Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, May 1, 2025)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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galvanize
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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"Be" as an Auxiliary Verb vs. "Be" as a Linking VerbWe must be careful not to confuse how "be" functions as a linking verb with how it functions as an auxiliary verb. When it is used as an auxiliary, "be" is no longer an independent verb describing the subject of the sentence. What does it do instead? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Forget-Me-NotsThough they belong to a genus with roughly 50 species, most forget-me-nots are small, flat, five-petalled blue flowers with straggly stems. According to legend, the flowers received their name when a medieval knight, picking a posy for his lady by a riverside, fell into the water and drowned under the weight of his armor. As he was drowning, he threw the bouquet to his lover and shouted, "Forget me not!" Christian tradition, however, attributes the flower's name to what event? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 General Mills Introduces Cheerios as CheeriOats (1941)General Mills introduced its oat-based, ready-to-eat cold cereal as CheeriOats but, in 1946, changed its name to Cheerios because of a trademark dispute with Quaker Oats. Today, it comes in nearly a dozen different flavors and is marketed to children as well as adults. It has used several different characters in its advertising over the years, including Charlie Brown from Peanuts. Why did the US Food and Drug Administration call Cheerios an "unapproved new drug" in 2009? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Joseph Heller (1923)As a bombardier with the US Air Force during World War II, American writer Joseph Heller flew 60 combat missions. He drew on his wartime experiences when writing his darkly humorous novel Catch-22 (1961), a satiric commentary on the absurdity of war and bureaucracy. One of the most significant works of postwar protest literature, it was a huge critical success. What did Heller famously reply when asked why he had not written anything else as good as Catch-22? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Can there be hope where fear is?Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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no pressure— Said ironically to emphasize that what is being discussed carries a large amount of importance or makes one feel that one must try very hard to succeed. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Feast of St. Joseph the Worker (Worker's Day) (2025)This public holiday in Malta is celebrated with festivities throughout the country. In Valletta, a highlight of the mass conducted by the archbishop in St. John's Cathedral is the blessing of the tools and products of laborers and craftsmen. St. Joseph, the husband of the Virgin Mary, was a carpenter who taught Jesus his craft. He is the patron saint of workers, laborers, carpenters, cabinetmakers, and joiners. In 1955, Pope Pius XII established the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker on May 1 as a counter-celebration to the Communists' May Day celebrations honoring workers. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: pancakeblin - As in blini and blintze, it is Russian for "pancake." More... blintz, blintze - Blintz(e) is from Russian blinets, "little pancake." More... cake - A Viking contribution, from Old Norse kaka, it is related to "cook"; cake first meant small, flat bread roll baked on both sides by being turned—as in pancake or potato cake. More... omelet, omelette - Omelet has also been written omelette, amulet, and aumelet; omelet's root sense is "thin layer" or "crepe," and it was first described in English as a "pancake of eggs." More... | |