Independence Day

2022.07.04

4 July is Independence Day, a national holiday in the United States of America marked by fireworks, processions, and public speeches. Do you know why this day is regarded as the birthday of the United States and what important events are commemorated on this day? You can find the answer in the brief TEDEd video below.


Listening Comprehension Task

Do you also want to test your listening comprehension? After watching the video, decide whether the following statements are true or false. (You can find the key to the exercise at the bottom of the page.)  


  1. "...all men are created equal,... they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." is a quote from The Declaration of Independence (1776).
  2. The American Revolutionary War against England started with the Battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775.
  3. In June 1776, the Continental Congress met in New York to discuss the independence of the American colonies from England.
  4. The Continental Congress approved the Resolution of Independence on 2 July 1776.
  5. The Americans celebrate Independence Day when the text of the Declaration of Independence was finalised.
  6. The United States Declaration of Independence explains why the American states should be free from England.
  7. Thomas Jefferson was the man who came up with the Declaration of Independence.
  8. The Continental Congress accepted the first draft of the Declaration of Independence without any modification.
  9. Thomas Jefferson charged King George III with being responsible for slave trade and preventing America from ending slavery.
  10. Slavery was ended in the United States by the Declaration of Independence.


Vocabulary

independence - függetlenség
to endow sy with sg - vkit felruház vmivel
declaration - nyilatkozat
fact - tény
congress - kongresszus
to discuss - megtárgyal, megvitat
resolution - határozat
founding document - alapító okirat
to get the credit for sg - learatja a babért vmiért
delegation - küldöttség
to come up with sg - előáll vmivel, kitalál vmit
memorable - emlékezetes
to tweak sg - változtat vmin, megcsavar vmit
to turn sg over to sy - átad vmit vkinek átnézésre/kivizsgálásra
first draft - vázlat, piszkozat
to charge sy with sg - megvádol vkit vmivel

The United States Declaration of Independence approved by the Second Continental Congress on 4 July 1776. This image is a version of the 1823 William Stone facsimile (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

1. True; 2. True; 3. False (the congress met in Philadelphia); 4. True; 5. True; 6. True; 7. False (the general outline was the work of a Committee of Five, based on which T. Jefferson wrote the first draft); 8. False (they made some minor word changes and one big deletion); 9. True; 10. False (slavery was terminated during the American Civil War)

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