My ABC book of U.S. History

By: Trevor Henry2nd period

May,13 2011

Ambush- A surprise attack.

AArsenal- A storage place for weapons and ammunition.

Abstain- To not take part in some activity, such as voting.

Annex- To add a territory to ones own territory.

BBackcountry- A region of hills and forests west of the tide-water.

Blockade runner- Ship that sails into and out of a blockade area.

Boycott- To refuse to buy items from a particular country.

Burgesses- Elected representatives to an assembly.

CCabinet- A group of advisers to the president.

Canal- An artificial waterway.

Capital- Money for investment. Cede- To give up by treaty.

DDebtor- Person or country that owes money. Diversity- Variety or difference.

Draft- The selection of persons for required military service.

Drought- A long period of time with little rainfall.

EEmancipate- To free from slavery. Entrenched- Occupying a strong defensive position.

Effigy- Rag figure representing an unpopular individual.

Export- To sell goods abroad.

FFamine- An extreme shortage of food. Freedman- A person freed from slavery.

Frigate- Warship Fugitive- Runaway or trying to run away.

GGenocide- the deliberate destruction of a racial, political, or cultural group.

Global warming- A steady increase in average word temperatures.

Greenback- a piece of U.S. paper money first issued by the North during the Civil War.

Guerrilla tactics- referring to surprise attacks or raids rather than organized warfare.

HHolocaust- The name given to the mass slaughter of Jews and other groups the Nazis during WW2.

Habeas Corpus- A legal order for an inquiry to determine whether a person has been lawfully imprisoned.

Horizontal Integration- The combining of completing films into one corporation.

Hiero Glyphic- An ancient form of writing using symbols and pictures to represent words, sounds, and concepts.

IImport- To buy goods from foreign markets. Impressments- Forcing people into

service, as in the navy.

Internet- A worldwide linking of computer networks.

Ironclad- Armored naval vessel.

JJohn Paul Jones- A daring American naval officer. Joint Occupation- The possession and settling of

an area shared by two or more countries.

Andrew Johnson- 17th President of the United States.

Judicial Review- The right of the supreme court to determine if a law violates the constitution.

LLandslide- An overwhelming victory. Legislative Branch- The branch of

government that makes the nations laws.

Literacy- The ability to read and write.

Lynching- Putting to death a person by the illegal action of a mob.

KKansas-Nebraska Act- Fighting for control of free or slave state.

Bleeding Kansas- a war in Kansas.

Fracis Key Scott- Wrote the star spangled banner.

King George 3rd- King of England.

MMaize- An early form of corn grown by Native Americans.

Majority- More than half.

Mission- Religious settlement. Monopoly- Total control of an industry by one company.

NNaturalization- To grant full citizenship to a foreigner.

Neutral- Taking no side in a conflict.

Neutrality- A position of not taking sides in a conflict.

Nullify- To cancel or make ineffective.

OOffensive- Position or attacking or the attack itself.

Ordinance- A law or regulation.

Override- To overturn or defeat, as a bill proposed in congress.

Overseer- Person who supervises a large operation or its workers.

PPartisan- Favoring one side of an issue. Petition- A formal request.

Pilgrimage- A journey to a holy place.

Plurality- Largest single share.

RRadical- Extreme. Ranchero- Mexican ranch owner

Recruit- To enlist soldiers in the army.

Rendezvous- A meeting.

QQuakers- A name for a member of the religious.

Queue Act- Act passed in 1794 by the Britain parliament to establish French civil law.

Quartering Act- where American colonists had to ensure that Britain solders had housing.

John Quincy Adams- 6th president of the United States.

SSecede- To leave or withdraw. Secession- Withdrawal from the

Union.

Sectionalism- Loyalty to a region. Suffrage- The right to vote.

TTariff- A tax on imports or exports. Temperance- The use of little or no alcohol

drinking.

Tribute- Money paid for protection.

TeJano- A Mexican who claims Texas as his home.

UUnalienable right- A right that cannot be surrendered.

Unconstitutional- Not agreeing or consistent with the Constitution.

Underground Railroad- a system that helped enslaved African Americans follow a network of escape routes.

Utopia- Community based on a vision of a perfect society sought by reformers.

VVaquero- Hispanic ranch hand.

Vertical Integration- The combining of companies that supply equipment and services needed for a particular industry.

Veto- To reject a bill and prevent it from becoming a law.

Vigilantes- People who take the law into their own hands.

WWar Hawks- Republicans during Madison's presidency who pressed for war with Britain.

Writ of Assistance- Legal document that enabled officers to search homes and warehouses for goods that might be smuggled.

David Walker- A Boston published writer impassioned argument against slavery.

George Washington- 1st President of the United States.

XXYZ Affair- Was a dispute with France.

YYankee- Union solider. Yellow Journalism- A type of sensational,

biased, and often false reporting.

Yeoman- Southern owner of a small farm who did not have enslaved people.

ZJohn Peter Zenger- Was a part of New York's weekly journal. Zuni- People of the Southwest.