Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, October 9, 2023)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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commissariat
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Gerunds as Objects of VerbsGerunds very frequently function as the direct objects of "true" verbs. What type of verb is very likely to take a gerund as an object? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Sea OtterSea otters are carnivorous, aquatic mammals. Found in and around the kelp beds of the N Pacific, the sea otter is the only exclusively marine species in the otter family. Sea Otters present a rare example of mammalian tool use. They use rocks as tools to pry open food and as weapons to blind their enemies. Hunted to near extinction for their luxuriously dense fur, the otters are now protected under what international treaty? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Supernova 1604 First Observed (1604)A supernova is a rare celestial phenomenon involving the explosion of a star, resulting in an extremely bright, short-lived object that emits vast amounts of energy. The last supernova to be observed in the Milky Way was seen in 1604 by Johannes Kepler and was used by Galileo, at his trial, as evidence against the presupposition that the universe never changes. Visible to the naked eye, it was brighter at its peak than any other star in the night sky. How far from Earth was this supernova? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Guillermo del Toro (1964)Del Toro is an Academy Award-nominated Mexican filmmaker whose films often explore the darker elements of fantasy and reflect his fascination with "insects, clockwork, monsters, dark places, and unborn things." His most acclaimed films to date, Pan's Labyrinth and The Devil's Backbone, both feature children living under authoritarian rule while facing frightening supernatural entities and have been compared with what film, considered to be the finest Spanish film of the 1970s? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Truths turn into dogmas the instant that they are disputed.Gilbert Chesterton (1874-1936) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have the better of (someone or something)— To have or gain superiority, mastery, or an advantage over someone or something; to have control over someone or something. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 St. Denis's Day (2023)Also known as St. Dionysius, St. Denis is the patron saint of France. According to legend, Pope Clement sent him to what is now France to establish the Church there, during the reign of Emperor Decius (249-251), but the pagans who greeted him did not treat him well. The most widely repeated legend is that they beheaded him on Martyr's Hill—the place now known as Montmartre in Paris—but he miraculously picked up his head and carried it for two miles before expiring at the site where the Church of St. Denis was later built. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: plumdrupe - A fleshy fruit with thin skin and a central stone (e.g. almonds, cherries, plums, olives), it comes from Latin drupa, "overripe olive," from Greek druppa, "olive." More... plum, prune - Plum and prune are ultimately the same word, coming from Greek proumnon. More... plum job - Relates to the 1600s British term "plum" for 1,000 pounds, meaning a serious amount of money. More... plum pudding - So named because it was originally made with plums—the word was retained to denote "raisin," which became the main ingredient. More... | |