Declaration of Independence Vocabulary Worksheet

Press Print worksheet to match twelve Declaration words, from self-evident and unalienable to tyranny and grievance, to their meanings.

A sample is on the sheet. What you type replaces it.

What you type stays in your browser. Nothing is sent to us.

NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.Declaration of Independence vocabularyDeclaration ofIndependenceindependenceself-evidentendowedunalienablepursuit of happinessconsent of the governedinstituteabolishtyrannyusurpationgrievancethe wrongful taking of another'sauthorityto set up or establish somethingnewprovided with a quality or a gifta harm that people protest asunjustharsh rule by one who holds totalpowerthe 1776 text that cut thecolonies' tie to Britainso clearly true that no proof isneededthe last of three rights theDeclaration listsa nation's freedom to governitselfnot able to be removed orsurrenderedto put a formal end to a system ora lawapproval by the people of thosewho rule them
NameDateMade at homeroomtools.comDraw a line from each one on the left to its partner on the right.Declaration of Independence vocabularyAnswer keyDeclaration ofIndependenceindependenceself-evidentendowedunalienablepursuit of happinessconsent of the governedinstituteabolishtyrannyusurpationgrievancethe wrongful taking of another'sauthorityto set up or establish somethingnewprovided with a quality or a gifta harm that people protest asunjustharsh rule by one who holds totalpowerthe 1776 text that cut thecolonies' tie to Britainso clearly true that no proof isneededthe last of three rights theDeclaration listsa nation's freedom to governitselfnot able to be removed orsurrenderedto put a formal end to a system ora lawapproval by the people of thosewho rule them
More options

Next step Next: Declaration of Independence word search

All 36 terms

Key ideas 12

  • abolish To put a formal end to a system or a law. The text says the people may alter or abolish a government that destroys their rights.
  • consent of the governed Approval by the people of those who rule them. Governments get their just powers from it, the Declaration says.
  • Declaration of Independence The 1776 text that cut the colonies' tie to Britain. It was adopted by Congress on July 4, 1776, and the parchment can be seen at the National Archives Museum.
  • endowed Provided with a quality or a gift. In the Declaration, people are endowed by their Creator with certain rights.
  • grievance A harm that people protest as unjust. The middle of the Declaration lists 27 charges against the King.
  • independence A nation's freedom to govern itself. The Declaration ends by calling the colonies Free and Independent States.
  • institute To set up or establish something new. Governments are instituted among Men, the text says, to secure rights.
  • pursuit of happiness The last of three rights the Declaration lists. Life and Liberty come first. The three are given as examples of the rights every person has.
  • self-evident So clearly true that no proof is needed. The first such truth in the Declaration is that all men are created equal.
  • tyranny Harsh rule by one who holds total power. The text says the King aimed at an absolute Tyranny over these States.
  • unalienable Not able to be removed or surrendered. Another spelling is inalienable. The Declaration names three such rights.
  • usurpation The wrongful taking of another's authority. The text speaks of a long train of abuses and usurpations.
Show all 36 terms (24 more)

Hard words 12

  • acquiesce To accept something without objecting. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, the delegates wrote of the separation.
  • consanguinity Kinship by blood or common descent. The British people, the text says, were deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity.
  • disavow To refuse to own or stand behind something. The colonists had asked the British people to disavow these usurpations.
  • evince To show something clearly. In the text, a long train of abuses evinces a design to put the colonies under absolute Despotism.
  • formidable So powerful that it inspires dread. Representation, the same charge says, is formidable to tyrants only.
  • impel To drive or urge someone to act. The first sentence says a people should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
  • inestimable Too valuable to be measured. The text calls representation a right inestimable to the people who hold it.
  • mercenary A soldier paid to fight for a foreign ruler. Congress learned in May 1776 that the King had made treaties with German states to hire them.
  • perfidy The breaking of faith or of a promise. One charge pairs the word with Cruelty.
  • relinquish To give up a right or a claim. One charge says people were asked to relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature.
  • tenure One's hold on an official post. One charge says the King made judges rely on his will alone for the tenure of their offices.
  • transient Short-lived and soon to pass. Governments should not be changed for light and transient causes, the text says.

The making 12

  • Committee of Five The group named to draft the Declaration. Its members were John Adams, Roger Sherman, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston and Thomas Jefferson.
  • Continental Congress The body that spoke and acted for all the colonies. The Second Continental Congress first met in May 1775 and adopted the Declaration in Philadelphia.
  • delegate Someone authorized to act on a group's behalf. Fifty-six delegates signed the Declaration.
  • engross To pen the official copy in big, neat lettering. On July 19, 1776, Congress ordered the Declaration engrossed on parchment.
  • Independence Day The July 4 holiday that marks the Declaration. The holiday is a federal one and is also called the Fourth of July.
  • Lee Resolution The motion in Congress to declare independence. Richard Henry Lee of Virginia read it on June 7, 1776, and Congress adopted it on July 2.
  • Loyalist A colonist who remained on the British side. Loyalists were also called Tories or King's Men.
  • Patriot A colonist who sided with the Revolution. Patriots were also known as Whigs, Rebels or Continentals.
  • preamble An introduction that explains a formal document. The National Archives divides the Declaration into an introduction, a preamble, a body in two sections and a conclusion.
  • rough draft An early, unpolished form of a piece of writing. Jefferson's rough draft, with changes by Franklin and Adams, is kept at the Library of Congress.
  • signer A person who writes his or her name on a document. John Hancock, the President of the Congress, was the first signer, on August 2, 1776.
  • Thirteen Colonies The lands whose union created the United States. The heading of the Declaration calls them the thirteen united States of America.

How this list was compiled: Term list chosen for this site on 2026-10-16. Each meaning is written in our own words and was checked that day against the word's entry in Wiktionary, the free dictionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/), and against the National Archives transcription of the Declaration of Independence (https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript), from which every phrase of the text is taken. The dates and the story of the drafting, the printing and the signing are from the National Archives page The Declaration of Independence: A History (https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-history). The terms that are not single words were checked against their English Wikipedia articles (https://en.wikipedia.org/), whose text, like Wiktionary's, is under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license: United States Declaration of Independence, Second Continental Congress, Lee Resolution, Committee of Five, Consent of the governed, Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness, Patriot (American Revolution), Loyalist (American Revolution), Thirteen Colonies and Independence Day (United States). The sentence after each meaning is our own. Licence: own work

How it works

This Declaration of Independence vocabulary worksheet opens on the famous second paragraph: self-evident truths, unalienable rights, consent of the governed, tyranny. Each word has a plain meaning to match, and a key comes after the sheet.

Read the full guide

Hard words

In Set, the second sheet has the words a class stumbles on: impel, transient, evince, relinquish, inestimable, formidable, tenure, mercenary, perfidy, consanguinity, acquiesce and disavow. Under the tool each comes with the line of the Declaration it stands in.

The making

The third sheet follows the summer of 1776: Continental Congress, delegate, Lee Resolution, Committee of Five, rough draft, preamble, engross, signer, Patriot, Loyalist, Thirteen Colonies and Independence Day, with dates from the National Archives.

  • One charge describes Native peoples in the hostile words of 1776; no word from it is a term on these sheets.

Questions and answers

What does unalienable mean in the Declaration of Independence?

It means not able to be taken away or given up. The Declaration says people are endowed with certain unalienable Rights and names three: Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

What does consent of the governed mean?

It is the idea that a government is rightful only when the people it rules have agreed to it. In the words of the Declaration, governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.

What are the five parts of the Declaration of Independence?

The National Archives names an introduction, a preamble, a body in two sections and a conclusion. The preamble holds the self-evident truths; the body lists the charges against the King and the appeals to the British people.

More tools

Show 7 more

Browse Handwriting