Articles of Confederation

American  

[ahr-ti-kuhlz uhv kuhn-fed-uh-rey-shuhn] / ˈɑr tɪ kəlz əv kənˌfɛd əˈreɪ ʃən /

noun

(used with a plural verb)

1. the first constitution of the 13 American states, adopted in 1781 and replaced in 1789 by the Constitution of the United States.

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Articles of Confederation British  

plural noun

1. the agreement made by the original 13 states in 1777 establishing a confederacy to be known as the United States of America; replaced by the Constitution of 1788

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Articles of Confederation Cultural  

1. An agreement among the thirteen original states, approved in 1781, that provided a loose federal government before the present Constitution went into effect in 1789. There was no chief executive or judiciary, and the legislature of the Confederation had no authority to collect taxes.

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Example Sentences

Essentially, the interstate compact clause lets the states gin up ad hoc articles of confederation.

From Slate • Apr. 3, 2020

President Nyerere signed the articles of confederation that united his mainland nation of Tanganyika with the tiny, troublesome offshore island state of Zanzibar.

From Time Magazine Archive

By February, 1779, all the other states had ratified the articles of confederation.

From The Critical Period of American History by Fiske, John

Accordingly, in the name of the smaller states, William Paterson laid before the convention the so-called "New Jersey plan" for the amendment of the articles of confederation.

From The Critical Period of American History by Fiske, John

Webster also made blunders in construing the context of the constitution, as well as the clauses specially involved, in contrasting the constitution with the articles of confederation, and in his reading of our constitutional history.

From The Brothers' War by Reed, John Calvin