Daily Content Archive

(as of Tuesday, January 5, 2021)
Word of the Day

linchpin

Definition:(noun) A central cohesive source of support and stability.
Synonyms:backbone, keystone, mainstay, anchor
Usage: Reduced spending is the linchpin of their economic program.
Daily Grammar Lesson

Complex Sentences

Complex sentences are made up of one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses. What introduces and links the dependent clause to the independent clause? More...
Article of the Day

Chryselephantine Sculpture

Developed by the Greeks in the 6th century BCE, chryselephantine is a form of sculpture in which an inner core of wood is overlaid with ivory to simulate flesh. It is then trimmed with gold to simulate clothing and other adornments. The technique was used to make colossal religious statues for temples, but because the materials were so valuable, few examples remain intact today. There is a reproduction of one famous chryselephantine statue, the gigantic Athena Parthenos, in what US city? More...
This Day in History

Louis XV of France Survives Assassination Attempt (1757)

Louis XV was king of France from 1715 to 1774. An orphan from age three, Louis succeeded to the throne upon the death of his great-grandfather Louis XIV, under the regency of the duke of Orléans. In 1757, the unpopular king was stabbed in the side by Robert Damiens. Convinced he was dying, Louis called for a confessor and begged his wife to forgive his infidelities. The small blade had, however, done little damage, and the king survived. How did Voltaire mock the king's allegedly shallow wound? More...
Today's Birthday

Alvin Ailey, Jr. (1931)

American choreographer and dancer Alvin Ailey, Jr., formed his own company, the American Dance Theater—now called the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater—in 1958. Multiracial since 1963, Ailey's dance company has been internationally acclaimed and has brought recognition to many African-American and Asian dancers. His works, influenced by jazz, Afro-Caribbean, and modern dance, explore a wide range of black experience, from gospel music to social inequality. What is his most popular work? More...
Quotation of the Day
On the outskirts of every agony sits some observant fellow who points.

Virginia Woolf (1882-1941)

Idiom of the Day

hot desking

The act or practice of sharing desks or workstations between employees in an office so as to cut down on the amount of office space required. More...
Today's Holiday

Epiphany Eve (2024)

Also known in Austria as the Vigil of Epiphany, there is traditionally a special feast on this night during which an Epiphany cake is served. Three beans are concealed in the cake—two white, one black—and whoever finds a bean gets to dress up as one of the Three Wise Men or Holy Kings. The one with the black bean dresses up as the African king, Balthasar, by rubbing his face with soot or shoe polish. On Epiphany Day the three kings are the guests of honor at the table. More...
Word Trivia

Today's topic: prune

amputate - Comes from Latin ambi, "around," and putare, "to prune, trim." More...

dried plum - Another name for a prune. More...

preen - Generally thought to be an alteration of prune, "cut branches." More...

purge - To purge a tree is to prune it; to purge a candle is to snuff it. More...

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