Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, February 23, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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ModifiersModifiers are, quite simply, any word or group of words that modifies (describes or elaborates upon) another element in a sentence. Modifiers can either be adjectives or what other part of speech? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Mathilde KschessinskaThough she is perhaps best known for her affair with the future tsar Nicholas II, Mathilde Kschessinska was actually the first Russian prima ballerina assoluta. She earned the title—the highest possible rank for a ballerina—in 1896, at the age of 24. She was kind to colleagues but was said to be ruthless with her rivals and was known to use her connections with the tsar to her advantage. What was she rumored to have done during a fellow ballerina's performance that featured live chickens? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Battle of the Alamo Begins (1836)In the 1835 Texas Revolution, the predominantly American settlers of Texas sought independence from the Mexican government. In December, they took the Alamo, an old chapel in San Antonio. When Mexican forces arrived in February, the Texians were outnumbered and unprepared to withstand the 13-day siege. Nearly all of them were killed. The loss became a rallying point for Texians, who went on to win the war. What short-lived independent nation did they establish that year? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Karl Theodor Jaspers (1883)Jaspers was a German philosopher and psychopathologist often identified as an exponent of existentialism, although he rejected this classification. In his magnum opus, Philosophy, he argued that the aim of philosophy is practical and that its purpose is the fulfillment of human existence. He believed illumination is achieved through the experience of "limit situations" like conflict, guilt, and suffering, which define the human condition. What forced him to give up his teaching career? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.Sun Tzu (544 BC-496 BC) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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hand-to-mouth— Having, providing, or characterized by the bare minimum of money, food, or resources to survive, with little or nothing else to spare. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Carnival in Cologne (Kölner Karneval) (2020)Pre-Lenten activities are especially festive in Cologne, Germany. The celebration begins officially on the 11th day of the 11th month at 11:11 p.m., and the festival calendar is filled with 300 costume balls and performances of original songs and humorous speeches. These events lead up to the final "crazy days" just before Ash Wednesday, when the Lord Mayor of Cologne receives the Triumvirate of Carnival—Prince Carnival, the Cologne Virgin (played by a man), and the Cologne Peasant. The prince gets the keys to the city and rules the city until Carnival ends. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: sailorshurrah, hurray, hooray - Hurrah, hurray, and hooray are alterations of huzza, a sailor's cheer. More... jumper - First a loose jacket worn by sailors, from jump, "a short coat." More... put through the hoop - An ancient marine phrase for a punishment for sailors involving an iron hoop. More... smart money - A phrase meaning money bet by those in the know, originating in 1926; earlier than that, it meant "money paid to sailors, soldiers, workers, etc., who have been disabled while on the job." More... | |