EXTRA information in italics.
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ENTERTAINMENT – on Quizlet |
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| Hollywood | in Los Angeles, CA; home of the American movie industry, however, it has become too expensive to shoot films in its studios so film-making industry left Hollywood |
| Walk of Fame | in Hollywood Boulevard; names of internationally famous entertainers (actors, directors, musicians etc.) are found here in the sidewalks, embedded there in five-pointed stars; there are about 3,000 stars on the pavement |
| silent movie | films without words or sound effects in the early 20th century, later accompanied by piano music |
| talkie | a film with sound |
| Academy Awards | the official name for The Oscars, a prize given to people in the film industry, awarded in numerous categories |
| nominate | to officially suggest that someone should be given a prize or a job / position |
| Steven Spielberg | American director, producer and scriptwriter, most famous for the films E.T.; Schindler’s List; Jurassic Park; Saving Private Ryan; MIIIB (Men in Black 3); won the Oscar for “Best Director” twice |
| Walt Disney | American cartoonist, best-known for the figure of Mickey Mouse; he made the first cartoon with sound and also the first to create colored cartoons (Disney is famous for Snow White, Bambi, Dumbo, Pinocchio etc.) |
| drive-in movie | cinemas where the audience parked their cars inside the cinema and were watching the film on screen from their cars |
| Broadway, the | in Manhattan, NYC; home to lots of theatres and other entertainment facilities; top musicals and theatre shows are played here |
| American Idol, the | based on British series Pop Idol, a reality-singing talent show competition to find great singers who once will be popular all around the world; the show finished in 2013 |
| blues | music style first introduced by black Americans whose grandparents used to be slaves; the lyrics are about life and relationship problems (blue – meaning sad) |
| Elvis Presley | a singer and musician who created rock and roll that changed the complete musical industry in the late 1950s and 1960s |
| gospel music | Christian themed, powerful and rhythmical songs influenced by soul music; was developed in churches where black people used to go |
| Michael Jackson | one of the most popular as well as dividing entertainer in the US music industry; famous for beginning his career at an early age, later developed a unique movement on stage called “Moonwalk” |
| Madonna | the best-selling female artist of the 20th century, she also appeared in musical films and won a Golden Globe Award for Evita |
| F. Scott Fitzgerald | Irish American writer of the early 20th century, member of “The Los Generation”; writer of The Great Gatsby |
| the Lost Generation | a group of famous American writers who left the States and immigrated into Europe after the WWI |
| The Great Gatsby | one of the most popular American books, also adapted into a movie; written by F. Scott Fitzgerald; takes place in NYC and Long Island, and describes the “America Dream”, story of love and loss of Jay Gatsby, the story is narrated by Nick, his next-door neighbor |
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MADE IN THE USA – On Quizlet |
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| dachshund | a small dog with a long, sausage-like body, short legs and long ears |
| a spectator | a person who watches a public event live (e.g. a match) |
| canvas | a strong, raw cotton-like material used for making military tents, sails, clothes etc. |
| gold miners | people who go under the ground to find rocks containing gold |
| 49’ers | nickname for those who took part in the California Gold Rush in 1849 |
| California Gold Rush | gold-seekers arrived to CA from all over the world soon after the news that gold had been found in CA spread |
| Levi Strauss | a maker of clothing; born in Germany and moved to CA in the 1850s to make clothes for gold miners; found a nicer material (denim) instead of hard canvas to make pants for the miners – these were Levi’s pants, the first popular Levis blue jeans |
| denim | a canvas-like material but no as raw as canvas |
| pants | AmE for trousers |
| experiment | a scientific test to see what happens to someone or something in certain conditions |
| wires | long, thin metal cables |
| electricity | energy that can produce light, heat or power for machinery |
| voice | the sound we make when we speak |
| a druggist | AmE for pharmacist |
| a drugstore | AmE or pharmacy |
| all-purpose medicine | medicine (or remedy) that is considered to cure any illness |
| sculptor | a person who designs and makes statues and sculptures |
| admire | to respect (“like) someone or something greatly |
| contribute | to work together in order to reach an ambition by giving money, goods or work in the process |
| the Doubleday myth | the belief that used to say that baseball was invented by US general Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown, NY in 1839 |
| a food stand | AmE for food stall, a temporary structure used to make and sell (fast) food to the public |
| all-you-can-drink | you pay a certain amount of money at the restaurant / bar and then you can fill your glass as many times as you want |
| gambling | games that take your risk and money, e.g.: poker, the lottery, casinos etc. |
| monumental | really great in size; important in meaning |
| Mount Rushmore | a famous memorial carved in the mountain rocks, it contains the heads of four US presidents: Washington, Jefferson, Th. Roosevelt and Lincoln |
| dormitory | a room at school where students sleep |
| Bill Gates | an American businessman, co-founder and chairman of Microsoft, currently the second richest person in the world |
| Microsoft | a company that makes computer software and video games founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in 1975; most popular for Windows and Office programs |
| billionaire | a person who owns a billion; a very rich person |
| the Oscars | informal name for the Academy Award, a prize given to people in the film industry, awarded in numerous categories |
| assembly line | a system for production in a factory in which each worker is responsible one step in the process of making something |
| the T-model | invented by Henry Ford, the first car to be sold for very little money, built btw 1908 and 1928 by the Ford Motor Company in Detroit, Michigan |
| Will Keith Kellogg | a food manufacturer who founded Kellogg Company, which produces a wide range of breakfast cereals (first: Kellogg’s cornflakes) |
| sanitartium | alternative spelling for sanatorium, a place where patients are treated after an operation or serious disease / illness in order to recover |
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SPORTS IN THE USA – On Quizlet |
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| soccer | football (BrE); a game played on a field btw teams of 11 players, the aim of the game is to score – drive the ball into the goal |
| hockey | ice-hockey (BrE); a game played on an ice rink btw teams of 6 players; the aim of the game is to score – drive the puck into the goal |
| basketball | an indoor game played on a court btw teams of 5 players; the aim is to throw the ball through a net |
| baseball | a game with a bat and ball btw teams of 9 players, played on a large field having 4 bases |
| American football | a game btw teams of 11 player, the ball is moved forward by running or passing |
| coach | a person who instructs or trains usually sportspeople |
| career | achievement, developing in one’s life, work and experience |
| NFL | National Football League, the major one in football in the USA |
| fan | a team’s supporter |
| stadium | a large building usually without a roof with a field in the center and seats around it for spectators of sporting events |
| cheerleader | those usually girls or young women who direct and organize cheering at a sporting event (usually football game) |
| college | an independent school (institution) in higher education |
| helmet | headwear made of hard material and worn in order to protect one’s head |
| shoulder pads | in sports pads are made of hard plastic in order to protect one’s shoulders |
| quarterback | the player in a team sport who directs the offensive play of the team |
| NBA | National Basketball Association (also National Boxing Association); since 1949, a professional basketball league in the USA |
| WNBA | Women’s National Basketball Association; since 1996 |
| pitcher | the player who throws the ball towards the catcher in baseball |
| batter / hitter | the player in baseball facing the pitcher and tries to hit the ball in order the catcher can’t get it |
| bat | the wooden stick used for hitting the ball in baseball |
| NHL | National Hockey League; the professional ice-hockey league in North America; since 1919 |
| ice rink | where ice-hockey is played or people go skating |
| Stanley Cup, the | the oldest professional sports trophy in North America, the winner of the NHL season gets it |
| hockey stick | the equipment used for hitting the puck in ice-hockey |
| puck | a kind of “ball” in ice-hockey, a round, flat piece of rubber to be hit |
| MLS | Major League Soccer, since 1993; the professional league of North American soccer; the season runs from March to October and the final called MLS Cup is played in December after the playoffs |
| draws | profession sport leagues gather and bring the most talented youth players from the USA or other countries and usually give them a scholarship in order to have them in their professional team after the player’s graduation from university / college |
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EDUCATION IN THE USA – on Quizlet |
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| rural | relating to the countryside (opp.: urban) |
| semesters | two periods of about 18 weeks the schoolyear is divided |
| dropout | to leave school or college without finishing the studies and courses |
| curriculum | the subjects, courses and every topic included in them in a country’s school system or in a private school |
| Pledge of Allegiance | a short speech student learn and say every morning at school before the lessons start, they promise to be loyal to their country |
| extra-curricular | activities, lessons, courses not included in the curriculum |
| choir | a group of people singing together |
| yearbook | classes, teachers, school events, photos collected and published in a book at the end of a schoolyear |
| a freshman | BrE a fresher; university student in their first year or 4-yr-high school |
| a sophomore | a student in the second year of a US college or 4-yr-high school |
| a junior | a student in the third year of a US college or 4-yr-high school |
| a senior | a student in the last year of a US college or 4-yr-high school |
| a graduate | holding a diploma or an academic degree |
| a grade | 1) a schoolyear in the education system, 1-12; 2) a mark given |
| to fail | to be unsuccessful in a test / exam |
| to pass | to be successful in a test / exam |
| graduation | receiving a degree or other qualification after finishing your studies at a college or university |
| the prom | the party of seniors at high school |
| a gown | a long robe worn by a graduate at the graduation ceremony |
| a mortar board | a kind of hat worn by a graduate at the graduation ceremony |
| an exchange student | a student who spend one or more schoolyears in another country in order to learn a foreign language and get to know other people and cultures |
| a scholarship | a grant; a student with very good grades can be offered college, studies etc. usually for a year free of charge |
| compulsory | also mandatory; a “must” for everybody |
| a school locker | a kind of storage that can be closed with a key / code for individual storage of books, clothes etc. |
| a cycle-rack | a metal object used for storing bicycles |
| discipline | punishment |
| detention | a punishment for a child in which they have to stay at school after the other children have gone home |
| suspension | a punishment in which the student is removed from school for a short time |
| expulsion | a punishment in which a student can’t continue the schoolyear because of a major offence/s |
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CITIES AND SIGHTS – on Quizlet |
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| government | the group of people who control a country (ministers, in the USA secretaries) or a city |
| Boston | in Massachusetts State; one of USA’s oldest cities |
| urban | adj.; relating to towns and cities |
| environment | all the living things and objects around us |
| distance | the amount of space between two things |
| New York City | “The city that never sleeps.”; “The Big Apple” – nickname; |
| financial | adj.; about money |
| borough | a district in a town |
| 5 NYC boroughs | Manhattan, (the) Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island |
| Broadway, the | in Manhattan, NYC; home to lots of theatres and other entertainment facilities; top musicals and theatre shows are played here |
| immigration | when people enter a country to live there permanently |
| East Side, the | a multicultural area in NYC |
| sidewalk | AmE for pavement (side of the road for pedestrians) |
| rush hour, the | when the most citizens go to work / school in the morning and go home in the evening |
| downtown | the centre of a town / city |
| Statue of Liberty, the | one of the most famous US landmarks; stand on Ellis Island; a symbol of freedom; was a present from the French as a token of American – French friendship |
| Central Park | similar to London’s Hyde Park; CP is in Manhattan, NYC; a great park where people can relax, skate, jog or just feed the chipmunks; one of the most filmed locations in the world |
| Los Angeles | in CA; nicknamed L.A.; another multicultural city, lies on the west coast, has great museums and galleries |
| Hollywood | the home of the movie industry |
| Chicago | in Illinois; on Lake Michigan; “the Windy City”; important centre for train transport and air travel; home to lots of universities and research centres |
| Michigan Canal | a water route to the Mississippi River |
| Houston | in TX; the 4th largest American city; home to lots of universities and colleges |
| Johnson Space Centre | in Houston, TX; the home of the USA’s space exploration program (NASA) |
| July 20, 1969 | Apollo program, sent the first man (Neil Armstrong) to the moon |
| palisade | a strong fence made from tall posts with pointed ends built together |
| Harlem | a big neighborhood in Manhattan borough with a great Hispanic (in West and East Harlem) and Afro-American (in Central Harlem) population. It started as a Dutch village and its name came from a city, Haarlem in Holland. |
| landmark | a famous building or object that you can see and recognize easily |
| American Revolutionary War | The American Revolutionary War was fought between Great Britain and the 13 original colonies (called the Continental army helped by the French and the Spanish). The war took place from 1775 to 1783 with fighting in North America and other places. After the war ended, the Thirteen Colonies became independent and formed the USA.
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| Washington, D.C. | the capital city of the USA formed by Maryland State and Virginia State giving some land (later called the District of Columbia) |
| Potomac River | |
| Capitol Hill | where The Capitol, the home of the US government is found |
| White House, the | the official home of the US President and his / her family in Washington, D.C. in Pennsylvania Avenue |
| National Mall, the | a tourist attraction, home to memorials for notable US presidents and the only-non president Martin Luther King, Jr |
| Philadelphia | state capital of Pennsylvania, forms US capital during the War of Independence, where the Declaration of Independence was signed; the 5th largest US state by population |
| Harvard University | in Cambridge, Massachusetts, one of the best US universities |
| Supreme Court | the highest court in the USA that leads the Judicial Branch; it has an own building in D.C. where it meets |
| the Capitol | it is the centre of the legislative branch; the building has a north wing for the Senate meetings and a south wing for the H. of Representatives |
| House of Representatives | part of the US Congress with a maximum of 435 representatives |
| Senate, the | every state elects 2 people to represent them in the U.S. Senate, a group of people who decide laws of the country |
| Smithsonian Institution, the | a complex of 19 museums (most of them in Washington D.C.), a large research and educational centre established in 1843 |
| Rock Creek Park | built in 1890, it is a place for relaxing and recreation inside D.C. with its hiking paths, an amphitheater, a planetarium etc. |
| ‘Our Nation’s Capital’ | nickname for Washington, D.C. |
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GEOGRAPHY of the USA – On Quizlet |
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| Alaska (AK) | the largest American state, a not mainland, has Mt McKinley; “Bear Country” |
| Hawaii (HI) | currently the state that joined the USA the latest (in 1959); state capital is Honolulu; HI is a group of volcanic islands in the Pacific Ocean |
| Canada | borders the USA in the north; a federal republic that became independent in 1931; with a population of ca. 35 million, capital: Ottawa; currency: Canadian Dollar; official languages: English, French |
| Pacific Ocean | a huge body of water, borders the USA on the west coast |
| California (CA) | important state in the SW with a population of about 40 million; state cap.: Sacramento, largest city: Los Angeles; nickname: “the Golden State” (either because of the Gold Rush or the state flower, the golden poppy); home to Death Valley and Sequoia NP; extremely rich in plants |
| the Northeast | |
| the Southeast | |
| the Midwest (Central) | |
| the West | |
| Death Valley | located in CA; is 225 km long, it’s North America’s hottest and driest place; he hottest temperature on Earth was recorded here in 1913 (56.7 oC ); the name comes from the settlers who faced extreme circumstances while crossing the valley and may died on the journey |
| Mojave Desert | a very dry region in the Southwest in CA, UT, NV and AZ; Death Valley is in the Mohave Desert in the north |
| Hoover Dam, the | a hydroelectric power station built on the Colorado River in the 1930s in order to generate electricity using the power of the water; also used to regulate the flow of the Colorado River |
| Mount McKinley | or Mt Denali in Denali National Park, AK; the highest point of the USA with 6,187 m above sea level |
| Kilauea | part of the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park |
| Mauna Loa | the largest volcano in the world, its name means Long Mountain; a very massive mountain with an extremely deep underground/water base |
| Mauna Kea | the highest volcano in the Hawaii Volcanoes NP with 4205m, its name means “White Mountain” |
| Gulf of Mexico, the | Rivers Mississippi and (Rio) Grande flow into the gulf whose borders are the USA, Mexico and the island of Cuba; through straits the gulf is linked with the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea |
| Yellowstone NP | the first NP in the USA created in 1872; named after the Yellowstone River the NP is a popular attraction with visitors who like camping, hiking ad rafting; the NP is located in the West (WY, MT, ID states); home to bears, bisons, wolves, ravens and contains several mudpots and geysers; popular cartoon characters Yogi Bear and Boo Boo have been associated with this NP (called Jellystone NP in the cartoons) |
| Grand Canyon, the | there are several grand canyons in the USA, however, the Grand Canyon in AZ formed by the Colorado River for millions of years is the most popular; visitors while hiking the canyon can meet the bison, the elk, the bighorn sheep and people as well, the Havasupai Indians (population: around 700) |
| Colorado River | it is the basis of irrigation and domestic water supply for more than 40 million people in the relatively arid southwestern US states; several dams were built on the river which flows through 7 US states |
| Yosemite NP | a NP located in CA, home to numerous sequoia trees and the El Capitán, the world’s largest solid granite block (the park is the only habitat of the spider species Yosemite Cave Pseudoscorpion) |
| Everglades NP | a NP in FL, the largest subtropical wilderness in the US, so there are amphibians like alligators |
| Niagara Falls | international border between CAN and the USA (Ontario Province and NY State); a system of three waterfalls on the Niagara River; the height of the Falls is 50m where more than 2 million litres of water fall down every minute |
| Great Lakes, the | Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron and Lake Superior – the borderline btw CAN and the USA in the north (only Michigan is completely part of the USA) |
| climate | the weather of a region (annual rainfall, sunshine, seasons etc.) |
| fall | AmE word for the season autumn |
| humid | adjective meaning hot and wet that makes people feel quite uncomfortable |
| mild weather / climate | it means a pleasant warmth (not hot temperature) |
| irrigation | to bring water to land / plantations by a system of channels to make plants grow |
| wildlife | animals and plants that have their habitat somewhere |
| bison | also called buffalo in AmE, a large, cow-like animal with long hair and big head |
| cougar | or puma, a big wild cat from the mountain areas of the Americas |
| caribou | or the Canadian (rein)deer, it has long, thin legs and flat-beamed antlers |
| moose | a large deer that lives in CAN and the USA as well as Northern Europe (called elk) |
| elk | a type of large deer from Europe and Asia |
| coyote | a small wild dog from Nort America (South Dakota is nicknamed after them the Coyote State) |
| raccoon | a small animal with a black and white face whose habitat is mostly North and Central America |
| heatwave | a long period of extremely and unusually hot temperature |
| Tornado Alley | the area in the USA (also CAN) where tornadoes the most often appear from Minnesota down to the Gulf of Mexico including 15-20 states |
| earthquake | when the ground shakes |
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SPECIAL DAYS AND CELEBRATIONS – On Quizlet |
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| Independence Day | or the 4th of July, the national holiday of the USA to commemorate the day when the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776 |
| Thanksgiving Day | the fourth Thursday in November, a day to spend with the family and celebrate with a Thanksgiving dinner (roast turkey and stuffing, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie) |
| Black Friday | the day after Thanksgiving when the Christmas shopping begins with a lot of discounts and sales offered in stores |
| Super Bowl (Sunday) | the final of the National Football League, the first Sunday in February |
| Groundhog Day | on 2nd February, traditionally if the groundhog comes out of its hole the winter will end soon |
| Valentine’s Day | on 14th February when many Americans give flowers and chocolates to the people they love |
| Memorial Day | the last Monday of May, a day to remember those men and women who fought and died for their country |
| Labor Day | the first Monday of September created in 1882, a national holiday to celebrate a day off work, the American football season begins on this day |
| Halloween | on the evening of 31 October, when kids go trick-or-treating and adults turn many homes into haunted houses |
| jack-o-lantern | a pumpkin with a scary face carved onto it and a candle placed inside |
| Columbus Day | the second Monday in October to remember Italian explorer Christopher Columbus |
| Martin Luther King Jr’s Day | celebrated since 1986, the third Monday of January when Americans celebrate with community work |
| Martin Luther King Jr | a Baptist priest and civil rights activist, leader of the Civil Rights Movement; his famous speech begins “I have a dream…”; King was assassinated on 4 April 1968 |
| St Patrick’s Day | on 17th of March, a tradition the Irish immigrants brought to the USA in the mid-19th century – Americans wear green on this day and celebrate with street parades |
| Cinco de Mayo | the 5th of May, a celebration of Mexican culture and Mexican independence |
| Inauguration Day | on 20th January every fourth year when the elected president starts his office |
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SLAVERY – on Quizlet |
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| independence | freedom from control by another country or powerful group of people |
| slave | someone who is forced to work hard for someone else for no money |
| servant | a person who works for the rich and gets money for the job |
| slave master | the owner of slaves |
| Triangular Trade | three main trading routes from Britain to West Africa–from West Africa to the Americas–from the Americas back to Britain; the most important way of on-sea trade from the early 16th century to 1807 when the slave trade was abolished (=banned) by the British parliament |
| punishment | a penalty for doing something wrong / bad |
| plantation | a large farm where crops are grown (e.g. sugar cane, cotton, tobacco etc.) |
| mutilate | to damage someone’s body by cutting or removing part of it |
| 13th Amendment | ratified in 1865, this Amendment to the US Constitution banned slavery all across the USA |
| thatched roof | when a building’s roof is covered with dried grass (=straw) |
| Uncle Tom’s Cabin | a novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe, that introduced the hard lives of slaves |
| the Underground Railroad | several routes from the American South leading to the North and Canada where slaves were escaped |
| Harriet Tubman | once a slaved, escaped to Pennsylvania where she gained freedom, later helped hundreds of slaves to escape to the North |
| Martin Luther King Jr | an American Baptist minister and civil rights leader, born in 1928 and assassinated in 1968; was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964; his famous speech begins ‘I have a dream…’ |
| a spiritual | a religious song that once was sung by Black Americans |
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NATIVE AMERICANS – on Quizlet |
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| Amerindian | or Amerind, the term used for Natives of America |
| pueblo | means village or town, a collection of houses built on cliffs |
| maize | corn to eat |
| squash | a type of pumpkin, not the round one |
| tribe | the way the Indians lived together, a group of people |
| wigwam | a type of Indian tent, round and with a spherical top, also called wickiup |
| tepee | a type of Indian tent, a triangular-shaped one |
| longhouse | housing of the Iroquois made of wood |
| canoe | a boat used by Amerindians |
| moccasins | a soft leather shoe with a thin and flat sole, worn by the Amerindians |
| powwow | a traditional Native American ceremony |
| civilized | a community or people with developed and high quality culture |
| buffalo | a large wild animal like a cow, also called American bison |
| Cherokee | one of the 5 civilized Amerindian tribes, they were the last to leave their land in 1838 |
| Pocahontas | a Native American who he helped to make peace between Native Americans and the English colonists of Jamestown, Virginia; she was married to an Englishman but died very young in pneumonia |
| Northwest Ordinance | a law in 1787 that said lands and property shall never be taken from the Native Americans without their consent |
| Trail of Tears | a forced movement of the Native Americans (especially the Cherokee) in 1838 when they had to leave Georgia and move west to Oklahoma, every fourth Cherokee died on the way |
| Apache | a nomadic warrior native tribe of the Southwest, neighboring the Pueblo |
| Sioux | nomadic tribe of the Great Plains who followed the buffalo |
| Navajo | another name for Pueblo Indians, lived in the Southwest, were settled farming people |
| totem pole | a large decorated pole where the history of the Haida Indians can be found |
| Sitting Bull | a Sioux chief who tried to keep their land away from settlers, at the battle of Little Bighorn his men defeated the soldiers of General Custer |
| Sequoyah | a Cherokee leader who created a writing system for his tribe |
| Popay | or Popé, a religious leader who led the Pueblo Revolt against the Spanish in 1680 |
| Geronimo | a very important leader and medicine man of the Apache |
| edible | something you can eat and you won’t be sick from it |
| nomadic lifestyle | hunting, fishing, living in huts or tents, gathering food |
| war club | a weapon used by the Amerindians in hand-to-hand battle |
| spear | a weapon like a long stick with a sharp, arrow-head-like end |
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THE STORY BEHIND THANKSGIVING – On Quizlet |
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| Native American | an indigenous (not a settler) person in North, Central and South America |
| New England | the group of states in the northeastern part of the US where the first English people arrived in the 17th century |
| Plymouth Colony | the colony of the Pilgrim settlers founded in 1621 |
| Plymouth Rock | a rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts where the Pilgrim Fathers are believed to have arrived in North America from England in 1620 |
| Massachusetts | a state in the northeast of the US, one of the 13 original states |
| Pilgrims | one of the people who left England because of religious reasons and went to live in what is now the US in the early 17th century |
| harsh | very hard in conditions |
| Separatists | those Puritans who disagreed some of the puritan beliefs therefore they separated from the Puritan groups |
| Samoset | a Native American, a chief in the Wampanoag tribe who was the first Native to make contact with the Pilgrims |
| Wampanoag tribe | a group of Natives that lived in today’s southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island, they were farmers who cultivated corn, beans and squash |
| Squanto | one of the last Patuxet Indians, a liaison (= link) between the Natives and the Pilgrim settlers |
| Patuxet tribe | a Native North American people living on the western coast of Cape Cod Bay, annihilated by an epidemic infection in 1622 |
| maize | sweetcorn |
| alewives | a kind of herring found in North America, its dead body was used as fertilizer by Amerindians |
| angling | fishing |
| bountiful harvest | the quantity of the harvested crops is large |
| Thanksgiving Day | the 4th Thursday of November in the USA, the current date of this national holiday was set by president Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939, it is a day when families gather together and have a dinner of roast turkey, potatoes and vegetables, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pies |
| cranberry | a small sour red fruit that grows on a bush |
| Mayflower, the | the name of the ship on board 102 Pilgrims left England in the summer of 1620 |
| Black Friday | the Friday following Thanksgiving Day in the USA when the Christmas shopping term begins with great sales and reduced prices |
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STATES – on Quizlet |
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| 13 original colonies | parts of North America that were ruled by Britain before becoming the US that later became the first 13 states: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut (New England colonies); New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware (Middle Colonies); Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia (Southern Colonies) |
| Articles of Confederation | signed on March 1, 1781, a document that established the first 13 states (i.e. the colonies were formed into states) |
| state capital | each American state has its own capital city which is not necessarily the biggest and most important / most populated city of the state |
| abbreviation | a short form of a word / phrase; each US state has an abbreviation, e.g.: FL stands for Florida |
| Mt McKinley | or Mt Denali in Denali National Park the highest point of the USA with 6,187 m above sea level |
| Denali National Park | a NP in Alaska including taiga forests and high alpine tundra, home to the highest point of the USA, home to the “Big Five”: moose, caribou, Dall sheep, wolves and grizzly bears |
| Bear Country | nickname of AL state |
| industry | the production of goods, especially those made in factories |
| mining | the process of getting coal or metal from under the ground |
| Sunshine State | nickname of FL state |
| vacation | AmE word for holiday |
| Everglades National Park | a NP in FL, the largest subtropical wilderness in the US, so there are amphibians like alligators |
| swamp | an area of land covered by water where trees and plants grow |
| George Washington | the first President of the USA from 1789-1797; one of the 7 “Founding Fathers” |
| Cape Canaveral | the home of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida where US space vehicles and missiles are built and sent into space |
| Olympia | state capital of WA state |
| orchard | an area of fruit trees |
| salmon | a silver fish with pink flesh (= meat) that lives in the sea but swims up rivers to produce its eggs |
| mainland | a large mass of land that forms the main part of a country but does not include any islands belonging to the country |
| ranch | a very large farm in the US or Canada, where cows, horses, or sheep are kept |
| source | the beginning or starting point of something |
| Mississippi River | the longest river of the USA that sources in Minnesota state and flows in a delta into the Gulf of Mexico |
| jalapeno | a spicy pepper |
| cattle | cows and bulls kept by farmers for their milk or meat |
| jelly | AmE word for jam |
| agriculture | the work, business, or study of farming |
| Land of 10,000 Lakes | the nickname of MN state |
| Lake Itasca | the source of the Mississippi River in MN state |
| Honolulu | state capital of HI state, it’s located on Oahu Island that is one out of the 8 Hawaiian islands |
| INTRODUCTION – First look at the USA – Learn on Quizlet |
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| Native American | an indigenous (not a settler) person in North, Central and South America; also called Amerindians |
| state capital | the USA has a capital city, however, each of the 50 states has its own capital |
| Washington | a state in the northwestern coast, its state capital is Olympia |
| Washington, D.C. | the capital city of the USA, D.C. is the abbreviation of District of Columbia |
| George Washington | the first President of the USA from 1789-1797; one of the 7 “Founding Fathers” |
| Founding Fathers | they led the 13 colonies against the British Army in the American Revolution from 1765 to 1783; there were 7 of them |
| administration | the activity of governing a country (in the USA it’s the 45th Administration, the Trump – Pence Administration) |
| Constitution | a set of basic laws or principles for a country that describe the rights and duties of its citizens and the way in which it is governed |
| Donald Trump | a wealthy businessman, in office as the 45th US President since 20/01/2017 |
| Mike Pence | a lawyer, in office as the 48th Vice-President of the US |
| amendment | a change made in a document; one of the changes that has been made to the US Constitution |
| 22nd Amendment, the | added to the US Constitution added in 1947, it limited the number of terms someone can be elected as US President in two terms |
| Separatists | those Puritans who disagreed some of the Puritan beliefs therefore they separated from the Puritan groups |
| Puritans | a member of a strict English religious group of the 16th and 17th centuries who wanted worship (= the church rules) to be more simple |
| Pilgrims (Pilgrim Fathers) | one of the 102 people who left England and went to live in the New World on board the Mayflower in 1620 |
| salad bowl, The | a metaphor used to describe the multicultural USA: a lot of different cultures mix in a way that the cultures can be easily recognized |
| melting pot, The | a metaphor used to describe the multicultural USA: a lot of different cultures mix in a way that the cultures cannot be recognized anymore as they melt into each other |
| Christopher Columbus | Italian explorer and colonizer who completed 4 voyages on the Atlantic; on his first voyage in 1492 he landed on San Salvador Island (now part of The Bahamas) |
| commander-in-chief | the “boss” of the army in charge of the whole armed forces of a country |
| Airforce One | the air traffic control call sign of the aircraft carrying the President |
| Marine One | the air traffic control call sign of a marine helicopter carrying the US President |
| Camp David | the country retreat (holiday home) of the President |
| White House, The | the official home of the US President and his / her family in Washington, D.C. |
| Blair House | the President’s guest house in Washington, D.C. |
| Great Seal, the | it is used as the coat of arms of the USA and appears on every American government document as well as on both sides of the one-dollar bill |
| Stars and Stripes | the nickname of the US flag (13 stripes to remember the 13 original colonies and 50 stars, the number of American states) |
| Delaware | the first American state, located on the eastern coast |
| Hawaii | currently the state that joined the USA the latest (in 1959); state capital is Honolulu |
| Texas | the second largest American state, great producer of oil and anything from cattle |
| Alaska | the largest American state |
| bald eagle | it is the national bird and symbol of the USA, “bald” meant white-headed originally |
| Independence Day | the national holiday (birthday) of the USA on July 4th |
| colony, a | a country that is governed and controlled by another country |
| 13 original colonies | parts of North America that were ruled by Britain before becoming the US that later became the first 13 states: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut (New England colonies); New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware (Middle Colonies); Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia (Southern Colonies) |
GREAT BRITANNIA 