Unit 1 (Lesson 2)

Question 1

authoritarian regime

Answer 1

a system of government in which the state exercises broad control over the lives of its citizens

Question 2

absolute monarchies

Answer 2

a government led by a hereditary ruler who claims unlimited powers

Question 3

capitalism

Answer 3

an economic system in which individual investors, or capitalists, privately own the means of production; also known as a free enterprise system

Question 4

command economy

Answer 4

An economic system that relies mainly on the central government to determine what goods and services to produce and how to produce them

Question 4

city-state

Answer 4

a sovereign state consisting of a city and its surrounding territory

Question 5

communism

Answer 5

a system of government in which a single political party controls both the government and the economy; also, the theories developed by Karl Marx regarding the development of an ideal, classless society

Question 6

confederal system of government

Answer 6

a political system in which independent states form a nation but retain their power under a weak central government

Question 7

constitutional democracy

Answer 7

a democratic government based on a written constitution

Question 8

constitutional monarchy

Answer 8

a system of government in which the powers of a monarch are limited by a constitution, either written or unwritten

Question 9

democracies

Answer 9

A system of government in which citizens exercise supreme power, acting either directly on their own or through elected representatives

Question 10

coup d’état

Answer 10

the sudden overthrow of a government by a small group of military officers or political leaders; from a French term meaning “blow to the state”

Question 11

despot

Answer 11

a tyrant or ruler with absolute powers

Question 12

direct democracy

Answer 12

a democratic form of government in which citizens make public decisions directly, either in a popular assembly or through a popular vote

Question 13

dictatorships

Answer 13

A system of government in which a single person or group exercises supreme power by controlling the military and police

Question 14

factors of production

Answer 14

the basic resources required to produce goods and services: land, labor, and capital

Question 14

economic system

Answer 14

a way of organizing the production and consumption of goods and services

Question 15

elite

Answer 15

a small group of people within a larger group who have more power, wealth, or talent than the others

Question 16

federal system of government

Answer 16

a type of government in which power is shared between the national government and smaller regional governments within the nation

Question 17

fascism

Answer 17

a totalitarian system in which businesses remain in private hands but under government control

Question 18

feudalism

Answer 18

an economic and political system of the European Middle Ages in which landowners granted land to tenants in return for military assistance and other services

Question 19

free enterprise system

Answer 19

an economic system that relies on the profit motive, economic competition, and the forces of supply and demand to direct the production and distribution of goods and services; also known as capitalism

Question 20

initiative process

Answer 20

a form of direct democracy in which citizens propose laws and submit them directly to the voters for approval

Question 21

market

Answer 21

any place or situation in which people buy or sell goods and services

Question 22

market economy

Answer 22

An economic system that relies mainly on markets to determine what goods and services to produce and how to produce them

Question 23

ministries

Answer 23

an executive branch department, often in a parliamentary system

Question 23

mixed economies

Answer 23

an economic system that combines market forces with elements of a command economy

Question 23

monarchies

Answer 23

A system of government in which a single ruler exercises supreme power based on heredity or divine right. In a monarchy, the right to rule passes from one generation of the ruling family to the next.

Question 24

Nazism

Answer 24

a form of totalitarianism and type of fascism, based in part on the myth of racial superiority; developed in Germany before World War II

Question 25

parliament

Answer 25

A legislative assembly in which elected representatives debate and vote on proposed laws. The name comes from the French term parler, meaning “to talk.”

Question 26

parliamentary democracy

Answer 26

a political system in which voters elect lawmakers to represent them in the nation’s parliament; the elected lawmakers choose a prime minister to head the executive branch

Question 27

presidential democracies

Answer 27

a political system in which voters chose a president to lead the government as head of the executive branch

Question 28

prime minister

Answer 28

the chief executive in a parliamentary democracy

Question 29

recall election

Answer 29

an electoral process through which citizens can vote an elected official out of office

Question 30

referendum process

Answer 30

a form of direct democracy in which citizens vote to approve or reject laws passed by a legislature

Question 31

representative democracy

Answer 31

a democratic form of government in which elected representatives make public decisions on behalf of the citizens

Question 32

republic

Answer 32

A nation in which supreme power rests with the citizens and is exercised by their elected representatives

Question 33

single-party state

Answer 33

a nation-state in which only one political party is allowed to rule under the constitution

Question 34

socialism

Answer 34

an economic system that calls for public ownership of the means of production

Question 35

supranational organization

Answer 35

a world or regional organization that is not tied to any one country

Question 36

theocracy

Answer 36

a government headed by religious leaders

Question 36

totalitarianism

Answer 36

an extreme form of authoritarian rule in which the state seeks to control every aspect of its citizens’ lives

Question 37

traditional economy

Answer 37

An economic system in which decisions about what to produce and how are made on the basis of customs, beliefs, and tradition

Question 38

unitary system of government

Answer 38

a political system in which the constitution concentrates power in the national, or central, government

Question 39

vote of no confidence

Answer 39

a majority vote in parliament showing disapproval of a prime minister’s performance; such a vote prompts new elections and a change of leadership