Daily Content Archive

(as of Friday, July 5, 2019)
Word of the Day

skullduggery

Definition:(noun) Crafty deception or trickery or an instance of it.
Synonyms:hanky panky, hocus-pocus, jiggery-pokery, slickness, trickery
Usage: No one trusted Glenn enough to invest in his new business venture, as he had a history of skullduggery.
Daily Grammar Lesson

Forming the Second Conditional

We use the second conditional to speak about a hypothetical situation or outcome resulting from the condition. Unlike the first conditional, we use the second conditional to talk about things that cannot or are unlikely to happen. How do we create the second conditional? More...
Article of the Day

The Augsburg Confession

The Augsburg Confession is the basic doctrinal statement of Lutheranism, written primarily by German theologian Philipp Melanchthon, a close friend and defender of Martin Luther. It was intended as a working document for negotiations aimed at reconciliation between Lutherans and Catholics. It came, however, to be seen as the crucial expression of Lutheran beliefs. It was presented to Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Augsburg in 1530, at a time when he was facing what military threat? More...
This Day in History

The Battle of Wagram Begins (1809)

The two-day Battle of Wagram signaled the end of the 1809 War of the Fifth Coalition between the kingdoms of Austria and France. Due to the battle's then-unprecedented use of artillery, both sides suffered tens of thousands of casualties. The Austrians were broken by the battle. Napoleon's victory forced Archduke Charles of Austria to accept unfavorable armistice conditions, stripping Austria of land and subjects. The battle might have ended differently if who had shown up in time? More...
Today's Birthday

P. T. Barnum (1810)

Barnum may be best known for the circus he formed with James Bailey in 1881, but this took place late in his life and was neither his first, nor sole, line of work. The splashy showman was also an author and, oddly enough, a politician. Yes, the man who may have said "There's a sucker born every minute" was elected to office—more than once. Apparently fond of seeing his name in print, Barnum published his autobiography in 1855 and even got a newspaper to oblige him in what way before his death? More...
Quotation of the Day
Every tale must end at last.

Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875)

Idiom of the Day

on the fiddle

Engaged in deceitful, fraudulent, or dishonest means of obtaining money. More...
Today's Holiday

Beiteddine Festival (2025)

The Beiteddine Festival, held in a magnificent 200-year-old palace in this town in the Chouf region of Lebanon, has presented world-class offerings in the arts since 1985. Organizers defied the struggles of Lebanon's civil war by staging this celebration of human culture. Many performers are Lebanese, but artists from around the world also are invited. The 2001 festival, for example, included a concert by Elton John, a production of Victor Hugo's Notre Dame de Paris, and Turkish folk musician Kudsi Erguner, as well as a performance by the Lebanese singer Fairouz. More...
Word Trivia

Today's topic: lapis lazuli

azure stone - Another name for the lapis lazuli. More...

lapis lazuli - A sky-blue semiprecious stone, it is pronounced lap-us-LAY-zuh-lee. More...

sapphire - From Greek sappheiros, "lapis lazuli" or "blue stone." More...

ultramarine - First a blue pigment made from lapis lazuli, imported from Asia by sea, so, in Latin, it was ultramarinus, "beyond the seas." More...

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