Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, February 23, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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scoundrel
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining Compound SentencesCompound sentences are one of the four main sentence structures. They are made up of at least two independent clauses expressing closely related ideas of equal or similar importance. What is used to join these clauses? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Pulp MagazinesPulp magazines were popular, inexpensive fiction magazines published from the late 19th century through the 1950s, primarily in the US. Printed on cheap paper with ragged, untrimmed edges, "pulps" were cheaper than books or standard magazines. While many respected, now-famous authors wrote for pulps, the magazines were known for their lurid, exploitative stories and sensational cover art, often featuring scantily-clad women. What famous masked hero made his rapier-toting debut in pulp magazines? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Battle of the Alamo Begins (1836)In the 1835 Texas Revolution, the predominantly American settlers of Texas sought independence from the Mexican government. In December, they took the Alamo, an old chapel in San Antonio. When Mexican forces arrived in February, the Texians were outnumbered and unprepared to withstand the 13-day siege. Nearly all of them were killed. The loss became a rallying point for Texians, who went on to win the war. What short-lived independent nation did they establish that year? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Karl Theodor Jaspers (1883)Jaspers was a German philosopher and psychopathologist often identified as an exponent of existentialism, although he rejected this classification. In his magnum opus, Philosophy, he argued that the aim of philosophy is practical and that its purpose is the fulfillment of human existence. He believed illumination is achieved through the experience of "limit situations" like conflict, guilt, and suffering, which define the human condition. What forced him to give up his teaching career? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Compromise used to mean that half a loaf was better than no bread. Among modern statesmen it really seems to mean that half a loaf is better than a whole loaf.Gilbert Chesterton (1874-1936) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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make (someone's) ears burn— To make someone uncomfortable, embarrassed, or disconcerted by what is being said. Alludes to the ears growing red from blushing. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Terminalia (2025)In ancient Rome, February 23 marked the end of the year and was therefore an appropriate time to honor Terminus, the god of boundaries and landmarks. The terminus, a boundary stone that marked the outer limits of Rome, stood between the fifth and sixth milestones on the road to Laurentum. During the observance of the Terminalia, property owners would gather there—or at the boundary stones that marked their private lands—to place garlands around the stone and offer sacrifices. Afterward, there would be singing and socializing among family members and servants. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: transfertranslate - Early on, it meant "transfer." More... emancipate - Derives from Latin e-, "out," and mancipare, "deliver as property; transfer, sell." More... metaphor - From Greek metapherein, "to transfer," as it is a word or phrase transferred from one context (meaning) to another. More... transistor - A blend of transfer and resistor. More... | |