Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, November 18, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Ditransitive Verbs"Ditransitive verbs" take two objects: a direct object and an indirect object. The direct object relates to the person or thing that directly receives the action of the verb, while the indirect object relates to the person or thing that indirectly receives or benefits from the action as a result. Where does an indirect object appear in a sentence? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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| This Day in History | |
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 Pope Boniface VIII Issues Unam Sanctam (1302)Historians consider the papal bull Unam sanctam—which proclaimed that there is no salvation outside of the Church—to be one of the most extreme statements of papal spiritual supremacy ever made. It stemmed from Pope Boniface VIII's ongoing feud with Philip the Fair of France over Philip's taxation of clerics without papal consent. Unam sanctam thus emphasized that Catholic princes are subject to the pope in temporal and religious matters. How did Philip respond to the bull? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Asa Gray (1810)Considered one of the most important botanists in American history, Gray laid the foundation for the study of plants in North America. He made botanical expeditions to the western US, established Harvard University's botany department, and wrote prodigiously on the subject of plants, producing several classic, still-valued textbooks. Charles Darwin was such an admirer of Gray's work that he shared his theory of natural selection with Gray before publishing it. What toxin was named for Gray? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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| Idiom of the Day | |
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lipstick on a pig— Some superficial or cosmetic change to something so that it seems more attractive, appealing, or successful than it really is. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Haiti Battle of Vertières' Day (2025)This official public holiday memorializes the last battle for Haitian independence on November 18, 1803, in which Haitian rebels defeated the French colonialists. The victory at Vertières, near the present-day port city of Cap-Haïtien, signified the end of a long freedom struggle that stretched out over two major phases. Less than two months after the battle, Haiti became the first black independent republic. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: trumpetkazoo, bazooka - Dutch bazu, "trumpet," gives us the words kazoo and bazooka, the latter originally being a form of kazoo that was a long sounding-horn. More... jubilee - Comes from Hebrew yobhel, "ram's horn," which was used as a trumpet to proclaim the jubilee, a year of emancipation and restoration (every 50 years). More... taratantara - The sound of a bugle or trumpet can be called taratantara. More... | |