Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, February 4, 2024)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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lariat
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Pre-DeterminersPre-determiners are words that come before another determiner to give us more information about the noun that follows. They usually come before the articles "a," "an," and "the." What are three categories of pre-determiners? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 TonsillectomyThe tonsils are areas of lymphoid tissue located on either side of throat that are frequently removed in a surgical procedure called a tonsillectomy. Those who often suffer from inflamed tonsils, as is the case with chronic tonsillitis patients, frequently undergo the procedure. The surgery is commonly performed on children; and among adult tonsillectomy patients, there is a slightly increased risk of bleeding and, generally, more postoperative pain. What is “Painless Tonsillectomy”? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The "Flying Tailor" Dies after Failed Parachute Jump from Eiffel Tower (1912)Parachutes at the dawn of the aviation age were bulky and, inconveniently, had to be pre-opened. Among those trying to improve upon their design was French tailor Franz Reichelt. He had some success testing his designs on dummies, but he had no evidence that his parachute would work with a real person when he jumped from the Eiffel Tower before a crowd of spectators and reporters. The chute failed to open, and he plummeted to his death. How had he convinced the authorities to allow the jump? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Charles Lindbergh (1902)In 1927, Lindbergh, an American aviator, made the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic in 33.5 hours, landing in Paris to a hero's welcome. He returned to the US a celebrity but moved to England in 1932 to escape the media frenzy surrounding the kidnapping and murder of his son. Returning to the US in 1940, he faced criticism for opposing US entry into WWII. Still, he flew combat missions for the US during the war. He helped invent what device that made open-heart surgery possible? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 If you are foolish enough to be contented, don't show it, but grumble with the rest.Jerome K. Jerome (1859-1927) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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lust for power— Intense, insatiable desire to attain power and control. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 St. Agatha Festival (2025)Sant' Agata (St. Agatha) is especially revered in Catania, Sicily, where her relics are preserved in a silver casket. On February 3, 4, and 5 each year, a silver bust of St. Agatha wearing a jewel-encrusted crown is carried in procession from the cathedral to Catania's various churches. Included in the procession are the ceri, huge wooden replicas of candlesticks that are carved with episodes from the saint's martyrdom. The streets are lined with streamers and flowers, and illuminated by strings of colored lights after dark. The festival ends with a fireworks display in the piazza. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: punishexecute - Derives from Latin exsequi, "carry out, follow up; punish." More... gruelling - Comes from the verb gruel, "to exhaust, punish." More... punish - Derives from Latin punire, "punish," which came from poena, "penalty, punishment." More... penal, punitive - Penal means "relating to punishment," while punitive means "serving to punish." More... | |