| A | B |
|---|
| delegate | representative |
| Constitution | rule book for the U.S. Government |
| Preamble | introduction to the Constitution |
| Founding Fathers | Men who created the U.S. Constitution in 1787 |
| compromise | everyone involved gets something they want, but no one gets everything they want |
| proportional representation | the number of representatives (votes), depends on the population of a state. The larger a state's population, the more representatives it will have. This system is used in the House of Representatives |
| New Jersey Plan | The small state plan. Would have given every state 1 vote in Congress, regardless its population. This is called equal representation. |
| Virginia Plan | The large state plan. Written by James Madison, would give states representatives in Congress based on population. |
| Great Compromise | The answer to the large/small state argument. Two houses of Congress, one has equal representation (Senate), the other uses proportional representation (House of Representatives). |
| three-fifths compromise | Allowed states to count 60% or 3/5 of its slaves for population to determine the number of representatives in the House of Representatives. |
| legislative branch | Called Congress, made up of two houses, makes the laws |
| executive branch | The President is the head of this branch, responsible for enforcing laws made by Congress |
| judicial branch | The Supreme Court is the head of this branch. It is responsible for interpreting laws and settling disputes. |
| bicameral legislature | Legislature made up of two houses |
| Senate | One of the houses of legislature. There are 2 Senators from every state |
| House of Representatives | One of the houses of legislature. Number of Representatives depends on a state's population |
| veto | The President's power to refuse to sign a bill passed by Congress into law. |
| necessary and proper clause | Congress retains the power to pass any law that is "necessary and proper" to carry out its Constitutional duties. |
| amend | To fix or change |
| general welfare clause | Congress can pass laws that are for the good of the whole country, even if it is not helpful to a minority of people. |
| equal representation | Every state gets the same number of votes. |
| Electoral College | Chooses the President of the United States of America. |
| ratify | To pass, or approve |
| anti-federalist | Group who believed the new Constitution gave Federal government too much power, and should not be ratified. |
| federalist | Group who believed the Constitution should be ratified by the states. |
| Bill of Rights | First ten amendments to the Constitution, guarantees basic rights. |
| James Madison | Father of the Constitution |
| George Washington | First President of the United States. |
| Benjamin Franklin | Oldest delegate at the Constitutional Convention |
| Philadelphia | Where the Constitutional Convention was held. |
| 1787 | Year the Constitutional Convention took place. |
| Federalism | System in which a national government shares its power with the states |
| enumerated powers | Powers granted to the national government, listed in the Constitution. |
| Federalist Papers | Series of essays written by supporters of the Constitution |
