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SAT Subject Test: U.S. History Vocab

Subjects : sat, history
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. The post-WWII US policy that sought to prevent the spread of communism.






2. Political party organizations that run cities and are often associated with corruption and undemocratic practices. The most notorious example was New York's Tammary Hall Democratic club of the Gilded age.






3. A type of colony that was settled by a group of investors and in which the governor of the colony was chosen by the proprietors.






4. The belief the the US should not be involved in world affairs.






5. Motion pictures with sound. The Jazz Singer (1927) was the first movie to use sound in a significant way.






6. Middle-class reform movement of the first decades of the 20th century which sought to widen political participation - eradicate corruption - and apply scientific and technological expertise to social ills.






7. The term denoting the ongoing military battle of the US and its allies against terrorism - first used by George W. Bush when addressing a joint session of Congress following the terrorist attacks on September 11 - 2001.






8. The political act of leaving the Union. The Southern states formed their own country during 1860-1861 after they seceded from the United States.






9. Worker organization formed to press for workplace demands - such as better wages and safer working conditions.






10. Cattle handlers who drove large herds across the southern Great Plains. The era of the cowboy lasted from 1870 to the late 1880s.






11. A type of adjustable-rate mortgage - often requiring no down payment - offered to customers with risky credit ratings. The lending institution makes money by steadily increasing interest payments.






12. A program providing health care for the needy (people who lived below the poverty level) who were not covered by Medicare.






13. George W. Bush's belief in the propriety of using unilateral preemptive military strikes-essentially a preventive war- to fight terrorism.






14. A company that developed in the early 1600s in England wherein a group of investors pooled their money to finance exploration of the new World. The investor would receive a portion of the profits resulting from the exploration of the New World based






15. Grangers - Populists - and agrarian activists of the late 19th century who advocated basing money o silver as well as gold. See Free Silverites.






16. An economic system in which the state controls the production and distribution of certain products deemed necessary for the good of the people






17. The railroad route connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans that was completed in 1869.






18. Laws made by the British government restricting colonial trade of sugar and tobacco to any country other than England or by any means other than on British ships.






19. Residential communities near large urban centers. Although suburbs existed in the 19th century - they became a widespread social phenomenon in the 1950s.






20. A slogan used by President Lyndon B. Johnson to describe his goal of ending poverty in the United States.






21. The series of laws designed to create separation between the races. These were by and large Southern state laws made constitutional by the Supreme Court decision Plessy. v Ferguson in 1896.






22. Teenagers - as an identifiable social group - emerged in the 1950s. Teenagers were seen both as a problematic - rebellious group - as well as a target for new products and cultural offerings.






23. The economic state in which prices are rising (inflation) and unemployment is high - producing stagnation of growth.






24. The political idea that the West should be free of slavery. In 1846 - David Wilmot wrote the proviso that there "shall be no slavery or involuntary servitude in any territory acquired from Mexico -" which galvanized the antislavery forces in Congress






25. The wave of immigration from the 1880s to the 1920s of Eastern and Southern Europeans - contrasted with the "old" immigration of Northern and Western Europeans.






26. A political philosophy that promotes solving social issues through cooperation with private agencies rather than through direct government programs. It also stresses the personal responsibility and accountability as keys to success.






27. A type of colony controlled by the king. The crown chose the governor to run the colony.






28. The movement to form labor organizations that represent every worker in a single industry - regardless of his or her level of skill.






29. The system built into the US Constitution in which the three branches of government (legislative - executive - and judicial) have separate and equal powers that are limited and dependent upon each other. It is also called separation of powers.






30. Reading tests required in some Southern states before people were allowed to register to vote. They were mainly intended to prevent African Americans from voting.






31. The joining together of companies engaged in similar business practices to create a virtual monopoly.






32. A body of advisers to a head of state. The US president's cabinet consists of the heads of the various departments plus other advisers.






33. The Eisenhower-era theory that one communist country would infiltrate or influence its neighbors - supporting insurrection there and causing them to become communist too. They would fall like a series of dominoes standing close together. Kennedy - Jo






34. An indictment or formal charge brought by the legislative body against a government official - especially the president - in an attempt to remove the person from office. If the House of Representatives determines that a president has committed acts t






35. Agreements employers forced potential employees to sign in which the employees agreed not to join unions or go on strike.






36. The power of the president to reject legislation. The US Congress can override a veto by the US president if it can pass the legislation by a two-thirds majority.






37. Found in the 10th Amendment - it provides that any powers not specifically given to the central government or specifically denied to the state governments by the Constitution are powers that the states are granted. For example - the power to develop






38. Lincoln's contention that the Union pre-existed the Constitution because it began with the Articles of Association in 1774-since the states had signed on to that document - the Union could not be broken. He discussed this theory in his first inaugura






39. Government policy of noninterference in business practices and in individuals economic affairs; literally translated as "to let do."






40. The organizations and events in the 20th century that collectively pressured federal - state - and local governments and businesses to grant equal rights to blacks and other minorities.






41. The practice of buying stock on credit. People pay a small percentage of the price of the stock - hoping that it will go up in value and that they can use money from the sale to pay the balance they owe. This practice contributed to the stock market






42. The building of canals - railroads - and turnpikes at state or federal expense. These were part of the American Plan - which became an important part of the Whig program of the 1830s. Internal improvements were also supported by the National Republic






43. The condition when all adults in a democracy are granted the right to vote.






44. Bundles of subprime mortgages that are traded like stocks.






45. Derogatory term used by the labor movement to describe workers who cross picket lines






46. A tax that is added onto the price of goods produced - sold - or distributed within a country; for example - sales tax.






47. Trade that takes place within the boundaries of a state. Under the US Constitution - the power to regulate intrastate commerce is delegated to the states.






48. The process of acquiring new territories






49. A government controlled behind the scenes by another power. During the Vietnam War - South Vietnam's governments were installed and controlled by the US; Ngo Dinh Diem and General Thieu - leaders of South Vietnam were American puppets.






50. Settlers who were granted plots in the West - usually of 160 acres - under the Homestead Act of 1862.