| Term | Definition |
|---|
| First Amendment | Limit on Congress; Congress is not to make any law establishing a religion or abridging the freedom of speech, press, or assembly or the right to petition the government |
| Second Amendment | Limit on the executive;the executive branch is not to infringe on the right of people to keep arms; was later interpreted to only apply to the establishment of a militia for the local government |
| Third Amendment | Limit on the executive; the executive branch is not to arbitrarily take houses for use by a militia |
| Fourth Amendment | Limit on the executive; the executive branch is not to engage in the search or seizure of evidence without a court warrant swearing to a belief in the probable existence of a crime |
| Fifth Amendment | Limit on the courts; the courts are not to hold trials for serious offenses without provision for a grand jury. Furthermore, individuals may not be compelled to testify against themselves and are immune from trial more than once for the same offense. In addition, no property can be taken without just compensation. |
| Sixth Amendment | Limit on the courts; the courts are not to hold trials for serious offenses without provision for a speedy trial and confrontation of hostile witnesses |
| Seventh Amendment | Limit on the courts; the courts are not to hold trials for serious offenses without provision for a petit (trial) jury |
| Eight Amendment | Limit on the courts; Neither bail nor punishment can be excessive. |
| Ninth Amendment | Limit on the national government; all rights not enumerated are reserved to the people |
| Tenth Amendment | Limit on the national government; all rights not designated for the federal government or denied to the states are reserved to the states |
| Fourteenth Amendment | Provided, in Section 1, a national definition of citizenship. Also, it eliminated, in Section 2, the counting of slaves in the apportionment of House seats. Furthermore, in Section 2, it applied due process of the Bill of Rights to the states. |
| Fifteenth Amendment | Extended voting rights to members of all races |
| Nineteenth Amendment | Extended voting rights to women |
| 23rd Amendment | Extended voting rights to residents of the District of Columbia |
| 24th Amendment | Extended voting rights to all classes through the abolition of poll taxes |
| 26th Amendment | Extended voting rights to citizens aged 18 and over |
| 12th Amendment | Provided a separate ballot for the vice president in the electoral college |
| 17th Amendment | Provided for the direct election of senators |
| 20th Amendment | Eliminated "lame duck" sessions of Congress |
| 22nd Amendment | Limited the presidential term so that a president could only serve two consecutive terms |
| 25th Amendment | Provided for presidential succession in case of disability |
| 11th Amendment | Limited the jurisdiction of federal courts over suits involving the states |
| 13th Amendment | Eliminated slavery and the rights of states to allow property in the form of persons |
| 16th Amendment | Established the national power to tax income |
| 27th Amendment | Limited Congress's power to raise its own salary |
| 18th Amendment | one of the two instances in which the country tried to legislate by constitutional amendment and is the only amendment that was designed to deal directly with some substantive social problem. This amendment began Prohibition by making it illegal to produce or consume alcoholic beverages. |
| 21st Amendment | one of the two instances in which the country tried to legislate by constitutional amendment. This amendment repealed the 18th Amendment and ended Prohibition. |
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