Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, April 2, 2025)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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cavort
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining ParticlesA particle is a word that does not have semantic meaning on its own, but instead relies on the word it is paired with to have meaning. A particle cannot "inflect." What does that mean? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 CockroachesThough cockroaches are insects commonly associated with human dwellings, only about 20 of the 3,500 known species are suited to thrive in the typical home. Once a home is infested, however, it is extremely difficult to eradicate the pest. One of the world's hardiest insects, the cockroach can live without food for up to a month and without breathing for up to 45 minutes. Even decapitation does not immediately kill the bugs. Experts believe cockroaches could even survive what cataclysmic event? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 As the World Turns Premieres (1956)Soap operas began in the early 1930s as 15-minute radio episodes and continued in that format when they began appearing on TV in the early 1950s. As the World Turns premiered as the first half-hour TV soap. The show, which primarily focused on two professional families in the fictional town of Oakdale, Illinois, ran for 54 years and aired nearly 14,000 episodes. For 20 of those years, it was most-watched daytime drama in the US. What interrupted a live broadcast of the show in 1963? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Émile François Zola (1840)Zola was the founder of French naturalism, a literary school that maintained that novel-writing should be scientific, appraising reality in terms of natural forces such as heredity or environment. Inspired by his readings in sociology and medicine, he applied his theory in a vast series of novels in which the characters are impartially observed and presented in minute, often sordid, detail. Zola also had an ardent zeal for social reform. He died in his sleep under what suspicious circumstances? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Virtue is insufficient temptation.George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have the mouth of a sailor— To have a tendency or proclivity to use coarse, rude, or vulgar language. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 International Children's Book Day (2025)This day, which is observed by countries all over the world, is held on Hans Christian Andersen's birthday, April 2, because the Danish author's stories have been favorites among children of all nationalities. Celebrations include contests in which children illustrate their favorite books. Every two years the International Board on Books for Young People sponsors the Hans Christian Andersen medals, which are awarded to a children's book author and a children's book illustrator for their contributions to children's literature. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: simpletondodo - Comes from Portuguese doudo, "fool, simpleton," from the bird's awkward appearance. More... doodle - Originally a noun meaning "fool, simpleton," from German dudeltopf, it came to mean absent-minded scribbling. More... gullible - A derivative of archaic gull, "dupe" or "simpleton." More... half-wit - Originally was "a would-be wit whose abilities are mediocre"; the sense of "simpleton" (one lacking all his wits) is attested to 1755. More... | |