Daily Content Archive
(as of Tuesday, June 26, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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hard-hitting
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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HyphensA hyphen ( - ) is used primarily to join two or more words to form a new, compound word or to provide clarity when using certain affixes (such as prefixes). What is a hanging hyphen? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The SimurghSimurgh is the modern Persian name for a mythical, benevolent flying creature found in all periods of Greater Iranian art and literature as well as in the iconography of medieval Armenia and Byzantium. The simurgh is depicted as a female, winged creature with the head of a dog and the claws of a lion. It is said to be large enough to carry off an elephant or a whale. According to Iranian legends, the bird is so old that it has seen the destruction of the world how many times? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 "Ich bin ein Berliner" (1963)In 1963, US President John F. Kennedy traveled to West Berlin to show support for those living behind the Berlin Wall, hemmed in by Soviet-controlled East Germany. Considered a key moment in the Cold War, Kennedy's speech boosted morale for West Germans, who feared Communist occupation. Kennedy was apparently coached on the pronunciation of the famous line "Ich bin ein Berliner"—"I am a Berliner"—just before taking the stage. Why has it been reported that he in fact said "I am a jelly doughnut"? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 George Edward Stanhope Molyneux Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon (1866)An enthusiastic amateur Egyptologist, Carnarvon was an English aristocrat who funded several excavations in Egypt. After pursuits in Thebes, he joined forces with English Egyptologist Howard Carter to search for Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings. In 1922, the two opened the young Pharaoh's crypt, discovering treasures unsurpassed in the history of archaeology. Carnarvon's death a year after the discovery became linked to the legendary "Mummy's Curse." What really killed him? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Let us endeavor so to live that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry.Mark Twain (1835-1910) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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loaded word— A word that carries additional emotional weight or significance—whether positive or negative—beyond its literal meaning. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Madagascar Independence Day (2021)This national holiday commemorates Madagascar's independence from France on this day in 1960. Republic Day is another public holiday in Madagascar, held on December 30, the day the new constitution went into effect. The country became a republic in 1975. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: umbrellaumbrella - Etymologically, it is a "little shadow." More... parapluie - A French word for umbrella, derived from Latin pluvia, "rain." More... bumbershoot - Another word for umbrella, formed by combining an alteration of the word umbrella and an alteration of the word parachute. More... nuclear umbrella - A protective status in which a nuclear state promises to use its arsenal to defend an ally without nuclear capabilities. More... | |