Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, May 21, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Modal Verbs Used to Make an OfferBecause modal auxiliary verbs can be quite similar in how they are used, it is sometimes unclear when it's more appropriate to use one instead of another. For instance, "can," "may," and "shall" can all be used to offer to do something for someone. Which of these verbs is used as a polite suggestion? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Rube Goldberg MachinesA Rube Goldberg machine is an exceedingly complex apparatus that performs a very simple task in an incredibly indirect and convoluted way. Named for cartoonist Rube Goldberg, who was known for illustrating such contraptions, the machines are now the subject several competitions in which teams are judged on their machine's ability to complete a certain task using as many steps as possible. What is an example of a simple task performed by one of Goldberg's illustrated mechanisms? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Rajiv Gandhi Is Assassinated (1991)When his brother Sanjay Gandhi died in a plane crash in 1981, Rajiv Gandhi—then an airline pilot—was drafted into politics by his mother, Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. When she was assassinated in 1984, he succeeded her as prime minister. In 1987, he sent peacekeeping forces to Sri Lanka in an unsuccessful attempt to end Tamil-Sinhalese violence. Following allegations of corruption, he resigned as prime minister in 1989. He was assassinated in 1991. How and by whom was he killed? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Mary Anning (1799)The daughter of a British cabinetmaker who supplemented his income by selling "curiosities" he recovered from cliffside fossil beds near his home, Mary Anning grew up collecting fossils. When she was just 12 years old, she and her brother discovered the first ichthyosaur skeleton to be correctly identified. As an adult, she continued the dangerous work of scouring the Lyme Regis cliffs for fossils and made a number of significant geological finds. What tongue twister might Anning have inspired? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 To kill an error is as good a service as, and sometimes even better than, the establishing of a new truth or fact.Charles Darwin (1809-1882) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have (got) (someone) pegged as (something)— To distinctly regard someone as being a certain type of person. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Chile Battle of Iquique Day (Día de las Glorias Navales) (2024)This national holiday in Chile is often called Día de las Glorias Navales ("The Day of the Glorious Navy"). From 1879 to 1881, the Chilean navy fought an alliance of Peru and Bolivia in the War of the Pacific. The Chilean victory in the Battle of Iquique on May 21, 1879, was a turning point in a war that Chile eventually won decisively. The holiday is celebrated throughout Chile with festivals, military parades, and speeches. Sporting events, including boat and bicycle races, are held in honor of the holiday. Many people dress in traditional costumes as a symbol of national pride. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: madnessire, rage, fury - Ire suggests greater intensity than anger, rage suggests loss of self-control, and fury is destructive rage verging on madness. More... mania - Based on a Greek word meaning "madness," ultimately from an Indo-European root for "mind." More... rage - Traces back to Latin rabia, an alteration of rabies, meaning "fury, madness." More... woodness - Madness or insanity, from Old English wood, "out of one's mind." More... | |