Tenth Amendment
Definition
The Tenth Amendment is a part of the United States Constitution that essentially says any power not given to the federal government is given to the people or the states.
Analogy
Think of it like a game of soccer. The rules (the Constitution) outline what the referee (federal government) can do, but anything not specifically mentioned in those rules falls under the players' (states') control.
Related terms
Federalism: This is a system where power is divided between national and state governments.
Reserved Powers: These are powers which are not "enumerated" (written down/specified) within the Constitution but are instead reserved for state governments or individuals.
Constitutional Amendments: These are changes or additions made to the U.S. Constitution. The Tenth Amendment is one such change.
"Tenth Amendment" appears in:
Subjects (1)
Practice Questions (11)
Which of the following is an example of a power reserved for states under the Tenth Amendment?
What is the primary purpose of the Tenth Amendment in the United States Constitution?
The Tenth Amendment is often associated with which principle?
Which Supreme Court case dealt with the Tenth Amendment's reservation of powers to states?
What is the significance of the Tenth Amendment in the Bill of Rights?
Which illustrates a key difference between First and Tenth Amendments?
What does the Tenth amendment express about powers not delegated to the Federal government?
What might have happened if the Tenth Amendment hadn’t been included in the Bill of Rights?
What distinguishes between implications of Tenth Amendment and Twenty-second in terms of power distribution?
Which principle is inferred from both The Fifth Article of Confederation (1781) and Tenth Amendment (1791)?
What does the Tenth amendment imply about powers not delegated to United States?
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