American History Vocab by Aditi Choudhury _ Student - GreenLevelHS

Civilization

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:03:57 UTC

An advanced human society with cities, government, and development in culture and technology.

Mercantilism

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:04:12 UTC

It was an economic system that was used by the European Empires in the 16th to 18 centuries. The governments would control the economy and gain wealth by exporting more than they imported to get gold and silver.

Columbian Exchange

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:04:20 UTC

It was an exchange of plants, animals, food, culture, diseases, technology, etc. Ideas were also exchanged between America, Europe, and West Africa during the 15th and 16th centuries.

Indentured Servant

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:04:28 UTC

A person who signed a contract to work for another person. The indentured servant's contract states how long they would work for in exchange for food, water, and going to a different country.

Chattel Slavery

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:04:36 UTC

This is a system that is worse than being an indentured servant because people were treated as property and were bought and sold to other people.

Puritans

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:04:44 UTC

A religious group that wanted to purify the Church of England of practices they thought were too Catholic. Many people went to New England in the 1600s to get religious freedom.

Triangular Trade

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:04:52 UTC

The Triangular Trade system is a trade system during the Atlantic slave trade, where goods went from Europe to Africa. Enslaved Africans were transported to the Americas.

Encomienda System

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:04:59 UTC

It was a Spanish labor system in the Americas where colonists got the right to demand labor in exchange for protection.

Southern Colonies

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:05:06 UTC

The Southern colonies were made up of Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. They were known for their agricultural economy and relied heavily on enslaved labor.

Middle Colonies

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:05:13 UTC

It consisted of 4 of the 13 original colonies. The Middle Colonies included New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. It was significant due to their trade centers.

New England Colonies

achoudhury17 — 2025-08-26 18:05:24 UTC

The New England Colonies were a group of British colonies in North America. It included New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

Proclamation Line of 1763

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:07:20 UTC

A boundary that was set by Britain after the French and Indian War that didn't allow colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains. This was meant to avoid conflict between Native Americans, but it angered colonists.

Patriot

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:07:27 UTC

A colonist who supported independence from Britain during the American Revolution.

Tory

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:07:32 UTC

Colonists who remained loyal to Britain and didn't want independence.

Articles of Confederation

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:07:51 UTC

The Articles of Confederation created a weak national government with limited powers. It was later replaced by the U.S. Constituion.

Federalists

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:08:07 UTC

Supported the U.S. Constitution because they favored a strong central government.

Anti Federalists

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:08:21 UTC

Didn't support the Constitution and didn't want a strong central government. They pushed for the Bill of Rights to protect individual freedoms.

Enlightenment

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:08:30 UTC

A movement emphasizing reason, natural right, and individual liberty. This influenced American leaders to be like Thomas Jefferson and shaped revolutionary ideas.

Albany Plan of Union

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:08:41 UTC

Benjamin Franklin's proposal to create a unified colonial government for defense against France. This got rejected, but was set as a precedent for unity.

Northwest Ordinance

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:09:20 UTC

A law that organized the Northwest Territory, banned slavery, and created a process for making new states.

Newburgh Conspiracy

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:09:53 UTC

A planned revolt by the Continental Army officers who were frustrated with Congress for not paying them. George Washington was able to stop it and prevent a potential crisis.

Great Compromise

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:10:08 UTC

At the constitutional convention, it resolved problems between large and small states by creating a bicameral legislature.

Three-Fifths Compromise

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:10:26 UTC

An agreement that enslaved people would count as three-fifths of a person based on population of taxation and representation in Congress.

Salutary Neglect

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-10 17:10:43 UTC

Britain's policy of loosely enforcing colonial laws, allowing the colonies to govern themselves after the French and Indian War, led to colonial resentment.

Political party

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:40:30 UTC

In the early 1800s, political parties such as the Federalists and the Democratic-Republicans shaped debates over government power, foreign policy, and the economy.

Marbury vs. Madison

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:40:47 UTC

A Supreme Court case, under Chief Justice John Marshall, that established judicial review, giving the court the power to declare laws unconstitutional. This strengthened the federal judiciary during the Early Republic.

Temperance movement

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:41:02 UTC

In the early 1800s. Reforms pushed for people to stop drinking alcohol, linking it to family stability and moral improvement. It reflected the broader reform spirit of the era.

Abolition movement

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:41:16 UTC

During this period, the call to end slavery grew louder with leaders like Frederick Douglass and William Lloyd Garrison. While it hadn't yet gained huge national support, it was becoming an important reform issue.

Women's rights movement

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:41:26 UTC

In the 1830s-1840s, women began to organize for more rights, especially in education and voting. This movement was highlighted by the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention, led by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott.

Cotton gin

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:41:54 UTC

Eli Whitney's invention expanded cotton production in the South. By the early 1800s, it made cotton had become the dominant crop and increased the demand for enslaved labor, shaping the Southern economy and politics.

Steam engine

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:42:01 UTC

By the early 1800s, steam engines powered boats and trains, making transportation faster. This linked markets together and supported the Market Revolution during this era.

Factory system

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:42:08 UTC

Factories began to spread in the U.S., especially in the Northeast. Using machines and wage labor, this system marked the beginning of industrialization during the Early Republic.

Canals

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:42:17 UTC

Man-made waterways like the Erie Canal allowed goods and people to move more cheaply and quickly. Canals tied western farmers to eastern markets, fueling economic growth.

Monroe doctrine

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:42:46 UTC

President James Monroe declared that European nations should not interfere in the Americas. This showed the United States' confidence and growing influence in foreign affairs.

Democratic party

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:42:55 UTC

In the 1820s, Andrew Jackson founded the Democratic Party represented the "common man," supported westward expansion, and opposed concentrated economic power.

Whigs

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:43:04 UTC

Opponents of Andrew Jackson in the 1830s. They favored a strong Congress, internal improvements, and a national bank, contrasting with the Democrats' emphasis on limited government.

Telegraph

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:43:15 UTC

Samuel Morse's invention revolutionized communication by allowing people to send messages almost instantly. This helped expand business, news, and politics across the growing country.

Interchangeable parts

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:43:31 UTC

Eli Whitney promoted this idea for guns and other products. By the 1800s, it allowed for mass production in factories and contributed to the growth of the Market Revolution.

Impressment

achoudhury17 — 2025-09-24 17:43:39 UTC

A major issue in the early 1800s, especially before the War of 1812. The British Navy captured American sailors and forced them to serve on British ships, angering Americans and pushing the U.S. toward war.

Manifest Destiny

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:36:09 UTC

The 19th century belief that the United States was destined by God to expand its territory across North America, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.

Compromise of 1850

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:36:25 UTC

A deal made to keep peace between free and slave states. It made California a free state and said new territories could choose if they wanted slavery or not.

Kansas-Nebraska Act

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:36:35 UTC

A law that led people in Kansas and Nebraska vote on wheather they wanted slavery. It caused a lot of violence known as "Bleeding Kansas"

Popular Sovereignty

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:36:41 UTC

The idea that people in a territory should get to deicde for themselves if they want slavery there or not.

Fugitive Slave Act

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:36:49 UTC

A law that said runwaya enslaved people had to be returned to their owners, even if they were found in a free state. It made many Northerners angry.

Sectionalism

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:36:55 UTC

When people care more about their region than the whole country. It made the U.S. more divided before the Civil War.

Secession

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:37:01 UTC

When a state leaves or breaks away from the country. The Southern states seceded from the Union befire the Civil War.

Union

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:37:08 UTC

The Northern srares that stayed loyal to the U.S. government during the Civil War

Confederacy

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:37:14 UTC

Teh group of Southern states that broke away from the U.S. and formed their own country during the Civil War

Thirteenth Amendment

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:37:21 UTC

The law that ended slavery in the United States

Fourteenth Amendment

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:37:29 UTC

The law that made anyone bron in the U.S. a citizen and said everyone has to be treated equally under the law.

Fifteenth Amendment

achoudhury17 — 2025-10-20 21:37:35 UTC

The law that gave African American men the right to vote and said people couldn't be stopped from voting because of their race.

Capitalism

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:43:14 UTC

An economic system where private indivisuals or companies own businesses and make profits. The government doesn't control most industries, and success depends on competition and hard work.

Cornelius Vanderbilt

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:43:20 UTC

A powerful businessman who made a fortune in railroads and shipping. He helped expand transportation across the U.S during the Gilded Age.

Andrew Carnegie

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:43:25 UTC

A steel industry leader who built a huge company and became one of the richest men in America. He believed in giving back to society through charity.

John D. Rockefeller

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:43:32 UTC

The founder of Standard Oil and one of the wealthiest people ever. He controlled most of the oil industry and was seen as both a genius businessman and a monopolist.

JP Morgan

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:43:38 UTC

A banker and financier who helped organize major companies like General Electric and U.S. Steel. He was known for stabilizing the U.S. economy during financial crises.

Titans of Industry

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:43:45 UTC

A nickname for a wealthy and powerful businessman during the Gilded Age who helped build America's economy through their companies.

Robber Barons

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:43:52 UTC

A negative term for the same powerful businessmen who were accused of being greedy and using unfair methods to get rich.

Unions

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:43:57 UTC

Groups of workers who band together to fight for better pay, hours, and working conditions. They organized strikes to demand fair treatment.

Migration

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:44:05 UTC

The movement of people from one place to another, often for jobs or better opportunities. During the Gilded Age, many immigrants came to the U.S. for work.

Gilded Age

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:44:10 UTC

A time in the U.S. history when the country looked wealthy and successful on the outside but had major social problems underneath, like poverty and corruption.

Social Darwinism

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:44:17 UTC

The idea that only the "fittest" people and businesses survive and succeed, similar to survival of the fittest in nature. It was used to justify inequality.

Gospel of Wealth

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:44:23 UTC

An idea promoted by Andrew Carnegie that rich people have a duty to use their money to help improve society.

Muckraking

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-03 17:44:30 UTC

A type of journalism that exposed corruption, bad working conditions, and unfair treatment during the Gilded Age to push for reforms.

Women’s Suffrage

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:04:53 UTC

The movement where women fought for the right to vote in the United States. Activists protested, marched, and organized for years until the 19th Amendment was passed in 1920, finally giving women a political voice.

Prohibition

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:05:00 UTC

A time from 1920 to 1933 when the U.S. government made the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcohol illegal. It was meant to reduce crime and alcohol abuse, but it actually led to speakeasies, bootlegging, and more organized crime.

Isolationism

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:05:12 UTC

A policy where a country focuses on its own problems and stays out of foreign conflicts, alliances, and wars. The U.S. followed isolationism after World War I because people didn't want to get dragged into more European issues.

Imperialism

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:05:21 UTC

When a stronger nation takes control of weaker territories for resources, land, markets, or global power. The U.S. practiced imperialism in the late 1800s and gained places like the Philippines, Guam, and Puerto Rico.

Alfred Thayer Mahan

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:05:38 UTC

A U.S. Navy officer and writer who believed that the key to becoming a world power was having a strong navy. His ideas influenced U.S. leaders to build more ships and expand America's influence overseas.

Open Door Policy

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:05:45 UTC

A U.S. policy that argued all countries should have equal trading opportunities with China. It was meant to prevent any one nation from taking total control of China's market.

Militarism

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:05:50 UTC

The belief that a country should maintain a strong military and be ready to use it to achieve its goals. Before WWI, European nations kept building up their armies, which helped create tension.

Nationalism

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:05:57 UTC

Strong pride and loyalty toward your country. Nationalism can unite people, but before WWI, it also caused competition and hatred between nations.

League of Nations

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:06:03 UTC

An international peace organization created after WWI to prevent future wars. It failed because it had little real power and the U.S., even though it suggested the idea, didn't join.

Treaty of Versailles

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:06:09 UTC

The treaty that officially ended WWI. It blamed Germany for the war, took away its land, limited its military, and forced it to pay huge reparations. These harsh conditions helped spark anger that eventually led to WWI.

Great Migration

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:06:15 UTC

A movement from about 1916 to 1970, when millions of African Americans left the rural South to moveto Northern and Western cities. They were searching for better jobs and escaping racism, and their move changed U.S. culture and cities.

Zimmerman Telegram

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:06:20 UTC

A secret message from Germany to Mexico during WWI, asking Mexico to join Germany in exchange for getting back land lost to the U.S. When Americans found out, it increased support for entering the war.

Stocks on margin

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:06:27 UTC

Buying stocks by paying only a small piece upfront and borrowing the rest. People assumed stock prices would always go up, but when they fell, investors couldn't repay their loans, helping cause the 1929 stock market crash.

Tariffs

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:06:36 UTC

Taxes placed on imported goods. They are meant to protect American Businesses by making foreign products more expensive, but they can also lead to trade conflicts.

3 Rs

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:06:41 UTC

The main goals for FDR's New Deal during the Great Depression: Relief for people struggling, Recovery to rebuild the economy, and Reform to fix the system so another depression wouldn't happen.

Island Hopping

achoudhury17 — 2025-11-19 18:06:48 UTC

A U.S. military strategy in the Pacific during WWII, where the army and navy captured important islands one at a time. This helped the U.S. move closer to Japan while avoiding heavily defended areas.

Holocaust

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:20:08 UTC

The Holocaust was a mass genocide during WWII in which Nazi Germany murdered about 6 million Jews and millions of other groups in concentration camps.

International Organizations

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:20:57 UTC

International organizations are groups made up of multiple countries that work together to handle global issues like peace, trade, health, and human rights.

United Nations

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:21:08 UTC

The United Nations was created after WWII to help countries work together to prevent war, protect human rights, and promote peace worldwide.

Bretton Woods System

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:21:21 UTC

The Bretton Woods System was created after WWII to stabilize the global economy by setting fixed exchange rates and helping countries rebuild.

NATO

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:21:30 UTC

NATO is a military alliance formed by the United States and its allies to defend each other against attacks, especially from the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

Iron Curtain

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:21:42 UTC

The Iron Curtain described the division between communist Eastern Europe and democratic Western Europe during the Cold War.

Warsaw Pact

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:22:25 UTC

The Warsaw Pact was a military alliance of communist nations led by the Soviet Union, created to oppose NATO.

Containment

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:22:43 UTC

Containment was the U.S. policy of stopping the spread of communism to other countries without directly going into war with the Soviet Union.

Domino Theory

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:23:03 UTC

The Domino Theory was the belief that if one country fell to communism, nearby countries would also become communist.

Mutually Assured Destruction

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:23:16 UTC

MAD was the idea that if one side used nuclear weapons, both sides would be destroyed, which also led to communism.

Atomic Bomb

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:23:34 UTC

The atomic bomb is a nuclear weapon that causes massive destruction through a powerful nuclear explosion.

Nuclear Weapons

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:23:48 UTC

Nuclear weapons are extremely powerful weapons that can wipe out entire cities and cause long-lasting environmental damage.

Great Society Program

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:23:55 UTC

The Great Society was a set of programs launched by President Lyndon B. Johnson to reduce poverty and improve education, healthcare, and civil rights.

Brown vs. Board of Education

achoudhury17 — 2025-12-15 18:24:05 UTC

The Supreme Court case ruled that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional and helped start school desegregation.

Reaganomics

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:13:24 UTC

An economic plan from President Reagan that focused on tax cuts, less government spending, and deregulation to grow the economy.

Liberal

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:15:19 UTC

A political belief that supports government action to help people, social equality, and protecting individual rights.

Conservative

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:16:05 UTC

A political belief that supports limited government, free markets, and traditional values.

Moral Majority

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:17:50 UTC

A political organization formed in the late 1970s that brought religious conservatives together to influence politics on issues like family values and education.

Trickle Down Economics

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:18:17 UTC

An economic theory that says helping businesses and wealthy individuals through tax cuts will lead to more jobs and economic growth for everyone.

Monetary Policy

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:18:37 UTC

Actions taken by the Federal Reserve to control the money supply and interest rates in order to manage inflation and keep the economy stable.

Fiscal Policy

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:19:49 UTC

The use of government spending and taxation decisions to influence the economy, including stimulating growth or reducing inflation.

Laissez-Faire

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:20:49 UTC

An economic system where the government stays mostly out of the economy and allows businesses to operate freely without many regulations.

Inflation

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:21:12 UTC

The rise in prices over time that causes money to lose value, meaning people can buy less with the same amount of money.

Deregulation

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:22:06 UTC

The reduction or removal of government rules on businesses to promote competition, efficiency, and economic growth.

Terrorism

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:22:44 UTC

The use of violence, threats, or fear by individuals or groups to force political, religious, or ideological goals.

Globalization

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:22:58 UTC

The increasing connection of countries through trade, technology, communication, and cultural exchange around the world.

GDP (Gross Domestic Product)

achoudhury17 — 2026-01-13 01:23:11 UTC

The total value of all goods and services produced within a country in a single year, used to measure economic health.