Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, January 27, 2022)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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odious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Gerunds as Objects of VerbsGerunds very frequently function as the direct objects of "true" verbs. What type of verb is very likely to take a gerund as an object? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Judith and HolofernesIn the Book of Judith, the eponymous heroine—a Jewish widow of great beauty and piety—enters the Assyrian camp as their army besieges her city of Bethulia. General Holofernes tries to seduce her, but she beheads him while he is drunk. Judith brings his head back to Bethulia, and the Jews rout the Assyrians. Judith's story is likely fictional and is not part of the Hebrew Bible, though her erotically-charged, violent tale has made her a popular artistic subject. How did early Christians view her? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Song Dynasty General Yue Fei Is Executed (1142)One of China's greatest generals and patriotic heroes, Yue helped establish a southern foothold for the Song dynasty while preventing the advance of the Juchen, who had taken the former Song capital in the north. However, his attempt to recapture the lost territory was opposed by one of the emperor's counselors, who earned a reputation as a traitor for relinquishing the north to the Juchen and having Yue executed. According to legend, what phrase did Yue's mother tattoo across his back? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Soong Ch'ing-ling (1893)Born to an influential Chinese family, Soong was educated in the US. She returned to China, became prominent in revolutionary politics, and married Sun Yat-sen, a revolutionary 26 years her senior now known as the father of modern China. She and her sisters—along with their husbands, including Chiang Kai-shek—became some of the most significant political figures in the Communist government, with Soong becoming vice chair after Sun's death. What magazine, still in publication, did she found? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The accumulation of all powers, Legislative, Executive, and Judiciary, in the same hands, whether of one, a few, or many, and whether hereditary, self-appointed, or elective, may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.James Madison (1751-1836) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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work the room— To interact with many people at an event or function. Often, but not always, applied to business situations. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Birthday of Mozart (2023)Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria, on this day in 1756. His achievements in composing operas, chamber music, symphonies, and piano concerti have earned him a reputation as one of the greatest musical geniuses of all time. Mozart's birthday is observed by musical societies all over the world, who often give concerts of his music on this day. The city of his birth also honors him at the end of January with Mozart Week. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: hospitalconservatory - Comes from an Italian word for a hospital for foundlings, to whom music was taught. More... ambulance - Once brought the hospital to the patient—and kept the name when it reversed the process and started bringing the patients to the hospital; its original meaning was "mobile hospital following an army." More... nosocomial - "Pertaining to a hospital" or "originating in a hospital." More... bedlam - The word bedlam is a contraction of Bethlehem, a hospital in London that became a lunatic asylum. More... | |