Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, June 3, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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empty-handed
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Past Continuous TenseAlso called the past progressive, the past continuous tense is used to describe something that was in progress at a certain moment in the past. Why is it called the past continuous? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Blue MoonThough the term is often used metaphorically to describe a rare event, a blue moon is actually, in astronomical terms, the second full moon within a calendar month or the third full moon in a three-month calendrical season that has four full moons. While most years have 12 full moons that occur approximately once a month, each solar year has about 11 days more than the lunar year. These extra days accumulate, and, every few years, an "extra" full moon appears. When is the next blue moon? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 China: Government Sends Troops to Tiananmen Square (1989)In April 1989, Chinese students gathered in Tiananmen Square to demand democratic reform. The demonstrators were gradually joined by workers, intellectuals, and civil servants, until over a million people filled the square and martial law was declared. The protesters demanded that the leadership resign, and the government answered, on June 3, with troops and tanks, killing thousands to quell a "counterrevolutionary rebellion." What happened in the aftermath of these events? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Jefferson Davis (1808)During the American Civil War, Davis, a political and military leader who had previously served in both houses of US Congress and distinguished himself as the commander of a volunteer regiment during the Mexican War, was elected President of the Confederate States of America. A West Point graduate, Davis prided himself on his military skills and closely managed the Confederate army. Following the Confederacy's surrender, he was captured and indicted on charges of treason. What became of him? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 When a man wants to murder a tiger he calls it sport; when the tiger wants to murder him he calls it ferocity.George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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screw (one's) courage to the sticking place— To remain bold, resolute, determined, and courageous, especially in the face of possible danger, difficulty, hardship, or adversity. Taken from a line in Shakespeare's Macbeth: "We fail! But screw your courage to the sticking-place, and we'll not fail." More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Charlottetown Festival (2022)The Charlottetown Festival is devoted entirely to musicals by Canadians. Held from June through mid-October on Prince Edward Island, the festival presents three full-scale musicals every year. One of these is always Anne of Green Gables, a story about rural life on the island at the turn of the century, written by island-born novelist Lucy Maud Montgomery. The festival also offers plays for children, Sunday evening pop concerts, and a series of short plays and musical events. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: violin | |