Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, February 28, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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inebriate
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining the Perfective AspectThe perfective aspect highlights actions, states, or events as a whole, presenting the actions from an outside perspective as complete, bounded events. In which tenses is the perfective aspect encountered? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The South Sea BubbleThe South Sea Bubble was one of the earliest modern financial crises. It involved the South Sea Company, which was established in 1711 by the lord treasurer of England and was expected to be extremely profitable. Touting exclusive trading rights with Spanish South America, it sparked wild speculation that rocketed its share price to £1,000 in August 1720. The following month, it collapsed. Thousands were ruined—including many members of the government. What was the company's true purpose? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 First African American wins Academy Award (1940)Hattie McDaniel was an African-American singer-songwriter, comedienne, stage actress, radio performer, and television star. She appeared in over 300 films and is best known for her role as Mammy in the iconic 1939 film Gone with the Wind, a performance that earned her the first Academy Award ever presented to an African American. McDaniel's Oscar was later lost. What are some theories about what became of it? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Dinah Shore (1916)Shore was an American singer, actress, and TV personality who enjoyed widespread popularity during the Big Band era of the 1940s and 50s. She was the first singer of the era to achieve success as a solo artist, producing over 80 hit songs, including "Baby It's Cold Outside," before beginning a four-decade career in television. Shore was a hit with TV audiences as well and went on to earn nine Emmys, a Peabody Award, and a Golden Globe. How did Shore, born Frances Rose, earn the stage name Dinah? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 It's so easy to be wicked without knowing it, isn't it?Lucy Maud Montgomery (1874-1942) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have (someone's) number on it— To be considered the agent or instrument of one's fate, especially leading to death. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Leap Year Day (2024)The Earth actually takes longer than 365 days to complete its trip around the Sun—five hours, 48 minutes, and 45 seconds longer, to be precise. To accommodate this discrepancy, an extra day is added to the Gregorian calendar at the end of February every four years. The year in which this occurs is called Leap Year, probably because the English courts did not always recognize February 29, and the date was often "leaped over" in the records. There was an old tradition that women could propose marriage to men during Leap Year. The men had to pay a forfeit if they refused. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: markingpastry wheel, pastry jagger - A pastry wheel or pastry jagger is a handled tool with a thin sharp wheel, used for marking and cutting rolled-out dough. More... stocking - A white marking on the lower part of a horse's leg. More... on the dot - Probably a reference to the minute hand of the clock being exactly over the dot marking the given minute on the dial. More... hilum - The scar on a seed marking the point where it was attached to its seed vessel. More... | |