check and balance
30
4.0
- noun
- /ˈtʃɛk ənd ˈbæləns/
:
sistema de pesos y contrapesos
- In the United States, the Constitution creates a system of checks and balances to prevent any one branch of government from becoming too powerful.
- a system of checks and balances
- effective checks and balances
- lack of checks and balances
That's where it gets messy because checks and balances were put in place for a reason.
- That's where it gets messy because checks and balances were put in place for a reason.
- The deal is in this country we have these checks and balances in the Constitution and Bill of Rights.
- It was the ultimate check and balance.
- And there was no, you know, there were no checks and balances obviously on that, that murderous system.
- In the United States, for instance, there are a lot of checks and balances that limit the power of the government.
- I think that it's built on this idea of limitations and checks and balances and that equalization of power.
- And so this the the case that I study, the only checks and balances on executive power are circumstantial.
- I, I think one of the things that is the most important here is to put in place real checks and balances.
- And it is a checks and balances system that is meant to make sure that you are held accountable as well.
- The system that we have is built with checks and balances that are meant to keep us from going off the Cliff into the abyss.
- And so it what what I guess I'm arguing you need these checks and balances and you need an important role for government.
- There's no, there is really nothing kind of to keep checks and balances in our orchard.
Examples
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And these checks and balances are in place to preserve the sanctity of the system.
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The deal is in this country we have these checks and balances in the Constitution and Bill of Rights.
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Well, the way our government is constructed is to have a rough check and balance with a rough balance of power.
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And under those circumstances, you know, we need more checks and balances than ever.
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In the United States, for instance, there are a lot of checks and balances that limit the power of the government.
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There needs to be checks and balances, since decisions and policies are sometimes complicated.
Academic text (2001) -
Elsewhere in Canadian society, multiple voices act as checks and balances on each other.
Fiction book (2002) -
I hope there are enough checks and balances left to make sure it doesn't happen.
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People speak of "checks and balances" as a hallmark of American institutions.
Academic text (2017) -
The system that we have is built with checks and balances that are meant to keep us from going off the Cliff into the abyss.
Synonyms
35
4.1
A situation where groups or countries share power so no one becomes too strong
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'check' (a control or restraint) with 'balance' (a state of proper proportion) joined by 'and' to indicate paired mechanisms; a learner who knows those words can infer a system that limits or equalizes power. This composition maps onto common political concepts across languages, so the expression is likely understandable to a B1 learner without prior exposure.
Etymology
Check and balance comes from the image of a simple scale: a check acts like something that stops one side moving, and a balance keeps the two sides equal. That's why it means 'to prevent any one person or group from having too much power'.