Must know these terms for U.S regents

lexi H.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. abolitionist
    a reformer who favors putting an end to slavery
  2. accumulation
    a gain or increase in something over time
  3. advocate
    a person who pleads for a person, cause, or idea
  4. agrarian
    relating to rural matters
  5. ally
    a friendly nation
    A person, party , or country joining with another for a common purpose
  6. amnesty
    grant a pardon to
    A general pardon for political offenses, generally to a large group of individuals
  7. anarchist
    an advocate of the abolition of governments
  8. antitrust
    relating to laws that prevent unfair business practices
  9. apartheid
    a social policy of racial segregation
  10. appeasement
    the act of acceding to demands
  11. armistice
    a state of peace agreed to between opponents
  12. Articles of Confederation
    a written agreement ratified in 1781 by the thirteen original states; it provided a legal symbol of their union by giving the central government no coercive power over the states or their citizens
  13. assimilation
    the process of absorbing one cultural group into another
  14. Bill of Rights
    a statement of fundamental freedoms and privileges
  15. Bolshevik
    a Russian member of the left-wing majority group that followed Lenin and eventually became the Russian communist party
  16. Boston Tea Party
    demonstration (1773) by citizens of Boston who (disguised as Native Americans) raided three British ships in Boston harbor and dumped hundreds of chests of tea into the harbor; organized as a protest against taxes on tea
  17. boycott
    refusal to have commercial dealings with some organization
  18. budget deficit
    an excess of expenditures over revenues
  19. capitalism
    an economic system based on private ownership of assets
  20. Cold War
    a state of political hostility that existed from 1945 until 1990 between countries led by the Soviet Union and countries led by the United States
  21. collective bargaining
    negotiation between an employer and a trade union
  22. collective security
    a system for international peace
  23. colonialism
    exploitation by a stronger country of a weaker one
  24. commerce
    transactions supplying goods and services
  25. common sense
    sound practical judgment
  26. communism
    a theory favoring collectivism in a classless society
  27. Confederate States
    a group of Southern states that broke away from the U.S. in 1860–61
  28. conservative
    resistant to change
  29. constitution
    the act of forming or establishing something
  30. Constitutional Convention
    the convention of United States statesmen who drafted the United States Constitution in 1787
  31. containment
    the act of keeping something from spreading
  32. Declaration of Independence
    the document recording the proclamation of the second Continental Congress (4 July 1776) asserting the independence of the Colonies from Great Britain
  33. demilitarized zone
    a zone from which military forces or operations or installations are prohibited
  34. desegregation
    incorporation of a formerly excluded group into a community
  35. detente
    the easing of tensions or strained relations
  36. diplomacy
    negotiation between nations
  37. diversity
    noticeable variety
  38. dollar diplomacy
    foreign policy influenced by economic considerations
  39. domestic
    of or relating to the home
  40. domino theory
    idea that communist nations will convert neighboring nations
  41. Darwinism
    a theory of organic evolution claiming that new species arise and are perpetuated by natural selection
  42. diplomacy
    negotiation between nations
  43. discrimination
    unfair treatment of a person or group based on prejudice
  44. disenfranchise
    deprive of voting rights
  45. electoral college
    the body that formally selects the United States president
  46. emancipation
    freeing someone from the control of another
  47. embargo
    a government order imposing a trade barrier
  48. emigrate
    leave one's country of residence for a new one
  49. enlightenment
    education that results in the spread of knowledge
  50. ethnic
    distinctive of the ways of living of a group of people
  51. executive
    a person responsible for the administration of a business
  52. fascism
    a political theory advocating an authoritarian government
  53. federal
    of a government with central and regional authorities
  54. Federal Reserve System
    the central bank of the United States
  55. federalism
    government divided between central and regional powers
  56. federalist
    advocate of government with both central & regional powers
  57. feminism
    a doctrine that advocates equal rights for women
  58. foreign policy
    a plan of action governing international relations
  59. free enterprise
    an economy relying on market forces to allocate resources
  60. free trade
    the exchange of goods without governmental interference
  61. freedom of religion
    a civil right guaranteed by the First Amendment to the US Constitution
  62. freedom of speech
    the right to express your ideas and opinions
  63. freedman
    a person who has been released from enslavement
  64. freedom of the press
    a right guaranteed by the First Amendment to the US Constitution
  65. freedom rider
    one of an interracial group of civil rights activists who rode buses through parts of the South in order to protest racial segregation
  66. Free Soil Party
    a former political party in the United States
  67. the Great Compromiser
    United States politician responsible for the Missouri Compromise between free and slave states (1777-1852)
  68. Great Depression
    the economic crisis beginning with the stock market crash in 1929 and continuing through the 1930s
  69. greenhouse effect
    warming due to solar radiation trapped by the atmosphere
  70. habeas corpus
    a writ ordering a prisoner to be brought before a judge
  71. Harlem Renaissance
    a period in the 1920s when African-American achievements in art and music and literature flourished
  72. head start
    the advantage gained by beginning early, as in a race
  73. holocaust
    an act of mass destruction and loss of life
  74. home front
    the civilian population of a country at war
  75. immigration
    movement of people into a country or area
  76. impeach
    bring an accusation against
  77. imperialism
    a policy of extending your rule over foreign countries
  78. inauguration
    the ceremonial induction into a position
  79. individualism
    the quality of being a single thing or person
  80. industrialization
    the development of commercial enterprise
  81. Industrial Revolution
    the transformation from an agricultural to an industrial nation
  82. infiltration
    a process in which individuals penetrate an area
  83. inflation
    the act of filling something with air
  84. interdependent
    mutually reliant
  85. internationalism
    quality of being global in scope
  86. interstate
    of relations between individual divisions of a country
  87. Interstate Commerce Commission
    a former independent federal agency that supervised and set rates for carriers that transported goods and people between states; was terminated in 1995
  88. iron curtain
    the barrier between communist and democratic countries
  89. isolationism
    a policy of nonparticipation in international relations
  90. judicial review
    the court's power to decide whether a law is constitutional
  91. judiciary
    the system of law courts that administer justice
  92. Ku Klux Klan
    a secret society of white Southerners in the United States
  93. laissez-faire
    with minimally restricted freedom, especially in commerce
  94. League of Nations
    an international organization formed in 1920 to promote cooperation and peace among nations; although suggested by Woodrow Wilson, the United States never joined and it remained powerless; it was dissolved in 1946 after the United Nations was formed
  95. legislature
    an assembly that makes, amends, or repeals laws
  96. levy
    impose and collect
  97. liberty
    freedom of choice
  98. Louisiana Purchase
    territory in the western United States purchased from France in 1803 for $15 million; extends from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada
  99. loyalist
    a person who is faithful to a country, party, or cause
  100. Magna Carta
    the royal charter of political rights given to rebellious English barons by King John in 1215
  101. manifest destiny
    a policy of imperialist expansion said to be inevitable
  102. Marshall Plan
    a United States program of economic aid for the reconstruction of Europe (1948-1952); named after George Marshall
  103. Medicaid
    government-funded health care for those with low income
  104. Medicare
    federally administered health care for older individuals
  105. mercantilism
    a system of increasing wealth through colonization and trade
  106. middle class
    a socioeconomic group that is neither wealthy nor poor
  107. minority
    being or relating to the smaller in number of two parts
  108. Miranda rule
    the rule that police (when interrogating you after an arrest) are obliged to warn you that anything you say may be used as evidence and to read you your constitutional rights (the right to a lawyer and the right to remain silent until advised by a lawyer)
  109. Missouri Compromise
    an agreement in 1820 between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions in the United States concerning the extension of slavery into new territories
  110. monopoly
    a market in which there are many buyers but only one seller
  111. Monroe Doctrine
    an American foreign policy opposing interference in the western hemisphere from outside powers
  112. muckraker
    one who spreads real or alleged scandal about another
  113. NAFTA
    an agreement for free trade between the United States and Canada and Mexico; became effective in 1994 for ten years
  114. nationalism
    the doctrine that your country's interests are superior
  115. nativism
    a policy of favoring established inhabitants, not immigrants
  116. New Deal
    the economic policy of F. D. Roosevelt
  117. Nineteenth Amendment
    an amendment to the Constitution of the United States adopted in 1920; guarantees that no state can deny the right to vote on the basis of sex
  118. NATO
    an international organization created in 1949 by the North Atlantic Treaty for purposes of collective security
  119. open-door policy
    the policy of granting equal trade opportunities to all countries
  120. organized labor
    employees who are represented by a labor union
  121. overproduction
    too much production or more than expected
  122. parliament
    a legislative assembly in certain countries
  123. perjury
    criminal offense of making false statements under oath
  124. popularism
    music adapted to the understanding and taste of the majority
  125. primary election
    an election to choose a candidate for the general election
  126. progressivism
    the political orientation of those who favor progress toward better conditions in government and society
  127. prohibition
    the action of forbidding
  128. propaganda
    information that is spread to promote some cause
  129. protective tariff
    a tariff imposed to protect domestic firms from import competition
  130. quota
    a prescribed number
  131. racism
    the prejudice that one people are superior to another
  132. raw material
    material suitable for manufacture or use or finishing
  133. reconstruction
    the activity of building something again
  134. reform
    make changes for improvement to remove abuse and injustices
  135. red scare
    a period of general fear of communists
  136. Scopes trial
    a highly publicized trial in 1925 when John Thomas Scopes violated a Tennessee state law by teaching evolution in high school; Scopes was prosecuted by William Jennings Bryan and defended by Clarence Darrow; Scopes was convicted but the verdict was later reversed
  137. secession
    formal separation from an alliance or federation
  138. segregation
    the act of keeping apart
  139. senate
    assembly possessing high legislative powers
  140. slavery
    the state of being in forced servitude to another person
  141. sovereignty
    the authority of a state to govern another state
  142. spoils system
    the practice of helping supporters after winning an election
  143. Stamp Act
    an act passed by the British Parliament in 1756 that raised revenue from the American Colonies by a duty in the form of a stamp required on all newspapers and legal or commercial documents; opposition by the Colonies resulted in the repeal of the act in 1766
  144. suffrage
    a legal right to vote
  145. supreme court
    the highest court in most states of the United States
  146. tariff
    a government tax on imports or exports
  147. Teapot Dome
    a government scandal involving a former United States Navy oil reserve in Wyoming that was secretly leased to a private oil company in 1921; became symbolic of the scandals of the Harding administration
  148. totalitarian
    of a government with an authority exerting absolute control
  149. Truman doctrine
    President Truman's policy of providing economic and military aid to any country threatened by communism or totalitarian ideology
  150. trust
    belief in the honesty and reliability of others
  151. union
    the state of being joined or united or linked
  152. United Nations
    an organization of independent states formed in 1945 to promote international peace and security
  153. urbanization
    the social process whereby cities grow
  154. veto
    a vote that blocks a decision
  155. Watergate
    a political scandal involving abuse of power and bribery and obstruction of justice; led to the resignation of Richard Nixon in 1974
  156. welfare
    something that aids or promotes well-being
  157. World Trade Organization
    an international organization based in Geneva that monitors and enforces rules governing global trade
  158. yellow journalism
    sensationalist reporting or headlines
  159. Thomas Jefferson
    3rd President of the United States
  160. Bill Clinton
    42nd President of the United States (1946-)
  161. George W. Bush
    43rd President of the United States
  162. George Washington
    1st President of the United States
  163. Al Gore
    Vice President of the United States under Bill Clinton
  164. Abraham Lincoln
    16th President of the United States
Created on Wed Jun 06 14:14:53 EDT 2012 (updated Mon Jun 11 13:54:53 EDT 2012)

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