American Government
100 Concepts
& Final Exam Preparation
Fall Semester
THE 100 CONCEPTS
1
11
21
31
41
51
61
71
81
91
2
12
22
32
42
52
62
72
82
92
3
13
23
33
43
53
63
73
83
93
4
14
24
34
44
54
64
74
84
94
5
15
25
35
45
55
65
75
85
95
6
16
26
36
46
56
66
76
86
96
7
17
27
37
47
57
67
77
87
97
8
18
28
38
48
58
68
78
88
98
9
10
19 20
29 30
39 40
49 50
59 60
69 70
79 80
89 90
99 100
Number 1:
QUESTION:
What is government?
ANSWER:
Institution through which a society
makes and enforces its public policy
Number 2:
QUESTION:
What is public policy?
ANSWER:
all of the goals a government sets and the
various courses of action it pursues as it
attempts to realize these goals
Number 3:
QUESTION:
What is legislative power?
ANSWER:
power to make law and to frame
public policies
Number 4:
QUESTION:
What is executive power?
ANSWER:
power to execute, enforce, and
administer law
Number 5:
QUESTION:
What is judicial power?
ANSWER:
power to interpret laws, to determine their
meaning, and to settle disputes that arise
within the society
Number 6:
QUESTION:
What is “the body of fundamental laws
setting out the principles, structures,
and processes of government?”
ANSWER:
A constitution
Number 7:
QUESTION:
What is a form of government in which
the leader has absolute power and
authority?
ANSWER:
A dictatorship
Number 8:
QUESTION:
What is a form of government in which
the supreme authority rests with the
people?
ANSWER:
A democracy
Number 9:
QUESTION:
What is a body of people living in a
defined territory who have a
government with the power to make
and enforce law without the consent
of any higher authority?
ANSWER:
A state
Number 10:
QUESTION:
What is defined as having supreme
power within its own territory;
neither subordinate nor responsible
to any other authority?
ANSWER:
sovereignty
Number 11:
QUESTION:
What did Thomas Hobbes believe
about man?
ANSWER:
government is necessary to prevent "the
war of every man against every man."
(man is inherently evil)
Number 12:
QUESTION:
What did John Locke believe about
man?
ANSWER:
We give up certain rights and freedoms to
promote the safety and well-being of all
(man is naturally good)
Number 13:
QUESTION:
Which theory of the origins of
government claims that states form
when one person or group forces
others under their control?
ANSWER:
The Force Theory
Number 14:
QUESTION:
Which theory of the origins of
government claims that states
developed naturally out of the early
family?
ANSWER:
The Evolution Theory
Number 15:
QUESTION:
Which theory of the origins of
government claims that God created
the state and gave those of royal
birth a right to rule?
ANSWER:
The Divine Right Theory
Number 16:
QUESTION:
Which theory of the origins of
government claims that people
within an area gave up power to the
state to promote safety of all?
ANSWER:
The Social Contract Theory
Number 17:
QUESTION:
In which type of government does a
single person hold unlimited political
power?
ANSWER:
An autocracy
Number 18:
QUESTION:
In which type of government is the
power to rule held by a small, usually
self-appointed elite?
ANSWER:
An oligarchy
Number 19:
QUESTION:
In which type of government do all
members of society vote on all
issues?
ANSWER:
A direct democracy
Number 20:
QUESTION:
In which type of government must
members meet specific criteria in
order to be eligible to vote?
ANSWER:
A republic
Number 21:
QUESTION:
Which type of government elects
individual members to make
decisions for the whole?
ANSWER:
A representative democracy
Number 22:
QUESTION:
Which type of government has a
centralized government in which all
powers belong to a single, central
agency?
ANSWER:
A unitary government
Number 23:
QUESTION:
Which type of government divides
powers between a central
government and several local
governments?
ANSWER:
A federal government
Number 24:
QUESTION:
What term refers to governmental
powers being divided on a
geographic basis?
ANSWER:
Division of powers
Number 25:
QUESTION:
Which government is an alliance of
independent states with a weak
central government?
ANSWER:
A confederation
Number 26:
QUESTION:
Which government has executive and
legislative branches that are
separate, independent, and coequal?
ANSWER:
Presidential government
Number 27:
QUESTION:
Which government has an executive
that is made up of the prime minister
and that official's cabinet?
ANSWER:
Parliamentary government
Number 28:
QUESTION:
Which characteristic of democracy
states that each person, no matter
what his or her station in life, is a
separate and distinct being?
ANSWER:
Worth of individuals
Number 29:
QUESTION:
Which characteristic of democracy
states that all are entitled to equality
of opportunity and equality before
the law?
ANSWER:
Equality of persons
Number 30:
QUESTION:
Which characteristic of democracy
states that the largest group of
people is generally right, but cannot
ignore small groups?
ANSWER:
Majority rule, minority rights
Number 31:
QUESTION:
Which characteristic of democracy
states that democracy can only exist
when parties work to find the most
acceptable position?
ANSWER:
Necessity of compromise
Number 32:
QUESTION:
Which characteristic of democracy
states that each individual is as free
to do as he or she pleases as far as
the freedom of all will allow?
ANSWER:
Individual freedom
Number 33:
QUESTION:
What economic system is
characterized by the private
ownership of capital goods?
ANSWER:
Free enterprise system
Number 34:
QUESTION:
What economic law states that when
supplies of goods and services
become plentiful, prices tend to
drop?
ANSWER:
Law of supply and demand
Number 35:
QUESTION:
What economic system consists of
private enterprise with a
considerable amount of government
regulation?
ANSWER:
Mixed economy
Number 36:
QUESTION:
What type of government is restricted
in what it may do, and each
individual has certain rights that
government cannot take away?
ANSWER:
Limited government
Number 37:
QUESTION:
What is a system of government in
which public policies are made by
officials selected by the voters and
held accountable in periodic
elections?
ANSWER:
Representative government
Number 38:
QUESTION:
Which document, also known as the
Great Charter, was forced upon King
John of England and established that
the power of the monarchy was not
absolute?
ANSWER:
The Magna Carta
Number 39:
QUESTION:
Which document, prepared by Parliament
and signed by King Charles I of England in
1628, challenged the idea of the divine
right of kings and declared that even the
monarch was subject to the laws of the
land?
ANSWER:
Petition of Right
Number 40:
QUESTION:
Which document was written by Parliament
and agreed on by William and Mary of
England in 1689, designed to prevent
abuse of power by English monarchs and
served as the basis for American politics?
ANSWER:
English Bill of Rights
Number 41:
QUESTION:
What is a bicameral legislature?
ANSWER:
A legislature composed of two houses
Number 42:
QUESTION:
What is a unicameral legislature?
ANSWER:
A legislature composed of one house
Number 43:
QUESTION:
Which group served as the nation’s
first national government?
ANSWER:
The 2nd Continental Congress
Number 44:
QUESTION:
What is another term for recalling an
act of government?
ANSWER:
repeal
Number 45:
QUESTION:
What document was signed on July 4,
1776, listing grievances against
England?
ANSWER:
Declaration of Independence
Number 46:
QUESTION:
What basic principle of American
government asserts that the people
are the source of any and all power,
and government can exist only with
the consent of the governed?
ANSWER:
Popular sovereignty
Number 47:
QUESTION:
What plan of government was adopted
by the Continental Congress after the
American Revolution, establishing a
"firm league of friendship" among
the States?
ANSWER:
Articles of Confederation
Number 48:
QUESTION:
What is the formal approval of a
constitution, constitutional
amendment, or treaty?
ANSWER:
ratification
Number 49:
QUESTION:
What is the name given to the group of
delegates who drafted the
Constitution?
ANSWER:
The Framers
Number 50:
QUESTION:
What proposal called for a three-branch
government with a bicameral legislature
in which each State's membership would
be determined by its population or its
financial support for the central
government?
ANSWER:
The Virginia Plan
Number 51:
QUESTION:
Which proposal was presented as an
alternative to the Virginia Plan and
called for a unicameral legislature in
which each state would be equally
represented?
ANSWER:
The New Jersey Plan
Number 52:
QUESTION:
Which plan was a compromise that
formed our final system of
government?
ANSWER:
The Connecticut Compromise
Number 53:
QUESTION:
What was the Three-Fifths
Compromise?
ANSWER:
Agreement at the Constitutional Convention to
count a slave as three-fifths of a person when
determining the population of a State.
Number 54:
QUESTION:
What was the Commerce and Slave
Trade Compromise?
ANSWER:
Agreement during the Constitutional Convention protecting
slave holders. It denied Congress the power to tax the
export of goods from any State, and, for 20 years, the
power to act on the slave trade.
Number 55:
QUESTION:
What name was given to those who
supported the ratification of the
Constitution?
ANSWER:
Federalists
Number 56:
QUESTION:
What name was given to those who
opposed ratification of the
Constitution?
ANSWER:
Anti-federalists
Number 57:
QUESTION:
Which Constitutional concept and
basic principle of government states
that those who govern must obey the
law?
ANSWER:
Constitutionalism
Number 58:
QUESTION:
Which Constitutional concept states
that government and its officers are
always subject to the law?
ANSWER:
Rule of law
Number 59:
QUESTION:
Which Constitutional concept provides
that powers are divided among three
independent and coequal branches?
ANSWER:
Separation of powers
Number 60:
QUESTION:
Which Constitutional concept provides
a system of overlapping powers to
permit each branch to check the
others?
ANSWER:
Checks and balances
Number 61:
QUESTION:
Which Constitutional concept gives
power to the court to determine the
constitutionality of a governmental
action?
ANSWER:
Judicial review
Number 62:
QUESTION:
Which word means “declare a
government provision illegal, null,
and void?”
ANSWER:
unconstitutional
Number 63:
QUESTION:
Which Constitutional concept provides
for a division of power between a
central government and regional
governments?
ANSWER:
federalism
Number 64:
QUESTION:
What is a change in the written
language of the Constitution?
ANSWER:
Formal amendment
Number 65:
QUESTION:
What is a change made by experience,
not the actual words of the
Constitution?
ANSWER:
Informal amendment
Number 66:
QUESTION:
What is another name for the first 10
Amendments to the Constitution?
ANSWER:
The Bill of Rights
Number 67:
QUESTION:
What is a pact between the President
and head of a foreign state?
ANSWER:
An executive agreement
Number 68:
QUESTION:
What is a formal agreement between
two or more sovereign states?
ANSWER:
Treaty
Number 69:
QUESTION:
What is the Presidential advisory body
(the heads of the executive
departments)?
ANSWER:
cabinet
Number 70:
QUESTION:
Which are all powers granted to the
National Government by the
Constitution?
ANSWER:
Delegated powers
Number 71:
QUESTION:
Which are the powers of the National
Government that are spelled out in
the Constitution?
ANSWER:
Expressed powers
Number 72:
QUESTION:
Which powers of the National
Government that are suggested as
"necessary and proper"?
ANSWER:
Implied powers
Number 73:
QUESTION:
Which are the powers the National
Government has as government of a
sovereign state?
ANSWER:
Inherent powers
Number 74:
QUESTION:
Which are the powers not granted to
the National Government nor denied
to the States?
ANSWER:
Reserved powers
Number 75:
QUESTION:
Which are the powers that both the
National Government and the States
possess and execute?
ANSWER:
Concurrent powers
Number 76:
QUESTION:
What clause states that the
Constitution stands above all other
forms of law?
ANSWER:
The Supremacy Clause
Number 77:
QUESTION:
What is a group that seeks to control
government through winning of
elections and the holding public
office?
ANSWER:
Political party
Number 78:
QUESTION:
What is government action based on
firm allegiance to a political party
called?
ANSWER:
partisanship
Number 79:
QUESTION:
What is the party that controls the
executive branch called?
ANSWER:
Party in power
Number 80:
QUESTION:
What word describes any government
action that is supported by two
parties?
ANSWER:
bipartisan
Number 81:
QUESTION:
What is the current office holder
called?
ANSWER:
incumbent
Number 82:
QUESTION:
What is the right to vote?
ANSWER:
suffrage
Number 83:
QUESTION:
Who are the people entitled to vote in
a given election?
ANSWER:
electorate
Number 84:
QUESTION:
In the United States, the list included
citizenship, residence, and age.
ANSWER:
Voter qualifications
Number 85:
QUESTION:
What is a Congressional election that
occurs between presidential election
years?
ANSWER:
Off-year election
Number 86:
QUESTION:
Divided between personal
characteristics (age, race, etc) and
group affiliation (family, co-workers,
friends, etc.).
ANSWER:
Factors effecting voting
Number 87:
QUESTION:
What is the practice of voting for
candidates of only one party in an
election?
ANSWER:
Straight-ticket voting
Number 88:
QUESTION:
What is the practice of voting for
candidates of different parties for
different offices?
ANSWER:
Split-ticket voting
Number 89:
QUESTION:
What is the nominating device
composed of a group of like-minded
people?
ANSWER:
caucus
Number 90:
QUESTION:
What is the date of national elections?
ANSWER:
Tuesday-after-the-first Monday in
November
Number 91:
QUESTION:
What is the effect when a strong
candidate at the top of a ballot
helping attract voters to lower
offices?
ANSWER:
Coattail effect
Number 92:
QUESTION:
What is the smallest unit of election
administration?
ANSWER:
precinct
Number 93:
QUESTION:
What is the political extension of
special-interest groups?
ANSWER:
Political action committee (PAC)
Number 94:
QUESTION:
What is the complex collection of the
opinions of many different people?
ANSWER:
Public opinion
Number 95:
QUESTION:
What are those means of
communication that reach large
audiences (TV, radio, etc.)?
ANSWER:
Mass media
Number 96:
QUESTION:
What are the instructions or
commands a constituency gives to its
elected officials?
ANSWER:
mandate
Number 97:
QUESTION:
What is a private organization whose
members share certain views and
work to shape public policy?
ANSWER:
Interest group
Number 98:
QUESTION:
What is a technique of persuasion
aimed at influencing individual or
group behaviors to create a
particular belief, regardless of its
validity?
ANSWER:
propaganda
Number 99:
QUESTION:
What are those activities by which
group pressures are brought to bear
on legislators, the legislative
process, and all aspects of the public
policy-making process?
ANSWER:
lobbying
Number 100:
QUESTION:
What term refers to issues, beliefs, or
pressures that arise from the
average voters?
ANSWER:
Grass roots
Score and Graph