Which term best describes a political entity in which a people govern themselves as a single political community?

• A. Empire
• B. Federation
• C. Confederation
• D. Nation

Answer: (D)

The idea being tested is national self-government—the notion of a people who share a common identity forming a single political community and exercising their own political authority. A nation refers to that group with a shared sense of identity who governs themselves as one political unit. The other options describe different kinds of political arrangements: an empire is rule by one over many; a federation is a union of semi-autonomous units under a central authority; a confederation is a looser association with a weak central government. None of these emphasize a single self-governing political community in the way that a nation does. So the best description is Nation.