Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, December 12, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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inimical
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Personal Pronouns - NumberGrammatical number in English simply means whether something or someone is singular or plural—i.e. whether there is one (singular) or more than one (plural). For nouns, we usually just add an "-s" to the end of the word to signify that it is plural. Why can't the same be done to pronouns? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The PuttoThe chubby, usually naked infants with wings that often appear in Renaissance sculpture and paintings are called putti. Putto is the Italian word for "boy," and the cherubic putti found in artwork are usually male. Putti were seen primarily on sarcophagi of the 2nd century before experiencing a revival in 15th-century Italy, thanks largely to the work of Donatello, and becoming a common feature of Baroque ceiling frescoes. What other artist painted well-known representations of putti? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 First Transatlantic Radio Signal Received (1901)Marconi was the Nobel Prize-winning Italian creator of the radio telegraph system. At 21, while experimenting with a homemade apparatus, he successfully sent signals across a distance of more than a mile and set off to London with his mother to find support for his work. He patented his system, organized a company to develop its commercial applications, and, in 1901, transmitted the first transatlantic wireless signal. During what disaster did his invention play a key role in saving lives? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Gustave Flaubert (1821)Flaubert was a French writer considered one of the supreme masters of the realistic novel. At 22, he abandoned law studies to pursue a career as an author. In 1856, after five years of work, he published his masterpiece, Madame Bovary, about the frustrations and love affairs of a romantic young woman married to a dull provincial doctor. A sharply realistic portrayal of bourgeois boredom and adultery, the novel led to his prosecution on moral grounds. What was the verdict? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Very few reputations are gained by unsullied virtue.Gilbert Chesterton (1874-1936) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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high-handed— Haughtily presumptuous; arrogantly or inconsiderately overbearing. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe (United States) (2023)The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe is celebrated by Roman Catholics in the southwestern United States, where the Spanish influence is still strong. At the pueblo just north of Taos, New Mexico, there is an impressive torchlight procession on December 12. At the Jemez Pueblo, matachines (clowns or buffoons) perform a variety of ceremonial dances. At churches and plazas throughout New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona, such traditional Native American dances as the arc and arrow, gourd, braid, feather, palm, owl, and snake dances are performed on this day. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: variegatedchintz - Comes from the plural of Hindi chint, a printed Indian calico, from earlier Sanskrit chitra, "variegated." More... moire - Having a variegated or clouded appearance, like that of watered silk. More... variegated - Can mean "having variety in character, form, etc." More... vary - From Latin varius, "speckled, variegated; changeable." More... | |