Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, November 5, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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demonstrable
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Indefinite Pronouns: People and ThingsQuite a few indefinite pronouns can be used to refer to either people or things. In such cases, we rely on context or other elements of the sentence to know which. What are some indefinite pronouns that can refer to both things and people? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The LeonidsOccurring annually in mid-November, the Leonids meteor shower gets its name from the constellation Leo, from which it appears to radiate. The meteor shower is visible every year around the time the Earth moves through the particles left from the comet Tempel-Tuttle. Though most years' showers have a low frequency of meteors, the Leonids have produced some of the most spectacular meteor showers in history. How many meteors are estimated to have been observed per hour during the shower in 1833? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The Gunpowder Plot Is Thwarted (1605)Angered by King James I's refusal to grant more religious toleration to Catholics, a group of conspirators plotted to blow up Parliament and kill the king. The plot was discovered, and conspirator Guy Fawkes was arrested in a cellar under the palace at Westminster, where he had concealed 36 barrels of gunpowder. Under torture, he revealed the names of his coconspirators, and they were all either killed while resisting arrest or executed in 1606. How is November 5 celebrated in England today? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 William James Durant (1885)Durant was an American historian and essayist. In 1926, he published The Story of Philosophy, which soon became a bestseller. He then began a decades-long project—the writing of a comprehensive history of civilization. The result was The Story of Civilization, a monumental, 4,000,000-word, 10,000-page work stretching from prehistory to the 19th century. The series, published in 11 volumes from 1935 to 1975, introduced millions to intellectual history. Who coauthored the work? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 One can't stay sad very long in such an interesting world, can one?Lucy Maud Montgomery (1874-1942) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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false modesty— A vain or hypocritical pretense of holding a low or humble opinion of oneself, one's abilities, or one's circumstance so as to encourage others to say the opposite. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Dhan Teras (2018)Dhan Teras or Dhanvantri Trayodashi is observed two days prior to Dewali, the Hindu Festival of Lights. It is held in honor of Dhanvantri, the physician of the gods and the father of Indian medicine, whom doctors in particular worship on this day. According to Hindu mythology, the gods tried to produce the elixir known as amrita by churning up the ocean. Dhanvantri rose up out of the water bearing a cup filled with it. On this day Hindus rise at dawn and bathe, put on new robes, and fast. In the evening, they light an earthen lamp before the door of the house and break their fast. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: offerbid - Derives from Old English beodan, "to offer or command." More... carrot-and-stick - Refers to an offer of reward countered by the threat of punishment. More... blind fold - Worn by the Greek statue for justice so she cannot see the bribes being offered to her, hence, blind justice. More... cast pearls before swine - To offer something valuable to someone who does not appreciate it. More... | |