Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, January 17, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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arcadian
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Modal Verbs that Indicate an ObligationBecause modal auxiliary verbs can be quite similar in how they are used, it is sometimes unclear when it's more appropriate to use one instead of another. For instance, "must," "shall," "should," and "will" can all be used to indicate an obligation to do something. Which one is particularly direct and forceful? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Curse of the NinthThe Curse of the Ninth is the superstition that a composer will die after writing a ninth symphony. Belief in the curse arose after Beethoven, Dvorák, and Schubert—among others—all died after composing their ninth symphonies. Mahler, perhaps the first prominent composer to fear the curse, attempted to elude it by naming his ninth symphony "The Song of the Earth," but he died after writing "Symphony No. 9"—which was technically his 10th. Who are the other supposed victims of the curse? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Popeye Makes His Debut in the Thimble Theater Comic Strip (1929)Popeye, the popular cartoon character who turns from sailor to strongman with a few swallows of spinach, started out as a minor character in the Thimble Theater comic strip. In its early days, the strip starred Olive Oyl and her boyfriend, Ham Gravy. However, after cartoonist E.C. Segar introduced Popeye, he became so popular that his role was expanded, and he soon replaced Ham as Olive's love interest, going on adventures with her brother, Castor Oyl, and facing what nemesis? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Mack Sennett (1880)Sennett was an American movie director, considered the father of slapstick comedy in film. After directing comedies under the tutelage of D.W. Griffith, he left to form his own Keystone Company and produced the first American feature-length comedy, Tillie's Punctured Romance, in 1914. He made more than 1,000 comedy shorts, often featuring the wild antics of the Keystone Kops, and received a special Academy Award in 1937. As an actor, Sennett played what iconic character in several films? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 She might hate me, and revile me, and heap indignity after indignity upon me, as she already had, until I should have hated her; but the pitiful fact remained that I loved her.Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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lose (one's) buttons— To be or become mentally deficient, incompetent, or deranged; to become of unsound mind. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Benjamin Franklin's Birthday (2025)Born in Boston on this day in 1706, Benjamin Franklin helped edit, and was a signer of, the Declaration of Independence. He also helped to frame the Constitution. When he died in 1790 in Philadelphia, he was given the most impressive funeral that city had ever seen: 20,000 people attended. In Philadelphia, the Franklin Institute Science Museum holds a two-day "birthday bash" that often involves people dressing as Franklin. The celebration takes place on the weekend preceding Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, which is the Monday after January 15. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: interpretationeisegesis - The interpretation of a word or passage by reading into it one's own ideas. More... hermeneutic - An adjective meaning "concerned with interpretation," especially of scripture. More... case-sensitive - If something is case-sensitive, there is a different meaning or interpretation based on upper- and lower-cased letters. More... semiotics - The study of signs and symbols and their use or interpretation. More... | |