The Constitution and Its Origins

Question 1

Anti-Federalists

Answer 1

those who did not support ratification of the Constitution

Question 2

Articles of Confederation

Answer 2

the first basis for the new nation’s govt.; adopted in 1781; created an alliance of sovereign states held together by a weak central govt.

Question 3

bicameral legislature

Answer 3

a legislature with two houses, such as the U.S. Congress

Question 4

Bill of Rights

Answer 4

the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution; most were designed to protect fundamental rights and liberties

Question 5

checks and balances

Answer 5

a system that allows one branch of govt. to limit the exercise of power by another branch; requires different parts of govt. to work together

Question 6

confederation

Answer 6

a highly decentralized for of govt.; sovereign states form a union for purposes such as mutual defense

Question 7

Declaration of Independence

Answer 7

a document written in 1776 in which the American colonists proclaimed their independence from Great Britain and listed their grievances against the British king

Question 8

enumerated powers

Answer 8

the powers given explicitly to the federal govt. by the Constitution; power to regulate interstate and foreign commerce, raise and support armies, declare war, coin money, and conduct foreign affairs

Question 9

federal system

Answer 9

a form of govt. in which power is divided between state govt.s and a national govt.

Question 10

Federalists

Answer 10

those who supported ratification of the Constitution

Question 11

Great Compromise

Answer 11

a compromise between the Virginia Plan and the New Jersey Plan that created a two-house Congress; representation based on population in the House of Representatives and equal representation of the states in the Senate

Question 12

natural rights

Answer 12

the right to life, liberty, and property; believed to be given by God; no govt. may take away

Question 13

New Jersey Plan

Answer 13

a plan that called for a one-house national legislature; each state would receive one vote

Question 14

republic

Answer 14

a form of govt. in which political power rests in the hands of the people, not a monarch, and is exercised by elected representatives

Question 15

reserved powers

Answer 15

any powers not prohibited by the Constitution or delegated to the national govt.; powers reserved to the states and denied to the federal govt.

Question 16

separation of powers

Answer 16

the sharing of powers among three separate branches of govt.

Question 17

social contract

Answer 17

an agreement between people and govt. in which citizens consent to be governed so long as the govt. protects their natural rights

Question 18

supremacy clause

Answer 18

the statement in Article VI of the Constitution that federal law is superior to laws passed by state legislatures

Question 19

The Federalist Papers

Answer 19

a collection of 85 essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay in support of ratification of the Constitution

Question 20

Three-Fifths Compromise

Answer 20

a compromise between northern and southern states that called for counting of all a state’s free population and 60 percent of its enslaved population for both federal taxation and representation in Congress

Question 21

unicameral legislature

Answer 21

a legislature with only one house, like the Confederation Congress or the legislature proposed by the New Jersey Plan

Question 22

veto

Answer 22

the power of the president to reject a law proposed by Congress

Question 23

Virginia Plan

Answer 23

a plan for a two-house legislature; representatives would be elected to the lower house based on each state’s population; representatives for the upper house would be chosen by the lower house