What is the visual acuity status of someone who can read at 20 feet what a person with normal vision can read at 40 feet?

The visual acuity status described indicates that the person can see at 20 feet what someone with normal vision (considered to have 20/20 vision) can see at 40 feet. Visual acuity is expressed as a fraction, where the numerator indicates the distance in feet at which a person can see an object clearly, while the denominator indicates the distance at which a person with normal vision can see the same object clearly.

In this case, since the individual can see clearly at 20 feet what a person with normal vision can see at 40 feet, their visual acuity is represented as 20/40. This means they require the same level of visual detail at a distance of 20 feet that someone with normal vision can resolve at 40 feet, indicating a certain level of visual impairment. Thus, the answer aligns directly with the standard way of measuring vision, confirming that 20/40 is indeed the correct status.