Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, March 6, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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imperious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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How to Form Comparative AdverbsComparative adverbs, like comparative adjectives, are used to describe differences and similarities between two things. We form comparative adverbs either by adding the word "more" (or "less") before the base adverb, or by adding what ending to the base adverb? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Lake GuatavitaLake Guatavita is a small crater lake in the mountains of Colombia that has been the site of a centuries-old treasure hunt. It is likely the source of the legend of El Dorado, which allegedly began prior to the 16th century, when a local Chibcha chief would ritually coat himself in gold dust, bathe in the lake, and cast offerings of gold and jewels into the water. Since the arrival of the Spanish, numerous attempts have been made to recover the supposed treasure. What strategies have been tried? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Walter Cronkite Signs off CBS Evening News (1981)During his career as a broadcast journalist, "Uncle Walter," as Cronkite was affectionately known, was identified in public opinion polls as the most trusted man in America. He was managing editor and anchorman of The CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite for almost 20 years and covered the first televised US presidential election, the 1969 moon landing, and the assassination of US President John F. Kennedy. In 1981, he signed off for the last time with what famous phrase? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Louis Francis "Lou" Costello (1906)Costello was an American comedian who, along with Bud Abbott, formed the comedic duo of Abbott and Costello. From 1931 to 1957, Costello played a bumbling, cheery dimwit alongside Abbott's "straight man" in various stage, radio, and TV routines, the most famous of which was their "Who's on First?" skit. Regarded as the archetypal team of burlesque comedy, the pair starred in movies such as Buck Privates and Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein. Why did the two eventually part ways? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 There is but an inch of difference between the cushioned chamber and the padded cell.Gilbert Chesterton (1874-1936) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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man the fort— To mind or take charge of a location during the time in which it is unattended by another. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Alamo Day (2025)In 1836, a garrison of Texans took a stand against the Mexican Army at a Franciscan mission in San Antonio, named after the grove of cottonwood trees (alamo in Spanish) that surrounded it. Led by William Barret Travis, the band of volunteers was beseiged for 13 days by Mexican soldiers. Travis refused to surrender, and the Alamo was overrun on the morning of March 6. Only women and children survived. The heroic action at the Alamo gave the Texans time to organize the forces necessary to save their independence movement. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: swordsheath - Seems to have first been a split stick that a sword could be inserted into. More... spades - As a suit in a deck of cards, it has nothing to do with spades as tools, but comes from Spanish espada, "sword." More... spay - A shortening of a French word espeer, meaning "cut with a sword." More... gladiator, gladiate - The main Latin word for sword was gladius, from which came gladiator; gladiate is an adjective meaning sword-shaped. More... | |