Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, May 5, 2016)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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crotchet
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Comparative AdverbsComparative adverbs, like comparative adjectives, are used to describe differences and similarities between two things. Comparative adverbs and comparative adjectives sometimes have the same form. However, even when the forms are the same, how can we tell the difference between the two? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 AviophobiaAviophobia, also called aviatophobia, is the fear of flying or being on an airplane while it is in flight. Because air travel is difficult to avoid, this fear can be crippling both professionally as well as personally. While a significant portion of the population experiences anxiety related to air travel, the fear only becomes aviophobia when it significantly interferes with a person's ability to travel by air. What are some techniques a person with aviophobia can use to conquer this fear? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Grand Opening of New York City's Carnegie Hall (1891)Carnegie Hall has long been the most famous concert hall in the US. Admired for its beauty and superb acoustics, it was designed in a Neo-Italian Renaissance style by architect William Burnet Tuthill and was endowed by industrialist Andrew Carnegie at the insistence of conductor Walter Damrosch. Pyotr Tchaikovsky was the guest of honor at its opening. The venue was slated for demolition in the 1950s but was saved by a public outcry. What was it called before it was named after Carnegie in 1893? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Eugénia María de Montijo de Guzmán (1826)The daughter of a Spanish noble, Eugénia married Napoleon III in 1853 and became the empress of France. She took an active role in the politics of the Second Empire, acting as regent when her husband was at war. She also encouraged French opposition to a Prussian candidate for the Spanish throne in the controversy that precipitated the Franco-Prussian War. Deposed after Napoleon's defeat and capture, she fled and settled in England. Why was her marriage to Napoleon controversial? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Every man is surrounded by a neighborhood of voluntary spies.Jane Austen (1775-1817) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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dead of night— The middle of the night. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Thailand Coronation Day (2017)On May 5, 1950, King Bhumibol Adulyadej was crowned Rama IX of Thailand, the ninth king of the Chakri dynasty. Ever since, the day has been celebrated as Coronation Day in Thailand. On May 4th, the Chief of Brahmin priests reads out the official proclamation of Coronation Day. On May 5, the Buddhist monks are given a feast and the king wears his full regalia. At noon, the Royal Thai Army and Navy each give a 21-gun salute. Later in the day, the king awards medals and decorations to those citizens who have done outstanding services for the state. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: strivecompete - Comes from Latin competere, "come together," but in later Latin, it developed the sense "strive together," which was the basis for the English term. More... repugn, repugnant - Repugn means "to strive against" or "be contradictory or inconsistent," giving us repugnant. More... strive - Seems to be from Old French estriver, "quarrel, strive." More... win - Its Germanic base gave it its first meaning, "to labor, strive, work." More... | |