Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, January 27, 2022)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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odious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Superlative Adverbs from One-Syllable AdverbsSuperlative adverbs are used to describe differences among three or more people or things. In general, when the adverb has only one syllable, what do we do to it to form the superlative? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Judith and HolofernesIn the Book of Judith, the eponymous heroine—a Jewish widow of great beauty and piety—enters the Assyrian camp as their army besieges her city of Bethulia. General Holofernes tries to seduce her, but she beheads him while he is drunk. Judith brings his head back to Bethulia, and the Jews rout the Assyrians. Judith's story is likely fictional and is not part of the Hebrew Bible, though her erotically-charged, violent tale has made her a popular artistic subject. How did early Christians view her? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The Siege of Leningrad Is Lifted (1944)During WWII, German and Finnish forces invaded the Soviet Union and encircled the city of Leningrad—now St. Petersburg—blocking supply lines for 872 days. Sparse food and fuel supplies delivered by barge and sled kept the city's arms factories operating and its 2 million inhabitants barely alive, while 1 million children and sick and elderly people were evacuated. Still, hundreds of thousands died of starvation, disease, and shelling from German artillery. How was the siege broken? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Lewis Carroll (1832)Carroll was the pen name of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, English author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel, Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There. Carroll developed the stories from tales he told to the children of H. G. Liddell, the dean of Christ Church College at Oxford, one of whom was named Alice. Many of his characters—the Mad Hatter, the March Hare, and the White Rabbit—have become familiar figures in literature. What else did Carroll write? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The accumulation of all powers, Legislative, Executive, and Judiciary, in the same hands, whether of one, a few, or many, and whether hereditary, self-appointed, or elective, may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.James Madison (1751-1836) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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the half of it— A portion of something, typically implied to be the most important or significant part. (Often used in the negative.) More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Mozart Week (Mozartwoche) (2024)Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born on January 27, 1756. Every January since 1956, his birthday has been celebrated by the people of Salzburg, Austria, where he was born, with a music festival devoted entirely to his works. The festival also prides itself on presenting many of his lesser known works, which are seldom performed elsewhere. Concerts are given in a number of sites associated with Mozart's life, including the Mozarteum Building, St. Peter's Church, the Salzburg Cathedral, and even Mozart's home. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: techniquetraffic-calming device - Any device (e.g. a speed bump) or technique on or next to a road that is used to slow or restrict traffic, especially in residential areas. More... appliance - First was the use or application of a technique, putting a technique into practice. More... expression marks - The collective term for musical directives, including tempo, volume, technique, phrasing, and mood. More... martial art - So named for Japanese bu-jutsu (bu + jutsu), "art, technique, skill, craft." More... | |