Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, January 2, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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pent-up
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Writing Compound NounsWriting compound nouns is a bit complicated due to the fact that they can take three different forms. What are "open compound nouns"? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 AmphisbaenaThe amphisbaena appears in Greek and Roman mythology as a scaled or feathered poisonous serpent with a head at each end of its body, thus enabling it to move either backward or forward with ease. Its name is, in fact, derived from the Greek words amphis, meaning "both ways," and bainein, "to go." Ever vigilant, the monster never allows both of its heads to sleep at the same time. According to myth, the amphisbaena was formed from the blood of what dreaded mythological figure? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Second "Palmer Raid" Takes Place (1920)During the "Red Scare" that followed World War I, US Attorney General Alexander Mitchell Palmer attempted to deport political radicals, dissidents, and aliens in the notorious "Palmer Raids." The first raid took place in late 1919. The second series of raids began in January 1920. In total, some 3,000 allegedly subversive aliens were rounded up for deportation. A few hundred were deported, but the vast majority were released. The raids were preceded by bombings targeting what officials? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Mehmed IV (1642)After the deposition and murder of his father, Sultan Ibrahim, 7-year-old Mehmed IV ascended the throne of the Ottoman Empire. Chaos and corruption followed, and though grand vizier Mehmed Köprülü managed to restore order, the empire suffered severe setbacks. In 1683, the Turks besieged Vienna but were repulsed by King John III of Poland, and a Holy League was formed to carry the war into Ottoman territory. Mehmed was deposed after a Turkish defeat by Charles V of Lorraine. Who succeeded him? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Caught up in life, you see it badly. You suffer from it or enjoy it too much.Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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look for a dog to kick— To seek out someone to blame or castigate, especially someone who is not at fault. (Usually said in the continuous tense.) More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Berchtold's Day (2025)In Switzerland, the day after New Year's Day is known as Berchtoldstag and is celebrated primarily by children. Groups of playmates organize parties that feature nut eating and nut games followed by singing and folk dancing. A popular game is the building of "hocks" composed of four nuts placed close together with a fifth balanced on top. The children begin gathering and stockpiling nuts for Berchtold's Day festivities early in the fall. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: yesterdayhestern, hesternal - Hestern or hesternal means "pertaining to yesterday." More... nudiustertian - Pertaining to the day before yesterday. More... pridian - "Of or relating to a previous day or yesterday; former." More... yesterday - The yester of yesterday and yesteryear was a word on its own, meaning "yesterday," but by Old English it had become a collocation with "day." More... | |