amendmentA change written into the nation's highest law. An amendment is added at the end of the Constitution; the original text is left as it was.
Article VThe part of the Constitution that tells how to change it. It names two ways to propose an amendment and two ways to ratify one.
CongressThe nation's legislature, which meets in the Capitol. Every amendment sent to the states so far was proposed by Congress.
joint resolutionA measure passed in the same words by both houses. Every amendment Congress has proposed began as a joint resolution.
national conventionA meeting of the states called to propose amendments. No amendment has ever been proposed this way.
proposeTo put a change forward formally for others to decide on. An amendment can be proposed by Congress or by a national convention.
ratifyTo give the final yes that makes a proposal binding. A state ratifies by a vote of its legislature or of a convention.
ratifying conventionA meeting in one state held to vote on an amendment. Only the Twenty-first Amendment, in 1933, was ratified by conventions.
repealTo cancel a law so that it is no longer in force. Only one amendment has been repealed: the Eighteenth, in 1933.
state legislatureThe assembly that writes the laws of a single state. State legislatures ratified 26 of the 27 amendments.
three-fourthsThe share of the states needed to ratify. With 50 states, three-fourths means 38 states.
two-thirdsThe share of each house of Congress needed to propose. A convention is called instead if 34 state legislatures, two-thirds of the 50, ask for one.
Show all 36 terms (24 more)
More words of the process 12
applicationA formal request, such as a state's call for a convention. Article V uses the word for the request of a state legislature to Congress.
Archivist of the United StatesThe official in charge of the National Archives. The Archivist sends each proposed amendment to the states and receives their answers.
Bill of RightsTen amendments proposed in 1789 and ratified as a set. Congress sent twelve amendments to the states; these ten were ratified by the end of 1791.
certifyTo declare in writing that something is official. The Archivist certifies that an amendment has become part of the Constitution.
ConstitutionAmerica's founding law, in force since 1789. It was written in Philadelphia in 1787.
deadlineThe date by which something has to be finished. Most amendments proposed since 1917 have given the states seven years to ratify.
framersThe men who drew up the Constitution in 1787. They met as a convention from May 25 to September 17.
governorA state's top elected official. Each governor gets a letter about a proposed amendment and passes it on to the state legislature.
House of RepresentativesThe larger chamber of Congress, with seats by population. It has 435 voting members.
pendingStill waiting to be decided. Four amendments that Congress proposed long ago are still pending.
SenateThe smaller house of the national legislature. Article V says no state can lose its equal vote in the Senate without its consent.
supermajorityA share of the vote set higher than just over half. Article V asks for two: two-thirds to propose and three-fourths to ratify.
Amendments after the Bill of Rights 12
Eighteenth AmendmentBanned the making and sale of alcoholic drinks. It was ratified in 1919.
Nineteenth AmendmentSays no citizen can be kept from voting for being a woman. It was ratified in 1920; a women's suffrage amendment was first introduced in Congress in 1878.
Seventeenth AmendmentHas voters, not state legislatures, elect senators. Before it was ratified in 1913, each state's legislature chose its senators.
Sixteenth AmendmentLets Congress collect a tax on incomes. It was ratified in 1913 and answered a Supreme Court ruling of 1895.
Twelfth AmendmentSeparate ballots for President and for Vice President. It was ratified in 1804.
Twentieth AmendmentMoved the start of a President's term to January 20. Until it was ratified in 1933, a term began on March 4.
Twenty-first AmendmentEnded the nationwide ban on alcoholic drinks. It is the only amendment that repeals another one.
Twenty-fourth AmendmentBans a tax on voting in federal elections. It was ratified in 1964.
Twenty-second AmendmentLimits a person to two elections as President. It was ratified in 1951.
Twenty-seventh AmendmentDelays a pay change for Congress until after an election. Congress proposed it in 1789 and it was ratified in 1992.
Twenty-sixth AmendmentMade 18, not 21, the age at which citizens can vote. Congress proposed it in March 1971 and the states had ratified it by July.
Twenty-third AmendmentGives Washington, D.C., electors for President. The district may have no more electors than the state with the fewest people.
How this list was compiled: Term list chosen for this site on 2026-10-12. Each meaning is written in our own words and was checked that day against the English Wikipedia article on the term (https://en.wikipedia.org/), whose text is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license: Article Five of the United States Constitution (read whole), List of amendments to the Constitution of the United States, Constitutional amendment, Constitution of the United States, Constitutional Convention (United States), United States Congress, United States House of Representatives, United States Senate, State legislature (United States), Convention to propose amendments to the United States Constitution, State ratifying conventions, Joint resolution, Supermajority, Archivist of the United States, United States Bill of Rights and the articles on the Twelfth, Sixteenth, Seventeenth, Eighteenth, Nineteenth, Twentieth, Twenty-first, Twenty-second, Twenty-third, Twenty-fourth, Twenty-sixth and Twenty-seventh Amendments. Propose, ratify, repeal, governor, certify, deadline, pending, application and framer were checked against the entry for the term in Wiktionary, the free dictionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/), under the same license. The process in the meanings and the facts was checked a second time against three pages of the National Archives (https://www.archives.gov/): the text of Article V in The Constitution of the United States: A Transcription, Constitutional Amendment Process, and The Constitution: Amendments 11-27. The fact after each meaning is in our own words. Licence: own work
How it works
This amending the Constitution worksheet is a matching sheet for 5th grade civics and up: twelve terms of Article V down the left, their meanings in another order down the right, and an answer key as the last page.
Read the full guide
More words of the process
In Set, the second sheet has the people and papers around an amendment: Constitution, framers, House of Representatives, Senate, supermajority, Archivist of the United States, governor, certify, deadline, pending, application and Bill of Rights.
Amendments after the Bill of Rights
The third sheet matches twelve later amendments, from the Twelfth to the Twenty-seventh, to what each one changed. Under the tool each term has a fact, checked against Wikipedia and the pages of the National Archives on Article V and the amendments.
These sheets cover how the Constitution is changed; the rights in the first ten amendments are not on them.
Questions and answers
How is the Constitution amended?
In two steps set out in Article V. An amendment is proposed, by two-thirds of both houses of Congress or by a convention that two-thirds of the state legislatures ask for. Then three-fourths of the states must ratify it.
How many times has the Constitution been amended?
Twenty-seven times. Congress has sent 33 amendments to the states and 27 were ratified: the first ten together in 1791, the latest in 1992.
Does the President sign a constitutional amendment?
No. The National Archives notes that the President has no constitutional role in the process: the joint resolution of Congress goes to the Archives, not to the White House, and from there to the states.
Is this an amending the Constitution worksheet for 5th grade?
The sheets name no grade. The first has the plainest terms of the process, such as propose, ratify and repeal, and Pairs prints a sheet of four to ten rows in place of twelve.