Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, September 7, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Using Comparative AdjectivesWhen using comparative adjectives, the two nouns that are being compared can both appear in the sentence. This is the case if there is any chance of the listener or reader being confused by what you're talking about. When we need to mention both nouns, what structure do we follow? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Gap YearAfter completing high school or college, more and more students around the world are opting to take a year off to travel before continuing their education or entering the workplace. Known as a gap year, among many other names, the prolonged break—often but not always lasting a year—is usually spent working, learning a language, volunteering, or combining activities into a so-called working holiday. In what countries is the gap year less popular? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 First Miss America Pageant Held in Atlantic City, New Jersey (1921)The Miss America Pageant, now an American institution, began in 1921 as an attempt by Atlantic City businessmen to keep tourists in town after Labor Day. The weeklong event features the 50 state pageant winners and includes evening gown, swimsuit, and talent competitions. Its winner receives a $50,000 scholarship and spends the next year traveling and making lucrative personal appearances. What unusual skills have contestants demonstrated in the talent competition over the years? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Anna Mary Robertson "Grandma" Moses (1860)A farm worker for most of her life, Moses turned to painting only after arthritis had forced her to give up embroidery. Her paintings were first displayed in a drugstore when she was 78, but her exhibitions soon became so popular that they broke attendance records around the world. Moses painted simple scenes of farm life and produced thousands of them despite her late start. Her works now hang in some of America's most prestigious museums and galleries. Who "discovered" her paintings? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 No man knocks himself down; if his destiny knocks him down, his destiny must pick him up again.Charles Dickens (1812-1870) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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let it slip— To accidentally or inadvertently reveal a given secret or important piece of information. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 International Camel Races (2019)The International Camel Races, the only camel races in the United States, have been held since 1954 in Virginia City, Nevada, the one-time mining town considered the richest place on earth in the 1860s. It was thought that camels could work like mules in the mines, but they didn't last long; their hoofs didn't adapt to the rocky terrain. There are some camels kept in town today, though, and others are imported for the races. The three-day race weekend now includes a Camel Hump Ball; a parade, including belly dancers and bagpipe players; and a race of ostriches pulling chariots. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: tree trunkpirogue - A canoe made from a tree trunk. More... tree ring - Any of the concentric rings of the cross-section of a tree trunk, representing a year's growth, or the layer of wood produced by a year's growth in a woody plant; also called annual ring. More... block - Derives from Middle Dutch blok, "tree trunk." More... snag - Literally first meant a stump on a tree trunk or a piece of timber underwater that obstructed navigation. More... | |