| A | B |
|---|
| colonial power | the country that controls a colony; synonym for imperialist nation |
| constitution | a plan for how the government will workcoup d'etat |
| colony | a settlement in a new land that is still controlled by the home country |
| colonization | the process of building colonies |
| imperialism | when a strong country controls the government and/or economy of a weaker country |
| isolationism | the country closes itself off to the rest of the world and does not get involved in the affairs of other countries |
| mercantilism | an economic system where the colony produces raw materials and is only allowed to trade with the colonial power |
| militarism | the belief that a strong military is of the highest importance and that war brings glory to a country |
| nationalism | wanting a powerful country and having a strong love and loyalty towards your country based on shared culture and a desire for self-rule |
| apartheid | laws that require separating the races |
| aristocrat | a wealthy landowner; synonym for noble |
| entrepreneur | a person who starts their own business |
| peasant | a poor farmer |
| social contract | an agreement between the ruler of a country and the people who live there |
| appeasement | giving into a country's demands in order to avoid war |
| alliance | an agreement between two or more countries to help one another if war broke out |
| front | where the fighting in a battle takes place |
| neutral | not on either side |
| reparations | payments for war damages |
| genocide | the killing of an entire race of people |
| revolution | a dramatic change |
| superpower | an extremely powerful nation that is capable of influencing the laws and policies of other nations |
| separation of powers | the power of government is divided so that no one person or group has too much power |
| turning point | an event that changes the outcome of a situation |
| capitalism | an economic system based on competition and freedom from government interference; synonym for free enterprise |
| urbanization | moving from rural areas to cities |
| constitutional monarchy | a type of government where a king or queen has limited power |
| clergy | religious officials |
| bourgeoisie | middle class of society |
| astrolabe | a device that helped explorers determine their latitude |
| compass | a device that helped explorers determine what direction they were going |
| caravel | a small lightweight ship with triangular sails |
| divine right | the belief that God gave a person the authority to rule |
| communism | an economic system where the government controls all factors of production and private property is not allowed |
| democracy | a type of government where decisions are made by elected representatives |
| plantation | a large area of farmland used for planting and harvesting cash crops |
| domino theory | the belief that if Vietnam became communist other countries in southeast Asia would also become communist |
| containment | a policy to stop the spread of communism |
| occupy | when the military of one country controls another country |
| non-industrialized | a country where most products are manufactured by hand |
| industrialized | a country where most products are manufactured using machinery |
| textiles | things made of cloth |
| depression | a period of low economic activity and rising unemployment |
| perestroika | an economic program that loosened the way the government controlled businesses and allowed some private property and profit |
| demilitarized zone | an area where the military is not allowed |
| glasnost | a policy that allowed people to disagree with the government and participate more in the government |
| absolutism | a political system in which a ruler has total power |
| armistice | a temporary stop in battle |
| blockade | the closing off of a port or harbor to prevent entrance or exit |
| boycott | to protest by refusing to do something |
| cash crops | crops grown in large amounts to be sold for profit |
| circumnavigate | to go completely around something such as the world |
| commerce | an exchange of goods |
| cottage industry | making goods in workers' homes |
| deforestation | cutting down trees and forests in an area |
| export | a good that is sent from one country to another |
| import | an good that is brought into a country from another country |
| geocentric | the idea that the earth is the center of the universe |
| heliocentric | the idea that the sun is the center of the universe |
| guerrilla warfare | a form of war in which soldiers make surprise attacks on the enemy |
| inflation | a period of rapidly increasing prices |
| invest | to put money into a new business in hopes of making a profit |
| immigrant | a person who moves to another country and settles there |
| labor union | a group of people with similar jobs who work to improve wages and working conditions |
| limited government | a government whose powers are restricted through laws or a constitution |
| propaganda | biased information used to influence public opinion |
| sphere of influence | a region where only one imperialist nation had the right to invest or trade |
| favorable balance of trade | exporting more than importing |
| merchant | a person whose business is trade |
