Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, May 13, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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flyaway
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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AdverbialsSingle-word adverbs, adverbial phrases, and adverbial clauses are sometimes grouped together under the umbrella term "adverbials," which simply means any word or group of words used as an adverb in a sentence. However, because the term is so broad in meaning, it is very common to refer to any adverbial element with what term? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 ElectricityElectrical phenomena, caused by the presence and flow of electric charge, have been studied since antiquity. Static electricity was the first of them to be recognized and investigated. As early as 600 BCE, certain cultures had discovered that rubbing amber with fur caused it to attract light objects such as feathers. Some 2,200 years later, English scientist William Gilbert coined the term "electricity" to describe the electrification of substances. How did he come up with the word? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Children Report Visions of the Virgin Mary in Fátima, Portugal (1917)In 1917, three children were herding sheep in Fátima when, according to their story, the Virgin Mary appeared to them. They claimed that she continued to appear to them on the 13th of every month, relaying messages and prophesies. Word of the visions spread, and at one point, the children were arrested. Then, on October 13, thousands reported seeing the sun spin in the sky near Fátima, which became a pilgrimage site. Two of the children died before the age of 12. What happened to the third? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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.jpg) Maria Theresa of Austria (1717)Maria Theresa became Archduchess of Austria and Queen of Bohemia and Hungary upon the death of her father, Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI. Lacking a male heir, he had initiated the Pragmatic Sanction providing for female heirs to inherit the Habsburg property and throne. She married Emperor Francis I and bore him 16 children, 10 of whom survived to adulthood. Two of their sons became emperors, and two of their daughters became queens. One queen was Marie Antoinette of France. Who was the other? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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of no account— Of no or very little importance, significance, or worth. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Lemuralia (2025)In ancient Rome, the lemures were the ghosts of the family's dead, who were considered to be troublesome and therefore had to be exorcized on a regular basis. The Lemuralia, or Lemuria, was a yearly festival held on the 9th, 11th, and 13th of May to get rid of the lemures. Participants walked barefoot, cleansed their hands three times, and threw black beans behind them nine times to appease the spirits of the dead. On the third day of the festival, a merchants' festival was held to ensure a prosperous year for business. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: movieart movie - A movie intended to be an artistic work rather than a commercial movie of mass appeal. More... longueurs - Boring periods of time or parts of a book, play, music, or movie are longueurs. More... horse opera - A slang term for a western (movie). More... vamp - Theda Bara's performance in the movie The Vampire brought us this word, meaning "seductive woman." More... | |