Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, June 22, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Question MarksQuestion marks ( ? ) are used to identify sentences that ask a question (technically known as interrogative sentences). What are indirect questions? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 AK-47sDesigned by Mikhail Kalashnikov in 1947, the AK-47 is an assault rifle that was used in most Eastern bloc countries during the Cold War. Due to its durability and ease of use, it remains the most widely used assault rifle in the world. Although only one factory holds the patent, nearly one million AK-47s are manufactured illegally each year, and many are smuggled and sold to governments, rebels, criminals, and civilians. An AK-47 appears on what country's flag and coat of arms? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The Hammond Circus Train Wreck (1918)On the morning of June 22, 1918, a locomotive pulling empty passenger cars rear-ended the Hagenbeck-Wallace circus train near Hammond, Indiana. The wreck and subsequent fire—likely ignited by the oil lamps in the circus train's wooden sleeping cars—resulted in 86 deaths and 127 injuries. Most of the dead were buried five days later in a nearby cemetery, their graves marked with nicknames like "Baldy" and "Smiley" since many bodies could not be formally identified. What caused the collision? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Erich Maria Remarque (1898)Drafted into the German army at age 18, Remarque served in World War I and was wounded several times. From his experience of trench warfare, he drew a grimly realistic picture of the horror of battle in his first novel and masterpiece, All Quiet on the Western Front. It was an immediate international success, and Remarque went on to write several other novels. All Quiet on the Western Front was later burned by the Nazis, who guillotined which of his family members in 1943? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 To retire is not to flee, and there is no wisdom in waiting when danger outweighs hope, and it is the part of wise men to preserve themselves to-day for to-morrow, and not risk all in one day.Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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a living legend— A person who has an extraordinary reputation or level of fame while he or she is still alive. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Croatia Anti-Fascist Resistance Day (2021)This holiday in Croatia, also called Anti-Fascism Day, dates back to the Second World War. After Nazi Germany invaded and conquered Yugoslavia in 1941, Croatia became a German puppet state under a government of Croatian fascists, called the Ustaše. One of the resistance groups that sprang up to oppose the fascist government was the Partisans, headed by half-Croatian Communist leader Josip Broz Tito. Anti-Fascist Resistance Day is a national holiday in Croatia. Like most warm-weather holidays in the country, it is celebrated with outdoor barbeques and fireworks. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: movieart movie - A movie intended to be an artistic work rather than a commercial movie of mass appeal. More... longueurs - Boring periods of time or parts of a book, play, music, or movie are longueurs. More... horse opera - A slang term for a western (movie). More... vamp - Theda Bara's performance in the movie The Vampire brought us this word, meaning "seductive woman." More... | |