Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, March 19, 2022)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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portmanteau
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Using Colons with DialogueThe colon is used in written dialogue between two or more people, most often in transcripts of plays or legal testimony in a courtroom. We place the colon immediately after the name of the speaker, and the dialogue that follows is written without what? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Taming of the ShrewThe Taming of the Shrew is one of William Shakespeare's earlier comedies. Its central plot involves the marriage of the violently tempered Katherina to Petruchio, who claims he can tame her wild ways. The comedy has inspired, among other things, a Broadway Musical, a number of Hollywood movies, and a 2000 Brazilian soap opera. How have some modern critics responded to the play's seemingly misogynistic tones? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Willie Mosconi Sinks 526 Consecutive Billiard Balls (1954)The son of a pool hall owner who tried to keep him from playing billiards, Mosconi learned the game by shooting with potatoes when his father hid the balls. A prodigy, he went on to win the world pool title 15 times before 1957. In 1954, he sank 526 consecutive balls in two hours and 10 minutes, and more than 35 witnesses signed an affidavit swearing to the feat. The record has never been broken. Mosconi was later hired to teach what actor how to convincingly play a pool hustler for a 1961 film? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 William Jennings Bryan (1860)Despite being a dominant force in the US Democratic Party, Bryan lost three bids for the presidency. However, he helped secure the presidential nomination for Woodrow Wilson, under whom he became secretary of state. Bryan's belief in neutrality led him to resign when it appeared that Wilson would enter the US into World War I. A devout Presbyterian, he later campaigned for Prohibition and, in 1925, died after exhausting himself prosecuting and finally winning what famous legal case? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Human life consists in mutual service.Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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me three— humorous An expression of concurrence, agreement, or willingness to participate in addition to others. Said after someone has said "me too" (i.e., "me as well"), thus creating a pun of "too" and "two." More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 San José Day Festival (2025)The San José Day Festival at Laguna Pueblo, New Mexico, used to take place only on St. Joseph's Day, March 19. Today it is also celebrated on September 19, when freshly harvested crops can be sold and festivities enjoyed in the summer weather. The fiesta's events reflect both traditional Laguna events and the Roman Catholic influence common to the pueblos. There are Catholic masses and processions honoring St. Joseph as well as traditional Laguna dancing. Attendees, including other native peoples, can also enjoy a carnival with rides, numerous food stands, and sporting events. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: pleasantamicable, amiable - Amicable implies being well disposed; amiable is acting well disposed and is commonly applied only to people—though sometimes it is used for occasions, while amicable is not applied to people at all but to human interactions and their outcomes. Amiable first meant "kind" or "lovely, lovable," and amicable first applied to things and meant "pleasant, benign." More... jolly - Comes from Old French jolif, "merry, festive, pleasant." More... merry - First meant "peaceful" or "pleasant," which is what it first meant in "Merry Christmas." More... | |