[bluejekyll]

Hornets are also members of this sub-family. These are really nasty. There are many wasps that are not very aggressive, they'll sting you if you literally hit their nest, or accidentally sit on one, but hornets and yellowjackets are very aggressive near their nests, really nasty bugs to accidentally encounter when mowing the grass or sitting on a bench when they have built homes.

I would say most people would easily be able to distinguish between a honeybee and any wasp (once shown what each looks like obviously).