Daily Content Archive
(as of Tuesday, August 31, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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penchant
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Factitive Verbs vs. Linking VerbsLinking verbs and factitive verbs both tie a subject to another part of speech that provides more information about it. How do linking verbs differ from factitive verbs? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Middletown StudiesIn the 1920s, husband-and-wife sociologists Robert and Helen Lynd arrived in Muncie, Indiana, with the goal of identifying the town's cultural norms and determining what social changes had taken place since 1890. In their published report, they kept the location anonymous, identifying Muncie as "Middletown." They returned during the Great Depression to study its impact and found that the town's values had changed little. What did the Lynds find to be the ultimate status symbol during the 20s? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Death of Diana, Princess of Wales (1997)Diana's beauty and unprecedented popularity as a member of the royal family attracted intense press attention, and she became one of the most photographed women in the world. After her divorce from Prince Charles in 1996, she remained highly visible and continued her activities on behalf of numerous charities. In 1997, she was killed in a car crash in Paris, along with her companion, Dodi al-Fayed, and their driver. Who was blamed for the accident in subsequent investigations? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Ramon Magsaysay (1907)A Philippine guerrilla leader during World War II, Magsaysay helped combat the Japanese occupation and clear the way for US forces to liberate the island nation. He then entered politics and, as secretary of defense, spearheaded one of the most successful antiguerrilla campaigns in modern history by currying favor with the peasantry—thereby depriving the Hukbalahap rebels of popular support. By 1953, the Huks were no longer a threat, and Magsaysay was elected president. How did he die? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Every revolution was first a thought in one man's mind, and when the same thought occurs to another man, it is the key to that era.Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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legal eagle— An especially clever, aggressive, or skillful attorney. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Hari Merdeka (Merdeka Day) (2024)Merdeka Day is a national holiday in Malaysia to commemorate its merdeka, or independence, from the British in 1957. Parts of Malaysia were under the rule of various foreign powers for centuries, but by the 1920s all the states eventually comprising Malaysia were ruled by Britain. The Federation of Malaya was founded in 1957 and Malaysia was formed in 1963. The streets of towns and cities are decorated on this day, and there are numerous parades, exhibitions, and stage shows. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: momentextemporaneous, impromptu - Extemporaneous means "prepared in advance and carried out with few or no notes," while impromptu means "totally unprepared, performed on the spur of the moment"—but this distinction has been all but lost. More... moment, momentum - Latin momentum, from movere, "move," and -mentum, is the source of moment and momentum, which first meant "moving power." More... moment of truth - A translation of a Spanish expression referring to the time of the final sword thrust in a bullfight. More... momentarily, presently - Momentarily means "in a moment"; presently means "soon" or "shortly." More... | |