7th grade vocabulary for the year
AIDS - a serious disease of the immune system that is caused by
infection with a virus
Alliance - a union between people, groups, countries, etc. a
relationship in which people agree to work together
Analyze - to study (something) closely and carefully : to learn the
nature and relationship of the parts of (something) by a close and
careful examination
Appeasement - to make (someone) pleased or less angry by giving
or saying something desired
Asylum Seeker - a person who, from fear of persecution for reasons
of race, religion, social group, or political opinion, has crossed an
international frontier into a country in which he or she hopes to be
granted refugee status
Atomic Bomb - a bomb whose explosive force comes from a chain
reaction based on nuclear fission in U-235 or plutonium.
Balance of Power - a distribution and opposition of forces among
nations such that no single nation is strong enough to assert its will or
dominate all the others.
Birth Rate- the proportion of births to the total population in a place in
a given time, usually expressed as a quantity per 1000 of population.
Citizen- an inhabitant of a city or town, especially one entitled to its
privileges or franchises.
Climate Change - a long-term change in the earth's climate,
especially a change due to an increase in the average atmospheric
temperature:
Colonization - occurs whenever there is a large-scale migration of
any one or more groups of people to a colonial area. The
migrants, who can also be called colonizers, keep "strong links" with
their previous country, and thus obtain privileges over other people
living in the area being colonized.
Colony - a group of people who leave their native country to form in a
new land a settlement subject to, or connected with, the parent
nation.
Compare - to examine (two or more objects, ideas, people, etc.) in
order to note similarities and differences:
Communism – a type of government in which the Communist Party
holds all the political power and controls the economy
Constitution - the system of fundamental principles according to
which a nation, state, corporation, or the like, is governed.
Construct - to build or form by putting together parts; frame; devise.
Containment - an act or policy of restricting the territorial growth or
ideological influence of another, especially a hostile nation.
Continent - one of the main landmasses of the globe, usually
reckoned as seven in number
Coordinates - of the same order or degree; equal in rank or
importance. a person or thing of equal rank or importance; an equal.
Culture- the shared attitudes knowledge and behaviors of a group.
Cultural Revolution - a radical sociopolitical movement in China
c1966–71, led by Mao Zedong and characterized by military rule,
terrorism, purges, restructuring of the educational system, etc.
Cultural Superiority - the belief that one's culture is superior.
Death Rate - the number of deaths per unit, usually 1000, of
population in a given place and time.
Decolonization - to free a colony to become self-governing or
independent.
Deforestation - to divest or clear of forests or trees
Democracy - government by the people; a form of government in
which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised
directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral
system.
Demographer – a geographer who studies the characteristics of
human populations.
Denomination - a religious group, usually including many local
churches, often larger than a sect
Desertification - the rapid depletion of plant life and the loss of
topsoil at desert boundaries and in semiarid regions, usually caused
by a combination of drought and the overexploitation of grasses and
other vegetation by people.
Deterrence - A military capability sufficiently strong to discourage any
would-be aggressor from starting a war because of the fear of
retaliation.
Dictatorship - a country, government, or the form of government in
which absolute power is exercised by a dictator.
Discrimination – actions that might be hurtful to an individual or
group
Diversity – having many different ways to think or do something or a
variety of people
Domestic System - a manufacturing system whereby workers make
products in their own homes with materials supplied by
entrepreneurs.
Economic - pertaining to the production, distribution, and use of
income, wealth, and commodities.
Economy - thrifty management; frugality in the expenditure or
consumption of money, materials, etc.
Embargo - an order of a government prohibiting the movement of
merchant ships into or out of its ports.
Epidemic - extremely prevalent; widespread.
Ethnic Cleansing - the elimination of an unwanted ethnic group or
groups from a society, as by genocide or forced emigration.
European Union - an association of European nations formed in
1993 for the purpose of achieving political and economic integration.
Incorporating the European Community, the European Union's member states are
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland,
France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg,
Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain,
Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
Evaluate - to judge or determine the significance, worth, or quality of;
assess
Explain - to make plain or clear; render understandable or intelligible
Export - to ship (commodities) to other countries or places for sale,
exchange, etc.
Fertility Rate - Births per 1000 women, categorized
according to a specific composition of mothers in the
population.
Fossil Fuels - any combustible organic material, as oil, coal, or
natural gas, derived from the remains of former life.
Genocide - the deliberate and systematic extermination of a national,
racial, political, or cultural group.
Geography - the study of the natural features of the earth's surface,
including topography, climate, soil, vegetation, etc, and man's
response to them
Ghettos - a densely populated slum area of a city inhabited by a
socially and economically deprived minority
Global Market - The activity of buying or selling goods and services
in all the countries of the world, or the value of the goods and
services sold.
Globalization -the process by which a company, etc, expands to
operate internationally
Government – an organization set up to make and enforce rules for
a society
Greenhouse Effect – the trapping of the sun’s heat by gases in the
Earth’s atmosphere
Hemisphere - half of the terrestrial globe or celestial sphere,
especially one of the halves into which the earth is divided.
Heresy -any opinion or belief that is or is thought to be contrary to
official or established theory
Holocaust - any mass slaughter or reckless destruction of life: the
mass murder of Jews and members of many other ethnic, social, and
political groups in continental Europe between 1940 and 1945 by the
Nazi regime
Immigrant- a person who leaves on area to settle in another
Immigration - the movement of non-native people into a country in
order to settle there
Imperialism - the policy or practice of extending a state's rule over
other territories
Import - to bring in (merchandise, commodities, workers, etc.) from a
foreign country for use, sale, processing
Industrialization – the conversion to the methods, aims, and ideals
of industry and economic activity, particularly of an area that was
previously underdeveloped economically.
Inflation - a progressive increase in the general level of prices
brought about by an expansion in demand or the money supply
Infrastructure – The system of public works of a country, state, or
region.
Innovation - something newly introduced, such as a new method or
device
Interaction - a mutual or reciprocal action or influence
Interchangeable Parts - (of two things) capable of being put or used
in the place of each other
Interdependence - reciprocal action, effect, or influence.
Isolationism - The doctrine that a nation should stay out of the
disputes and affairs of other nations.
Land Use - involves the management and modification of natural
environment or wilderness into built environment such as settlements
and semi-natural habitats such as arable fields, pastures, and
managed woods.
Landforms - A recognizable, naturally formed feature on the Earth's
surface. Landforms have a characteristic shape and can include such
large features as plains, plateaus, mountains, and valleys, as well as
smaller features such as hills, eskers, and canyons.
Liberation - the seeking of equal status or just treatment for or on
behalf of any group believed to be discriminated against
Life Expectancy – the probable number of years remaining in the life
of an individual or class of persons determined statistically, affected
by such factors as heredity, physical condition, nutrition, and
occupation.
Migration - The moving from place to place
Missionary - a person strongly in favor of a program, set of
principles, etc., who attempts to persuade or convert others.
Modernization - to make modern in appearance or style
Monarchy – a type of government in which a ruling family headed by
a king ot queen holds political power.
Monopoly - exclusive control of the market supply of a product or
service
Nation-State - an independent state inhabited by all the people of
one nation and one nation only
Natural Disaster - any event or force of nature that has catastrophic
consequences, such as avalanche, earthquake, flood, forest fire,
hurricane, lightning, tornado, tsunami, and volcanic eruption
Natural Resources - the natural wealth of a country, consisting of
land, forests, mineral deposits, water, etc.
Negotiations - a discussion set up or intended to produce a
settlement or agreement
Non-renewable - any natural resource from the Earth that exists in
limited supply and cannot be replaced if it is used up
Nuclear War - A war in which nuclear weapons are used by both
sides
Oligarchy – a government ruled by a few powerful individuals
Outsourcing - to contract out (jobs, services, etc.)
Overpopulation - to fill with an excessive number of people, straining
available resources and facilities
Pandemic - (of a disease) prevalent throughout an entire country,
continent, or the whole world; epidemic over a large area.
Partition - something that separates or divides.
Persecution - a program or campaign to exterminate, drive away, or
subjugate people based on their membership in a religious, ethnic,
social, or racial group
Perspective - the proper or accurate point of view or the ability to see
it; objectivity
Philosophy - the rational investigation of the truths and principles of
being, knowledge, or conduct.
Physical Features - are things such as landforms, bodies of water,
climate, natural vegetation and soil
Political - of, relating to, or involving the state or its government
Population- the number of people who live in a specified area.
Populations Density – the average number of people who live in a
certain area.
Primary Source - s a document or physical object that was written or
created during the time under study
Productivity - the quality, state, or fact of being able to generate,
create, enhance, or bring forth goods and services
Propaganda - the deliberate spreading of such information, rumors
Pull Factor – a reason that attracts people to another area
Push Factor- a reason that causes people to leave an area.
Quality of Life - the standard of health, comfort, and happiness
experienced by an individual or group.
Ration - a sufficient or adequate amount
Raw Materials - material before being processed or manufactured
into a final form.
Realism - the tendency to view or represent things as they really are.
Reform - the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt,
unsatisfactory, etc
Refugee - a person who has fled from some danger or problem, esp
political persecution
Renewable - Relating to a natural resource, such as solar energy,
water, or wood, that is never used up or that can be replaced by new
growth
Representative Democracy – a type of government in which
citizens hold political power through elected representatives.
Revolution - an overthrow or repudiation and the thorough
replacement of an established government or political system by the
people governed; A great change.
Rural – relating to the country or farming
Sanctions - final permission; authorization; to make valid or binding
Scale - a graduated line, as on a map, representing proportionate
size.
Scarcity - insufficiency or shortness of supply
Secondary source - a document or recording that relates or
discusses information originally presented elsewhere
Sovereignty - supreme and unrestricted power, as of a state
Specialization - pursuing a particular line of study or wor
Stalemate - any position or situation in which no action can be taken
or progress made; deadlock:
Summarize - to make or be a summary of; express concisely
Superpowers - an extremely powerful nation, especially one capable
of influencing international events and the acts and policies of less
powerful nations.
Sustainable - capable of being supported or upheld, as by having its
weight borne from below.
Tenement - a dwelling place or residence, esp one intended for rent
Textile - any cloth or goods produced by weaving, knitting, or felting.
Treaty - any agreement or compact.
Urban – relating to, or located in a city
Urbanization - taking on the characteristics of a city
Use - apply to one's own purposes
War Crimes - a crime committed in wartime in violation of the
accepted rules and customs of war, such as genocide, ill-treatment of
prisoners of war, etc