Daily Content Archive
(as of Tuesday, February 11, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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bambino
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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"Could" and Rhetorical Questions"Could" is sometimes used informally in sarcastic or rhetorical questions that highlight a behavior someone finds irritating, unacceptable, or inappropriate. In these situations, "could" is often (but not always) used with what as a main verb? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Unfinished WorksThe Canterbury Tales contains only a fraction of the stories Chaucer had planned, and Bach's The Art of Fugue cuts off so abruptly that it was long thought that he died while composing it. Sometimes, it is not the artist but the subject whose death prevents a work’s completion, as was the case with Franklin D. Roosevelt, who died just hours after a painter began his portrait. What other unfinished works leave us wondering what they would have been like had they been completed? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Japan National Foundation Day (660 BCE)The Japanese holiday known as Kenkoku Kinen-no-Hi, or National Foundation Day, commemorates the accession to the throne of Jimmu Tenno, the legendary first human emperor of Japan—believed to be a direct descendant of the gods—and founder of the imperial dynasty. In 1872, when the holiday was originally proclaimed, it was called Empire Day. It only came to be known as National Foundation Day when it was brought back in 1966 after having been abandoned for about two decades for what reason? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Farouk I of Egypt (1920)Farouk ascended Egypt's throne in 1936, as the country was transitioning from British rule to total independence. His administration was plagued by internal rivalries, but it was his alienation of the military, especially after its loss to Israel in 1948, that brought about his downfall. A 1952 coup led by officer Gamal Abdel Nasser forced Farouk to abdicate. He was briefly succeeded by his infant son, after which Egypt became a republic. What furniture style did the profligate king popularize? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 A prisoner...is unfortunate in two ways—because he has done something wrong and because he is deprived of his liberty. Therefore we should treat him kindly, because of his misfortune, for otherwise he would become hard and bitter and would not be sorry he had done wrong.L. Frank Baum (1856-1919) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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poetry in motion— Something that is very elegant, graceful, and/or beautiful to observe, especially dance or the performing arts. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Iran Victory Day of the Iranian Revolution (2022)Few world events during the late 20th century were as pivotal as the Iranian Revolution of 1979. On February 1, 1979, Ayatolla Ruhollah Khomeini returned to Iran to claim power after spending 15 years in exile. To memorialize the historic moment, a helicopter drops flowers on the ayatollah's tomb, in the Behesht-e Zahra cemetery south of the capital city of Tehran. For the next 10 days, people attend film screenings, music performances, and exhibitions inspired by the revolution. The celebration on February 11 usually entails a mass rally and military parade in Tehran. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: ignorantignore, ignorant - Ignore and ignorant are from Latin i-, "not," and gno-, "know." More... nescient - Can mean "ignorant" or "agnostic," coming from Latin ne, "not," and scire, "know." More... nice, nicety - Nice first meant "foolish, ignorant," derived from Latin nescius, "ignorant"; nicety first meant "stupidity." More... rude - Derives from Latin rudis, "uncultivated," and first meant "uneducated, ignorant." More... | |