Daily Content Archive
(as of Tuesday, May 29, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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contrite
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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DeterminersDeterminers do two things. First, they signal that a noun or noun phrase will follow. Then, they give information about the item. What are demonstrative determiners? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Kilroy Was Here"Kilroy was here" is an American popular culture expression that is believed to have originated during World War II, when a US shipyard worker began scrawling the phrase on ships he had inspected. US servicemen then took up the saying and began scrawling it all over the world, wherever they were stationed or encamped. The phrase is usually paired with a doodle of a man peeking over a wall, a cartoon that was likely adopted from UK wartime graffiti that was often accompanied by what slogans? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Bing Crosby Records "White Christmas," Best-Selling Single of All Time (1942)Composed by legendary songwriter Irving Berlin, "White Christmas" has been recorded by numerous singers. By far, the best known version is performed by Crosby. However, it is not his 1942 recording that American audiences hear endlessly during Christmastime, but rather the re-recording he made in 1947. The song was further popularized by the film of the same name—starring Crosby—released in 1954. How many copies is Crosby's "White Christmas" single estimated to have sold worldwide? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Iannis Xenakis (1922)Xenakis was a Romanian-born French composer, architect, and mathematician. He started out studying engineering and music in Greece but was forced to flee in 1947 when he was denounced as a communist. He moved to Paris and, for the next 12 years, worked with the architect Le Corbusier. In his 30s, he began seriously studying composition with Olivier Messiaen and others and earned acclaim for his use of mathematical models in musical composition. What computerized composition tool did he develop? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 There is one insuperable obstacle to a belief in ghosts. A ghost never comes naked: he appears either in a winding-sheet or "in his habit as he lived." To believe in him, then, is to believe that not only have the dead the power to make themselves visible after there is nothing left of them, but that the same power inheres in textile fabrics.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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last burst of fire— A final effort or attempt, especially as before failure or defeat. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Shick-Shack Day (2021)The Oxford English Dictionary suggests that this day takes its name from a corruption of a derogatory term for Protestants who did not follow the doctrines of the Church of England. It was later applied to those who did not wear the traditional sprig of oak on May 29, or Royal Oak Day—the birthday of Charles II, and the day in 1660 on which he made his entry into London as king. Shick-shack has since become synonymous with the oak-apple or sprig of oak itself, and May 29 is celebrated in memory of the restoration of King Charles and his preservation in the Royal Oak. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: lamblamb - In Gothic times, lamb was used for "adult sheep" as well as "baby sheep." More... rack of lamb - A roast of the rib section of lamb. More... shepherd's pie - Got its name from the meat it originally contained—lamb or mutton. More... white meat - The pale meat of poultry, rabbit, or veal; red meat is from beef or lamb. More... | |