Democracy- noun plural: democracies: A system of government in which every citizen in the country can vote to elect its government officials and make decisions for how the country should be run.
Republic- noun: A country governed by elected representatives of the people, and led by a president, not a king or queen. Elected representatives then make decisions for the country.
Parliamentary Government- noun: Government ruled by a group of people elected to make and enforce laws
Dictatorship- noun: Government by a ruler who in not a member of the nobility (a king or queen), but has complete power:
Oligarchy- noun: Government or control by a small group of people who are not of noble birth, usually these people are merchants.
Aristocracy- noun plural: aristocracies: The system in which a country is governed by the people of the highest social class, the nobility.
Theocracy- noun: A government, social system or state controlled by religious leaders.
Capitalism- noun: An economic and political system in which businesses belong mostly to private owners, not to the government
Socialism- noun: An economic and political system in which large industries are owned by the government, and taxes are used to take some wealth away from richer citizens and give it to poorer citizens
Communism- noun: A political system in which the government controls the production of all food and goods, and there is no privately owned property
Fascism- noun: An extreme political system in which people's lives are completely controlled by the state and no political opposition is allowed