Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, February 16, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Focusing Adverbs in Negative StatementsFocusing adverbs are used to draw attention to a particular part of a clause. When we want to draw attention to a negative statement, what two words can we use? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Fatal HilarityPeople can and do die of laughter. The 3rd century BCE philosopher Chrysippus, for example, is said to have laughed himself to death while watching the antics of a drunken donkey. In 1410, Martin I of Aragon succumbed to a combination of indigestion and uncontrollable laughter. More recently, a UK man died of heart failure after laughing for 25 minutes at a TV show featuring a Scotsman in a kilt battling a vicious black pudding. What other historical figures have died from laughter? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Burning of the USS Philadelphia (1804)The USS Philadelphia was a 36-gun frigate that ran aground in October 1803 while blockading the coast of Tripoli. After some consideration, the Americans decided that the ship was too powerful a weapon to remain in enemy hands and sent a party of soldiers to recapture the ship and burn it. In carrying out "the most bold and daring act of the age," the assaulting party used what ruse to sail up to the ship without arousing the suspicion of its Tripolitan guards? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono (1935)Bono was an American record producer, singer, actor, and politician. He began his music career working with legendary producer Phil Spector in the early 1960s and went on to write, arrange, and produce a number of hit singles like "I Got You Babe" and "The Beat Goes On," which he performed with his then-wife Cher. The duo also hosted a popular television variety show in the 1970s. Later, Bono became involved in politics and served as a member of the US House of Representatives. How did he die? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The world is quickly bored by the recital of misfortune, and willingly avoids the sight of distress.W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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make fast work of (someone or something)— To deal with, finish, or dispose of someone or something very quickly or handily; (of an object) to consume something quickly. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Lithuania Independence Day (2025)This is a national holiday in Lithuania marking the declaration of independence from Austrian, Prussian, and Russian occupation on February 16, 1918. Today, the anniversary is celebrated with festivals and fireworks, particularly in the capital city of Vilnius. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: inabilityacalculia - The inability to perform simple arithmetic. More... impotence, sterility - Impotence is the male's inability to copulate or get an erection; sterility is the inability of either a male or female to procreate. More... abulia, aboulia - Inability to make decisions is abulia or aboulia. More... paramnesia - Can mean the inability to recall the meanings of common words. More... | |