American Dreams and Aspirations - Thematic Vocabulary

A complete thematic vocabulary collection covering US history, politics, beliefs, immigration, economy, crises, and ways of life.

to abolish sth.; abolition of sth.

to officially end a law, a system

to become independent of sb./sth.

to become one's own master

cancel culture

practice of completely rejecting and stopping your support of sb. because they have said or done sth. that offends you, esp. on social media

civil rights movement

fight for equal rights, whatever a person's race, sex or religion

discrimination

practice of treating a person or group less fairly than others

to escape persecution

to get away from persecution

to found sth.

to start sth., e.g. an organization, a company, etc.

Founding Father

sb. (male) who begins sth., e.g. a new way of thinking (here: Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, etc.)

Frontier

border between settled (supposedly civilized) and unsettled (supposedly uncivilized) country

to gain independence

to become independent

independence

freedom from political control by the government of another country

interventionism

policy of intervening in the affairs of another sovereign state

isolationism

policy of non-participation in international economic and political relations

native

word used by white people to refer to the people who lived in America, etc. before Europeans arrived

pilgrim

religious person who travels to a holy place

plantation

large piece of land where crops are grown

prejudice

unreasonable dislike of people who are different from oneself

to be prejudiced

having an unreasonable dislike of sb. or sth., mostly because of perceived differences

protest movement

large group of people who come together to publicly express disapproval or opposition to sth.

purchase

sth. you buy

Puritan

member of a Protestant religious sect in the 16th and 17th centuries, who wanted to 'purify' Christianity

racial segregation

when people of different races are kept apart so that they live, work or study separately

to rebel; rebellion

to oppose or fight against people in authority or against an idea or a situation which you do not agree with; an organized attempt to change the government or a leader of a country, potentially using violence

subject (fml.)

here: citizen

trading post

place where people can buy and exchange goods far away from one's home country, esp. in the past

administration

government or management of a country

amendment

change to a law or the constitution

to amend a bill

to make changes to a (draft) law

appointment

act of choosing sb. for a position or job

article

paragraph (of a law)

civil servant

sb. employed in a government department

constitution

set of basic laws and principles that a country or organization is governed by

constitutional

allowed or contained in a constitution

to declare sth. unconstitutional

to say officially that sth. is not allowed by the constitution

domestic policy

internal policy of a country that does not involve other countries

to ensure

to make certain that sth. will happen properly

foreign policy

involving or dealing with other countries

to govern

to rule

grass roots

ordinary people rather than the rulers

head of state

main representative of a country, e.g. a king or president

insurrection

organized attempt by a group of people to depose their government and take control of their country, usually by violence

to interfere with sth.

to prevent sth. from happening the way that it was planned

Make America Great Again (MAGA)

political slogan used by supporters of nationalistic parties and political movements in the US

petition

document signed by a large number of people demanding or asking for some action from the government or another authority

to polarize

to divide into two completely opposing groups

policy

set of ideas of what to do in certain situations that has been agreed on by a government or a party

politician

sb. who works in politics, especially an elected member of the government

political

relating to governmental actions or people

to be (politically) impartial

not supporting one person or group more than another

populist/populism

political ideas and activities that are intended to get the support of ordinary people by giving them what they want (to hear)

to ratify a treaty

to make a treaty official by signing it

reunification

to join the parts of sth. together again, especially a country that was divided

achievement

sth. that you succeed in doing by your own efforts

authority

power you have because of your (official) position

cultural patterns/habits

cultural ideas/behaviour

divine providence

what is thought to be God's intervention in the world

to be equal; equality

to have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else, no matter what your sex, race, age, religion, etc.

God's chosen people

in 1630, the founding Puritans believed they were the chosen people of God and had the duty to build an ideal Christian community in the New World

heterogeneous society

very diverse society

to identify with sb./sth.; identification

to feel sympathy for sb./sth. or be able to share their feelings; a strong feeling of sympathy based on perceived similarity

inalienable/unalienable rights

rights that cannot be taken from you

individuality

qualities that make sb. or sth. different from other people or things

Manifest Destiny

belief that European settlers had the right and the duty to take land in North America from other people, because this was God's plan

melting pot

the idea of a place where people's different races, cultures, etc. blend together into one nation

national anthem

official song of a nation

national pride

being proud of having a particular nationality

to offer an opportunity to sb.

to give sb. a chance to do sth.

patriot

sb. who shows love for their country and is proud of it

patriotic

showing great love of and pride in your country

patriotism

when you love your country and are proud of it; national pride

prosperity

wealth

pursuit of happiness

act of trying to find happiness

rags-to-riches

idea of becoming very rich after starting out in life very poor

religious tolerance

not discriminating against people from different religions

self-improvement

process of trying to become a better person

thrift

habit of saving money and spending it carefully

unlimited possibilities

endless/limitless opportunities

alien

sb. who is not a citizen of the country in which they live and work

to assimilate; assimilation

to become a part of a country/community by adapting to that community

Black Lives Matter (BLM)

political movement that protests violence against black people and emphasizes that black people's lives are of equal importance to other lives

blackfacing

dark make-up worn by a white person in order to look like a black person, or the practice of doing this; considered to be offensive and racist, as it was done in the past to ridicule black people

border control

measures taken to prevent illegal immigrants from entering a country; immigration control

citizen

sb. who has the legal right to belong to a particular country

descendant

sb. who is related to a person that lived a long time ago

to emigrate (from); emigration

to leave one's own country in order to live in another

ethnic

relating or belonging to a group of people who can be seen as distinct (= different) because they have a shared culture, tradition, language, history, etc.

ethnic diversity

variety of different ethnic groups

ethnicity

belonging to a group of people with a shared culture, language, history, set of traditions, etc.

Hispanic

sb. whose first language is Spanish, esp. one who comes from a Latin American country

illegal aliens

illegal immigrants

to immigrate (to)

to come into a country in order to live there

immigration control

place where the passports and other documents of people coming into the country are checked

inclusion

act of including sb. or sth. as part of a group, list, etc.

indigenous (people)

referring or relating to the people who originally lived in a particular place, in contrast to people who moved there from somewhere else

(cultural) interaction

act of communicating with sb. (from a different culture)

Jim Crow (laws)

laws and policies once used in the US to treat black people unfairly and to keep them apart from white people

LGBTQ+

lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer; umbrella term for the varieties of sexual and gender identity

multi-ethnic

involving or including different ethnicities

native (people)

relating to the people who first lived in an area

naturalization

act of becoming a citizen of a particular country