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Citizenship · Principles of American Democracy

What is an amendment?

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Correct answer

A change or addition to the Constitution

  1. A A change or addition to the Constitution
  2. B An executive order from the President
  3. C A treaty with another country
  4. D A federal law passed by Congress

Why this is the answer

An amendment is a change or addition to the Constitution. Amendments allow the Constitution to evolve over time without being rewritten. The amendment process is intentionally difficult: an amendment must be proposed by two-thirds of both houses of Congress (or by a convention of two-thirds of state legislatures) and then ratified by three-fourths of the states. Since 1789, more than 11,000 amendments have been proposed but only 27 have been ratified. The first ten amendments, ratified in 1791, form the Bill of Rights. The most recent amendment, the 27th, was ratified in 1992. Federal laws are passed by Congress under powers granted by the Constitution but are not part of it. Treaties and executive orders are different categories of legal action.
Source: USCIS Civics Question 4

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About this topic: Principles of American Democracy

These questions cover the foundational documents — the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Declaration — and the principles of self-government they embody. This is one of 6 Civics (100 Questions) questions on principles of american democracy, each with a full explanation on a single study page.

New to this exam? Our Citizenship exam guide explains the format, scoring, and how to prepare.

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