8th grade vocabulary list for the year
Abolition- The abolishing (complete doing away with) of
slavery
Agrarian Society-a society dependent on agriculture/farming
as its main source o Financial support
Amendment- A change in a bill, law or the constitution
Anti-Federalist- an opponent of the proposed United States
Constitution of 1787
Anti-Semitism-The act of being prejudiced against and
persecuting Jews
Appeasement- The policy of making deals with possible
enemies to keep peace
Arsenal- A weapons depot
Artifact-An object that gives a clue to the culture it came
from
Backcountry- the area of thinly populated settlements from
the fall line to the Appalachian Mts.
Barrier Islands– a broadened barrier beach, habitable in
places, that provides a measure of protection for the
mainland, as during hurricanes and tidal waves.
Barter System- the exchange of goods and services for
things people need
Bill of Rights- The first 10 amendments to the Constitution
that guarantee the basic rights of citizenship
Blitzkrieg- A swift sudden military attack using air and land
forces: German for “lightening war”
Blockade- The blocking of a port by warships or other vessels
Boycott-The refusal to buy certain items
Capitalism- the economic system in which all or most of the
means of production and distribution is privately owned and
operated for a profit
Carpetbagger- A term of insult applied to a Northerner who
went South after the Civil War
Cash crop- A crop raised to sale rather than for home use
Charter- a legal document that gives permission to explore,
settle, and govern land
Checks and Balances- The system in which each branch of
government can limit the powers of the other branches
Civil Rights- The rights that are guaranteed to citizens by
the Constitution
Clana group of related people
Coastal Plain- The broad, flat region in NC that extends 100150 miles inland
Colonization-the act of creating settlements and controlling
an area by a mother country
ColonyA group of settlements far from, but ruled by a
mother country
Columbian Exchange- The movement of plants, animals,
diseases, and other living things between the New World and
the Old World
Communism- A political system in which the people (in theory)
own all the land, factories, and businesses, and the economic
power rest with the people.
Compromise- an agreement in which each side gives up
something it wants in order to gain something else
Concentration Camp- A heavily guarded camp in which
political prisoners are held by force
Confederacy- the nation, separated from the United States,
from 1861-1865 that contained eleven southern states: known
as the Confederate States of America
Congress- The lawmaking branch of the government: made up
of the House of Representatives and the Senate
Conquistador- a Spanish conqueror
Conservative- Favoring traditional views and values; tending
to oppose change.
Constitution- A written plan of government
Consumer Goods- Products made for the use of the average
person, rather than for industries
Containment- A policy aimed at stopping the spread of
communism
Cultural Diffusion- combining of ideas, inventions, foods,
customs, etc. of one culture to another culture
Culture- a people’s way of life. It includes the kind of tools
people make, the food they eat, and the language they speak.
Democracy-government by the people: usually through
representation
Depression- a period marked by widespread unemployment,
decline in business activity, falling prices and wages
Discrimination- Treating some people differently from others
because of their race, beliefs, or heritage.
Domestic-of one’s own country: within a country or relating to
a country (ex: US Domestic Affairs)
Domino Theory-view that countries can influence other
countries into communism
Draft- A system in which people are required to serve in the
military
Economy- The way a group of people produce goods and
services- (making money)
Electoral College- a group of representatives selected by
each state to cast the vote for President based on the state’s
popular vote
Emancipation- to free someone from slavery
Emigration-to leave one’s country or region to settle in
another
Equality-the state or instance of being equal: being treated
the same
Executive Branch- division of the government empowered and
required to administer the laws and affairs of the nations:
President, Vice President and the cabinet
Fall line- the dividing line between the Piedmont and the
Coastal Plain.
Fascism- a political system headed by a strong dictator with
a strong central government- where the state is more
important than the individual
Federal System- a government where power is divided
between a national and State governments
Federalist- a person that supported the new United
States Constitution of 1787
Foreign-outside of one’s own country, province, or locality
Framers-one of the individuals who helped write the US
Constitution
Genocide- the systematic, planned killing of a racial, political,
or cultural group
Geographic Region- a large area of land with similar features
Governor-the elected head of any state in the United States
Gross Domestic Product- the total market value of all the
goods and services produced by a nation in a specific time
period.
Guerrilla Warfare- The use of surprise attacks by small
bands of fighters
Holocaust- A huge and terrible destruction of human life,
such as the mass Destruction of European Jews and other
people by Nazi Germany in WWII
House of Burgesses- the assembly of representatives in
colonial Virginia.
Immigration- the movement of people from other countries
and regions into a new country to live
Impeach- to charge a public official with wrong doing or a
crime
Imperialism-the policy or practice of seeking to dominate the
economic or political affairs of an undeveloped or weaker
country
Incumbent- a person that currently holds an office
Indentured Servant- a person who worked without pay for a
specified number of years in return for passage to the New
World, clothing, food and shelter
Inflation- An increase in the price of goods and services and
a decrease in the value of money
Isolationism- a policy of staying out of the affairs of other
nations
Jamestown Colony- The first permanent English settlement
in North America, founded in 1607 in Virginia.
Judicial Branch-the division of government that
administrates justice: made up of the Supreme Court and the
lower courts
Labor Union- an organization of workers that tries to help its
members receive higher wages and better working conditions
Laissez Faire-the policy of allowing the owners of industries
and business fix the rules of competition and the conditions
of labor
Legislative Branch- The lawmaking branch of government
made up of both houses of Congress
Liberal- Favoring proposals for reform, open to new ideas for
progress:
Loyalist- A colonist that sided with the British during the
American Revolution
Manifest Destiny-19th century doctrine or belief in the
inevitable territorial expansion of the United States from
coast to coast
Mayor-the elected head official of a city, town or borough
McCarthyism-policy or practice of publicly accusing suspected
individuals of political disloyalty and subversion
Mercantilism- belief in the benefits of profitable trading;
commercialism.
Migration-to move from one country or region to another
Militia- Volunteer soldiers
Minuteman-an ordinary citizen of the colonies who was armed
and ready to fight in a minute’s notice
Mission- A settlement in which people of one religion teach
their faith to others
Monopoly- the complete control of an industry by one person
or company
Mountain- a natural upward projection of the earth's surface,
higher and steeper than a hill and often having a rocky summit
NAACP-National Association for the Advancement of Colored
People
Nationalism-the feeling of devotion and loyalty to one’s own
country
Naval Stores- Products from pine trees, such as pitch and
tar used in shipbuilding
Neutrality- not taking sides during a conflict
New Deal-program by Franklin D Roosevelt intended to end
the Great Depression
New World- A name for the Americas, especially during the
time of first exploration and colonization of the Americas by
Europeans.
Nomad- a member of a people or tribe that has no permanent
abode but moves about from place to place, usually seasonally
and often following a traditional route or circuit according to
the state of the pasturage or food supply.
Old World- that part of the world that was known before
the discovery of the Americas, comprising Europe, Asia, and
Africa; the eastern hemisphere
Oral History- Stories passed down from generation to
generation
Outer Banks- long chains of sandbars and barrier islands off
the coast of North Carolina
Patriot- A colonist who wanted and fought for their
independence from England
Piedmont- at the base of the mountains
Pilgrims- a Separatist who was among the founders of the
Plymouth colony
Plantation- A large farm on which crops are grown for sale:
Slavery was the main source of labor
Political Party-engaged in or taking sides in politics
Popular Sovereignty-a system in which the people vote to
decide an issue
President-someone elected to preside over an organized
group or country: the chief Executive of a country
Privateer- A private trading ship armed and commissioned for
battle
Progressive- Working for political or social reforms
Prohibition- A ban on the sale and manufacture of alcoholic
beverages
Propaganda- stories and/or images to support a certain point
of view
Puritans- a person who wanted to change and “purify” the
Church of England.
Racism- A belief that people of one race are superior of
those of another
Ratify- To formally approve
Rationing- The distribution of a fixed amount of items that
are in short supply
Recession-an extended decline in general business(buying and
selling) for two quarters in a row: usually includes high
unemployment and a decline in the GNP
Reconstruction- period following the Civil War during which
the South was placed under military control
Referendum- A process by which the people vote directly on
a proposed legislation
Refugee-A person who flees a country out of fear of being
persecuted or killed for his or her political beliefs
Republic- any government that is not ruled by a king or queen
and in which power rest with the people
Republicanism-Support for representative government known
as a republic
Revolution- A great change
Rural-relating to the country or farming
Scalawag-name given to white Southerners who supported
Reconstruction for personal gain: “mean fellows”
Secede- To withdraw from a nation: secession
Segregation- to separate, such as by race
Separation of Powers-division of government sharing the
power and responsibilities- keeping one branch from becoming
too powerful
Sharecropping-A system of farming in which a farmer rented
land and provided labor in return for a share of the crop or
for part of the income from the crop
Slavery- forced labor: the buying and selling of human beings
to receive free labor
Standard of Living- a level of material comfort measured by
the goods, services, and luxuries available to an individual or
nation
Strike- A stoppage of work by employees in an effort to gain
better working conditions or pay
Suburb- A residential area on the outskirts of a city
Suffrage- The right to vote
Tariff-tax on imported goods
Terrorism-The use, or threatened use, of violence for the
purpose of intimidating or causing fear for political or social
purposes
Tidewaters- low-lying eastern part of North Carolina’s
Coastal plain.
Transcontinental Railroad- a railroad that connects the
Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the country
Treason- The betrayal of one’s country
Triangular Trade- shipping goods from Britain to West
Africa to be exchanged for slaves, these slaves being shipped
to the West Indies and exchanged for sugar, rum, and other
commodities, which were in turn shipped back to Britain.
Tyranny-The unjust use of power
Unalienable Rights-basic human rights; such as life, liberty,
and the pursuit of happiness; “God given rights”
Unemployment-the percentage of people who involuntarily do
not have a job
Urbanization-The movement of people from rural areas to the
city
Veto-to reject or refuse to sign a bill
War bond-A low-interest loan made by citizens to the
government to support the cost of war