| A | B |
|---|
| Amendment | A change of addition to the U.S. Constitution |
| Anti-Federalist | a person who opposed the adoption of the U.S. Constitution as they believed in strong individual rights |
| Anti-Federalist Papers | Collective works of Anti-Federalists who argued that the Constitution gave too much power to the federal government, while taking too much power away from state and local governments. |
| Articles of Confederation | 1st Constitution of the U.S.; Only 1 branch; major weaknessess that lead to Shays' Rebellion |
| Bill of Rights | 1st 10 Amendments to the U.S. Constitution |
| Constitution | A statement of the basic principles and laws of a nation, state, or group, such as the U.S. Constitution. |
| Constitutional Convention | The gathering that drafted the Constitution of the United States in 1787; all states were invited to send delegates. The convention, meeting in Philadelphia, designed a government with separate legislative, executive, and judicial branches. |
| Defense (as in common defense) | Constitution promised that the new national government would protect every state and every citizen within the nation. Included in this phrase is the expectation that each state in the new nation would come to the aid, protection, and defense of every other state when needed or called on. |
| Domestic | Existing or occurring inside a particular country; not foreign or international. |
| Federal Government | A system that divides up power between a strong national government and smaller local governments. |
| Federalism | A system in which power is divided between national and state governments |
| Federalist Papers | A series of eighty-five essays written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay in the late 1780s to persuade voters to adopt the Constitution. The essays are considered a classic defense of the American system of government. |
| Incorporate | To make into a whole or make part of a whole; |
| Justice | The process or result of using laws to fairly judge and punish crimes and criminals; the quality of being fair and reasonable. |
| Northwest Ordinance | Laid out rules on how new states could be added to the Union |
| Ordain | To establish or enact by law; make |
| Ordinance | Laws that govern state/local governments |
| Posterity | For future generations |
| Preamble | The beginning of the US Constitution that sets the purpose of American goverment |
| Ratification | The official way to confirm something, usually by vote. |
| Shays' Rebellion | An uprising that protested the foreclosures of farms; proved that the Articles of Confederation were weak |
| Supremacy Clause | A clause in Article VI of the U.S. Constitution that declares federal laws to have jurisdictional authority over state laws in the event there is conflict between laws established by two governing bodies |
| Tranquility | peacefullness, serenity; quiet, calm |
| Union | being joined together under one government |
| Welfare | state of well being or happiness |
