Question

Read the following excerpt from President Herbert Hoover’s State of the Union Address, 1930.

In order that the Government may meet its full obligation toward our countrymen in distress through no fault of their own, I recommend that an appropriation should be made to the Department of Agriculture to be loaned for the purpose of seed and feed for animals. Its application should as hitherto in such loans be limited to a gross amount to any one individual, and secured upon the crop.

Use context clues or a dictionary to select the best definition for President Hoover’s use of appropriation.

Answer 1

An authorization of money for a particular purpose

Answer 2

Answer: an authorization of money.

The term "appropriation" can have several meanings. It can refer to the act of setting apart funds for a specific purpose. It can also refer to these funds that have been set apart. Finally, in terms of government, it can have two meanings. The first one refers to the act of "appropriating" something, or taking it as one's own. The second one refers to an authorization of money that is going to be used for a specific purpose. This is the meaning that best matches the way Hoover uses the word in this passage.