Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, March 23, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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thaumaturge
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Using ParenthesesParentheses indicate parenthetical information—that is, any additional information that is not integral to the writing that appears outside of the parentheses. This information may comprise a fragment (a word, phrase, or clause) or one or more complete sentences. What dictates how we use parentheses in relation to other punctuation? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Witch BallsA witch ball is a hollow sphere of plain or stained glass that was originally hung in windows to ward off evil spirits, witch's spells, or ill fortune. According to folk tales, the bright colors of witch balls, traditionally green or blue, would entice evil spirits, and strands inside the ball would capture them and prevent them from escaping. The colorful spheres eventually became popular simply as decorative objects. What modern decorations may have been inspired by witch balls? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Patrick Henry: "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death!" (1775)Henry was an American Revolutionary leader who gained a reputation as a skillful orator. A member of the Virginia House of Burgesses, he delivered his famous speech in defense of liberty to the Virginia Convention in 1775, concluding with the words "Give me liberty or give me death!" The speech is credited with having swung the balance in convincing the assembly to pass a resolution to send Virginia troops to the Revolutionary War. Which future presidents were in the audience during the speech? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Akira Kurosawa (1910)Regarded as one of the world's greatest directors for his ability to combine Japanese aesthetic and cultural elements with a Western sense of action and drama, Kurosawa became an assistant director and scenarist at PCL movie studio in 1936. He wrote and directed his first feature film in 1943 and earned international acclaim for Rashomon in 1950. His later classic films include Seven Samurai and Yojimbo. In 1990, Kurosawa won an Academy Award for what? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Wine is a turncoat; first a friend and then an enemy.Henry Fielding (1707-1754) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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in a pig's ear— An exclamation of emphatic denial, dissent, or disbelief of something. Likely a variant of "in a pig's eye," meaning the same. Primarily heard in UK, Australia. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Pakistan Day (2024)This national holiday is also known as Republic Day, and it is the anniversary of a 1940 resolution calling for a Muslim country for Muslim Indians. On the same day in 1956, Pakistan became an Islamic republic within the British Commonwealth. Pakistan Day is celebrated with parades and fairs. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: vigorvim, vigor - Vim is the same as vigor. More... bouncing - In bouncing baby, it means "vigorous." More... feckful - Means "efficient, vigorous," or "powerful." More... macho, machismo - Macho is from Mexican Spanish, meaning "male animal or plant" or "masculine, vigorous"—from Latin masculus, "male"; machismo (pronounced mah-CHEEZ-mo) is based on macho. More... | |