

Question 1

During MoCA administration, the examiner notices the patient hesitates 20 seconds before correctly naming the camel. How is this scored?

Accepted Answer

1 point — correct regardless of response time

Answer

The MoCA Naming subtest has no time limit; any correct response earns full credit regardless of latency.

Question 2

A patient with Alzheimer's disease fails the MoCA Naming task. Which pathophysiological process most directly explains this deficit?

Accepted Answer

Atrophy of temporal lobe structures involved in semantic memory

Answer

Temporal lobe atrophy in Alzheimer's disease disrupts the semantic networks needed to retrieve specific object names.

Question 3

A bilingual patient names the rhinoceros correctly in Spanish but not in English during an English-language MoCA. How should the clinician handle this?

Accepted Answer

Consider accepting the response and noting it, or administer a validated version in the patient's dominant language

Answer

Best practice is to administer the MoCA in the patient's dominant language; cross-language correct responses should be noted and interpreted cautiously.

Question 4

Which of the following errors on the MoCA Naming task is an example of a semantic paraphasia?

Accepted Answer

Calling the lion a 'tiger'

Answer

A semantic paraphasia is a substitution with a related word from the same category, such as calling a lion a 'tiger.'

Question 5

In populations with limited formal education, MoCA Naming scores may be artificially depressed primarily because:

Accepted Answer

Lower-frequency animal names may not have been learned in limited schooling contexts

Answer

Lexical knowledge of specific animal names like 'rhinoceros' correlates with vocabulary exposure gained through education.

(MoCA) Montreal Cognitive Assessment Practice Test

(MoCA) Montreal Cognitive Assessment Practice Test

MoCA Naming 5