Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, October 28, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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have-not
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Evaluative Adverbs that Indicate a Degree of CertaintyThere are several types of evaluative adverbs, which can be classified according to their function. We can use evaluative adverbs to state how certain we are about something. "Obviously" is an evaluative adverb that we can use in this way. What are others? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Somersett's CaseThe Abolition Act of 1833 may have abolished slavery in the British Empire, but the first step toward abolition was taken 60 years earlier in 1772, in a famous judgment known as Somersett's Case. In it, the Court of King's Bench held that without a law permitting slavery in England, courts could not uphold a slaveholder's claim to a slave. Although the decision did not state that slavery was illegal, it set a precedent that altered the course of slavery in England and abroad. Who was Somersett? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Statue of Liberty Is Dedicated (1886)The Statue of Liberty, originally known as Liberty Enlightening the World, was proposed by French historian Édouard Laboulaye in 1865 to commemorate the alliance of France with the American colonies during the American Revolution. Designed by French sculptor F. A. Bartholdi, the statue is 152 ft (46 m) high and is possibly the tallest metal statue ever made. It was shipped to New York in 1885, assembled, and dedicated in 1886. What New York tradition originated during the dedication? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Tokugawa Yoshinobu (1837)Tokugawa was the 15th and last shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. The Tokugawa family held the shogunate and controlled Japan from 1603 to 1867. Beginning at the time of Yoshinobu's birth, there were numerous peasant uprisings and samurai unrest. Undermined by increasing foreign incursions, the Tokugawa were overthrown by an attack of provincial forces from Choshu, Satsuma, and Tosa, who restored the Meiji emperor to power. Yoshinobu resigned in 1867. How did he spend his retirement? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Life is a luminous halo, a semi-transparent envelope surrounding us from the beginning of consciousness to the end.Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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engine room— The main source of talent, power, or ability in a team or group, likened to the room that houses a ship's engine. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Skanda Sashti (2019)According to Hindu mythology, Shiva cast his seed into fire, where it was afterwards received by the river goddess Ganga (the Ganges River), who "gave birth" to Skanda. He was born for the purpose of destroying Taraka, and Skanda Sashti celebrates Taraka's defeat. The focus of the celebration is the six holy places in southern India associated with Skanda, especially in the state of Tamil Nadu. Hindus gather at each of these temples to sing hymns, chant psalms, and dramatize scenes from the god's life. They believe that observing this festival ensures success, prosperity, happiness, and peace. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: readinessimpromptu - Based on Latin in promptu, "in readiness," from promptus, "prepared, ready." More... procinct - A state of readiness or preparation. More... stand by - Meaning "to await, support," it was an order to hold one's self in readiness, recorded from 1669. More... gear - Its etymological meaning is "that which puts one in a state of readiness." More... | |