Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, August 17, 2017)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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laic
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Forming Noun ClausesA noun clause is a type of dependent clause that is able to function grammatically like a noun in a sentence. Noun clauses, like all clauses, contain what two things? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Cooper's Hill Cheese Rolling and WakeThe Cooper's Hill Cheese Rolling and Wake is a 200-year-old competition held annually in the Cotswolds region of England. Drawing both local and international participants, the race begins when a round of Double Gloucester cheese is set loose at the top of a steep hill. Competitors dash after it, risking sprained ankles, broken bones, and concussions in the chase. Even spectators risk injury, as the cheese reaches speeds of 70 mph (113 km/h). What does the first person over the finish line win? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Miles Davis's Kind of Blue Is Released (1959)Recorded in just two sessions in the spring of 1959, Miles Davis's Kind of Blue is widely considered to be one of the most important jazz albums ever produced. Davis assembled a group of talented musicians—including saxophonist John Coltrane and pianist Bill Evans—and gave them minimal instructions before recording. Possibly the best-selling jazz album of all time, Kind of Blue is notable for having left out something considered to be the backbone of earlier jazz composition—what? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Mae West (1893)West was an American stage and movie comedienne who started her career in burlesque and vaudeville. In 1926, she began to write, produce, and star in her own Broadway plays, which were often replete with sexual innuendo. A master of the double entendre, she treated sex with broad humor in popular films such as I'm No Angel. As a result, she constantly battled the censorship of the motion picture Production Code. Many of her one-liners have become classics. What are some examples? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 I is the first letter of the alphabet, the first word of the language, the first thought of the mind, the first object of affection.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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henpecked— Of a man, thoroughly and continually dominated, intimidated, bullied, or browbeaten by a woman, especially his wife or girlfriend. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 San Martín Day (Argentina) (2020)This national holiday in Argentina honors José Francisco de San Martín, who died on this day in 1850. Born in 1778 in a town called Yapeyú, San Martín, formerly a soldier in the Spanish army in Europe, came home in 1812 to fight in the revolution against Spain. He led forces across the Andes to defeat the Spanish in Chile and Peru. The victories he led assured independence from Spain for much of the region. After passing the torch to Simón Bolívar, San Martín resigned in 1822. He left Argentina in 1824, and lived out his life in exile in France. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: inkatrament - A synonym for ink. More... calamari - The term for Deep-fried squid comes from Latin calamarius, meaning "pen case"—because of its long tapering shell and its ink; it is also spelled calamary. More... ink - First spelled inke and enke—from Greek enkauston, the purple ink used by Roman emperors. More... | |