Year 10 SQA Politics: Key Terms Memory Guide | SQA 政治词汇术语速记指南

📚 Year 10 SQA Politics: Key Terms Memory Guide | SQA 政治词汇术语速记指南

Mastering political vocabulary is the first step towards success in your SQA Modern Studies or Politics course. This guide breaks down essential Year 10 terms with simple definitions, memory tricks, and real‑world connections to help you recall them under exam pressure. Each entry is presented as a bite‑sized bilingual pair so you can build both your understanding and your academic English.

掌握政治学词汇是 SQA 现代研究或政治学课程成功的第一步。本指南将十年级核心术语拆解为简洁的定义、记忆技巧和现实联系，帮助你在考试压力下快速回忆。每个词条均以中英双语小段呈现，让你同时提升理解力与学术英语表达。

1. Democracy | 民主

Democracy comes from the Greek demos (people) and kratos (rule). Think of it as “the people rule”. In a representative democracy, citizens elect politicians to make decisions on their behalf, rather than voting on every single law. A quick memory trick: imagine a demonstration of cracy – rule by the crowd.

民主（Democracy）源自希腊语的 demos（人民）和 kratos（统治），可理解为“人民统治”。在代议制民主中，公民选举政治家代表自己作决策，而非对每项法律逐一投票。记忆窍门：把 demo 想象成一场示威，cracy 就是统治——群众统治。

2. Representation | 代表制

Representation is the idea that elected officials should reflect the interests and characteristics of those who vote for them. Use the phrase “re‑present your views” – an MP literally presents your views again in Parliament. The more you feel your experiences are mirrored, the stronger the representation.

代表制（Representation）指当选官员应反映投票者的利益与特征。记住“re‑present your views”这个短语——议员就是在议会中再次（re）呈现（present）你的观点。你感觉自己的经历被映照得越多，代表性就越强。

3. Parliament | 议会

Parliament is the legislature, the place where laws are debated and passed. The UK Parliament has two chambers: the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The word itself sounds like “parley” – an old French term for discussion. So picture a building full of talking: parley + ment (the place where parley happens).

议会（Parliament）是立法机关，即辩论和通过法律的地方。英国议会由两院组成：下议院和上议院。该词发音类似“parley”——一个古老的法语词，意为“讨论”。不妨想象一座充满谈话的建筑：parley（讨论）+ ment（场所）= 讨论的场所。

4. Government | 政府

Government is the executive branch that runs the country day to day. To distinguish it from Parliament, remember: Parliament makes laws, Government implements them. The word ‘govern’ relates to steering a ship (Latin gubernare). Think of the Prime Minister and Cabinet as the crew at the helm.

政府（Government）是日常管理国家的行政部门。为区别于议会，请记住：议会制定法律，政府执行法律。“govern”一词与掌舵有关（拉丁语 gubernare）。可以把首相和内阁想象成掌舵的船员。

5. Devolution | 权力下放

Devolution means transferring certain powers from central government to regional bodies, like the Scottish Parliament. Break it down: de = down, volution = a rolling movement. Power “rolls down” from Westminster to Edinburgh. The Scotland Act 1998 is a key example.

权力下放（Devolution）指将中央政府的部分权力移交给地区性机构，如苏格兰议会。拆解记忆：de 表示“向下”，volution 表示“滚动”。权力从威斯敏斯特“向下滚动”到爱丁堡。1998 年《苏格兰法》就是一个关键例子。

6. Political Parties | 政党

A political party is an organised group that seeks to gain power by winning elections. Use the acronym P.O.W.E.R.:
Policy, Organisation, Winning elections, Electing candidates, Representing people. The main UK‑wide parties are the Conservatives, Labour, and the Liberal Democrats; in Scotland the SNP is dominant.

政党（Political Party）是一个有组织的团体，旨在通过赢得选举获取权力。用首字母缩写 P.O.W.E.R. 记忆：Policy（政策），Organisation（组织），Winning elections（赢得选举），Electing candidates（推举候选人），Representing people（代表人民）。英国主要全国性政党有保守党、工党和自由民主党；在苏格兰，苏格兰民族党（SNP）占主导地位。

7. Voting Systems | 选举制度

A voting system translates votes into seats. The UK uses First‑Past‑the‑Post (FPTP) for Westminster elections. Picture a horse race: the first horse to pass the post wins, even if it only has a tiny lead. For the Scottish Parliament, the Additional Member System (AMS) combines constituency and regional list seats. Remember AMS as Add More Seats to make it fairer.

选举制度（Voting Systems）将选票转化为席位。英国威斯敏斯特选举采用简单多数制（FPTP）。想象一场赛马：第一匹冲过终点的马获胜，哪怕只有微弱领先。苏格兰议会则采用额外议员制（AMS），结合了选区席位和区域名单席位。记住 AMS 就是 Add More Seats（增加更多席位），使之更公平。

System	Key Feature	Used Where
FPTP	Candidate with most votes wins; no need for majority	UK general elections
AMS	Two votes: one for constituency, one for a party list	Scottish Parliament
STV	Voters rank candidates in order of preference	Scottish local councils

上表比较英国使用的三种选举制度：FPTP、AMS 和 STV（可转移单票制）。STV 让选民按喜好排序候选人。

8. Rights and Responsibilities | 权利与责任

Rights are legal or moral entitlements, like the right to vote or freedom of speech. Responsibilities are duties we owe to others and the state, such as obeying the law or paying taxes. An easy recall phrase: Rights are Received, Responsibilities are Required.

权利（Rights）是法律或道德上的应得利益，比如投票权或言论自由。责任（Responsibilities）是我们对他人和国家应尽的义务，如遵守法律或纳税。一个简单的记忆短语：Rights are Received（权利是“得到的”），Responsibilities are Required（责任是“要求的”）。

9. Pressure Groups | 压力团体

Pressure groups are organisations that try to influence government policy without seeking election. Think of them as People Pushing Politicians. There are two main types: insider groups, which work closely with the government (e.g. trade unions), and outsider groups, which campaign publicly (e.g. Greenpeace).

压力团体（Pressure Groups）是试图影响政府政策但不寻求选举获胜的组织。可将其想象为People Pushing Politicians（人民推动政客）。主要分为两类：内部团体，与政府密切合作（如工会）；外部团体，通过公开宣传施压（如绿色和平组织）。

10. Media Influence | 媒体影响

The media – newspapers, television, social media – play a huge role in shaping public opinion. A term you must know is agenda setting: the media doesn’t tell you what to think, but it tells you what to think about. Memory trick: the news is like a giant billboard; whatever is on it seems most important.

媒体——报纸、电视、社交媒体——在塑造公众舆论方面起着巨大作用。你必须掌握的术语是议程设置：媒体不会告诉你该想什么，但会告诉你该想些什么。记忆窍门：新闻就像一个巨大的告示牌；上面刊登什么，什么就显得最重要。

11. Constitution | 宪法

A constitution is a set of rules and principles that determine how a country is governed. The UK constitution is often described as uncodified (not written in a single document). Imagine a patchwork quilt: it is stitched together from statutes, conventions, and court judgments. The Scottish Parliament, however, operates within a devolved settlement that is partly a written framework.

宪法（Constitution）是一套规定国家治理方式的规则与原则。英国宪法常被描述为不成文宪法（未以单一文件形式写就）。想象一条拼布被子：它是由成文法、惯例和法院判决缝合而成。然而，苏格兰议会运作在一个部分成文的权力下放框架内。

12. Referendum | 公投

A referendum is a direct vote by the electorate on a single political question. The key examples for SQA are the 2014 Scottish independence referendum and the 2016 EU membership referendum. Break the word: refer (to send back) + endum (something that must be done). The government refers a big decision back to the people.

公投（Referendum）是选民就单一政治问题进行直接投票。SQA 课程的关键案例是 2014 年苏格兰独立公投和 2016 年英国欧盟成员身份公投。拆解该词：refer（送回）+ endum（必须做的事情）。政府把重大决定“送回”给人民去抉择。

Published by TutorHao | SQA Politics Revision Series | aleveler.com

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