Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, August 16, 2024)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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repose
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Quotation Marks and TitlesWe use italics or occasionally underlining to indicate the title of a complete body of creative work (such as a novel, music album, play, or film). In what instances do we use quotation marks to indicate a title? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The Port Arthur MassacreOn the morning of April 28, 1996, Martin Bryant bought a lighter, a can of tomato sauce, and a cup of coffee, drove to Port Arthur, a popular tourist site in Tasmania, Australia, and shot and killed 35 people and wounded another 37. The mentally handicapped 28-year-old was found fit to stand trial as a mentally competent adult, convicted, and sentenced to serve 35 life terms, one for each person killed, plus 1035 years without the possibility of parole. How old was Bryant's youngest victim? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 First Issue of Sports Illustrated Is Published (1954)The first issue of Sports Illustrated—featuring Milwaukee Braves star Eddie Mathews at bat—was published in 1954. The brainchild of Henry Luce, the founder of Time magazine, it became one of the most influential sports magazines in America. Though Sports Illustrated originally covered a wide range of sports, including hunting and yachting, today it focuses on major sports, such as football and baseball. When was the annual swimsuit issue first published? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Thomas Edward Lawrence (1888)Lawrence was a British adventurer, soldier, and scholar popularly known as Lawrence of Arabia. He learned Arabic while on an archaeological expedition in Mesopotamia, then served in intelligence for the British army in Egypt during WWI. After conceiving a plan to support an Arab rebellion against the Ottoman Empire—a German ally—he joined the Arab forces and became a leader in the revolt, but he failed to achieve the formation of an independent Arab state. What did he later do under false names? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 There are only two styles of portrait painting, the serious and the smirk.Charles Dickens (1812-1870) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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carry (someone) off their feet— To completely overwhelm someone with enthusiasm, ardor, or passion. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Bennington Battle Day (2025)During the Revolutionary War, Colonel Seth Warner and 350 soldiers from Vermont played a vital role in defeating the British forces who had come to capture the American supply depot at Bennington, Vermont. The anniversary of the fighting that took place along the Walloomsac River on August 16, 1777, is a legal holiday in Vermont, and a 306-foot tower has been erected in the town of Old Bennington, two miles west of Bennington proper. The Bennington Battle Monument State Historic Site hosts historic reenactments and displays on the weekend nearest August 16. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: purposesall intents and purposes - A redundant phrase, created for emphasis. More... blamestorming - An intense discussion for the purposes of placing blame or assigning responsibility for a misdeed or failure. More... celebrant, celebrator, reveler - Celebrants take part in religious ceremonies; celebrators or revelers gather for purposes of revelry. More... teleology - The study of design in nature; the word's basic meaning is "the study of ends or purposes"—attempts to understand the purpose of a natural occurrence by looking at its results. More... | |