Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, December 31, 2016)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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quixotic
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining Predicate NounsNouns that follow linking verbs are known as "predicate nouns" (or sometimes "predicative nouns" or "predicate nominatives"). What do they serve to do? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Harold "Kim" PhilbyInitially a journalist, Philby became a high-ranking member of British intelligence and is believed to have provided the USSR with classified information that caused the deaths of scores of American and British agents. Always in danger of having his cover blown by Soviet defectors, Philby himself defected to the USSR in 1963, after he was exposed as a member of the Cambridge Five spy ring. Philby died in Moscow in 1988. What killed him? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Arthur Guinness Signs a 9,000-Year Lease on His Brewery (1759)Guinness is a celebrated Irish dry stout that originated in the Dublin brewery of Arthur Guinness. When Guinness acquired his brewery, he famously signed a 9,000-year lease that fixed his annual rent at 45 pounds. From 1799, the brewery produced only its distinctive, dark, creamy Guinness stout, which became known as the national beer of Ireland. In 1955, to help settle trivia disputes in pubs, the company began publishing what book? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Elizabeth Arden (1884)Born in Canada as Florence Nightingale Graham, Arden moved to New York City in 1907 and under her new name opened a beauty salon. Her business became an international empire based on salons, hundreds of "scientifically formulated" beauty products, and an exclusive image—all packaged in her trademark pink. Arden made makeup acceptable to "respectable" American women, introducing them to eye shadow, mascara, and lipstick tinted to match their outfits. Who was her cosmetics rival? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Childhood shows the man, as morning shows the day.John Milton (1608-1674) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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a lean patch— A period of failure, decline, or poor performance or results. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 St. Sylvester's Day (Madeira) (2019)In many European countries, December 31, in addition to being New Year's Eve, is also the observance of St. Sylvester's Day, the feast day of Pope Sylvester (314-335). In Madeira, a group of Portuguese islands off the northwest coast of Africa, one of the world's most impressive fireworks displays takes place on the evening of this day, which is known as the Great Festival of St. Sylvester. The noise of the fireworks resounds over the Bay of Funchal, the islands' capital, where oceanliners make a special stop so that passengers can watch the celebrations. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: sickanointing of the sick - The Catholic sacrament in which a priest anoints a dying person with oil and prays for salvation. More... decumbiture - The act of going to bed when sick. More... ill - Originally meant not "sick" but "bad," and was borrowed from Old Norse illr; the sense of "sick" arrived in the 15th century. More... nauseous, nauseated - Nauseous ("sickening") is an adjective describing something that causes nausea; the adjective for the feeling ("made sick") is nauseated. More... | |