Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, January 6, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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feral
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining the EllipsisAn ellipsis is a series of three consecutive periods known as "ellipsis points" ( . . . ). What is the ellipsis used to indicate? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Checkpoint CharlieFrom 1961 until 1990, Checkpoint Charlie served as the main crossing point for Western personnel leaving West Berlin to enter the Soviet East. Necessitated by the building of the Berlin Wall in an effort to stop an exodus of defectors, the checkpoint became a symbol of a divided Berlin. The Allied side consisted of little more than a temporary hut and a now-iconic sign that read, in four languages, "You are leaving the American sector." What chilling 1962 incident sparked protests there? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 US President-Elect Survives Train Wreck, Loses Son (1853)Just months before he was inaugurated as the 14th US president, Franklin Pierce, his wife, and his 11-year-old son were in a terrible train wreck in which their car derailed and rolled down an embankment. Pierce and his wife survived but saw their son crushed to death. He was their third child, and the only one to have lived past early childhood. The suddenly childless parents were devastated, and Pierce entered the presidency in mourning. To what did Pierce's wife attribute the train accident? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Sarah Trimmer (1741)Trimmer was a British writer and critic of children's literature. Books written specifically for children had only become popular around 1730, and Trimmer helped to define the genre through her periodical The Guardian of Education. Her interest in education came from teaching her 12 children. Devoutly religious, she wrote her own scripture lessons, condemned fairy tales, and supported Sunday schools. What famous children's author might have been influenced by Trimmer's work? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 An engaged woman is always more agreeable than a disengaged. She is satisfied with herself. Her cares are over, and she feels that she may exert all her powers of pleasing without suspicion. All is safe with a lady engaged; no harm can be done.Jane Austen (1775-1817) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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odds and sods— An assortment of small, miscellaneous items, especially those that are not especially important or valuable. Primarily heard in UK, Australia. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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Jan2007.jpg) Haxey Hood Game (2022)This tradition in Haxey, Lincolnshire, England, can be traced back more than 600 years, when Lady Mowbray, whose husband owned a large portion of Haxey, lost her hood to a gust of wind and 13 local men struggled gallantly to retrieve it. The game known as Throwing the Hood, which takes place on January 6 each year, involves a Lord (who acts as umpire), 13 Plough-Boggins, a Fool, and as many others as care to participate. The participants wrestle over a piece of leather stuffed with straw, coins, and other fillings. The winners carry it back to the village pub, where a victory celebration takes place. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: tortoiseshellpad - Another name for a tortoise. More... testudinate - Means "slow-moving; like a turtle," from Latin testudo, "tortoise," and also describes something curved or vaulted like a turtle shell. More... Galapagos Islands - Named for the massive tortoises living there, from Old Spanish galapago, "tortoise." More... turtle, tortoise, terrapin - Turtle is applied to those living in water and tortoise to those that live on land, while terrapins live in fresh water; turtle and tortoise may come from the Latin root tort, with reference to the animals' twisted feet. More... | |