Daily Content Archive
(as of Wednesday, September 9, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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stopgap
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Creating the Subjunctive MoodOne of the most straightforward ways of using the subjunctive mood is when we want to describe a wish for something to be different than it is or was. When we express wishes, we create the subjunctive mood by moving the main verb of the sentence one tense back in the past. To convey a wish about a situation in the present, what tense would we use? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Shark Fin SoupThe ingredient that gives shark fin soup its name actually lends little flavor to the dish. Instead, it is added to improve the soup’s texture—and the perceived status of the consumer. Considered a delicacy in Asia, where it is often served at weddings as a symbol of prosperity, the soup has led to an increased demand for fins, and shark populations have been decimated as a result. After their fins are removed, the still-living sharks are often returned to the water, where what happens to them? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Elvis Presley Appears on The Ed Sullivan Show (1956)Presley was one of the 20th century's most popular American singers. His first national television appearance was in 1955 on Jackie Gleason's Stage Show, but it was his 1956 appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show that made him a national sensation. His pelvic gyrations caused a scandal but earned him thousands of adoring, often female, fans. That same year he released his first million-selling single, "Heartbreak Hotel," and starred in the first of his 33 movies, which was what? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Otis Redding (1941)Redding, an American soul singer known for his emotive style, began his career with Johnny Jenkins and the Pinetoppers and recorded his first hit, "These Arms of Mine," during time left over at the end of a Johnny Jenkins session. His biggest hit, "(Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay," was recorded just days before he died in a plane crash at age 26. It became the first posthumous number-one single. What are some different explanations for why Redding whistles at the end of the song? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The knight's bones are dust,And his good sword rust; His soul is with the saints, I trust. Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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let (someone) off the hook— To pardon, release, or allow someone to escape from blame, responsibility, obligation, or difficulty. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 U.S. Open (Tennis) (2024)The U.S. Open is the final tournament in the four events that make up the Grand Slam of tennis. The games are played on hard courts at Flushing Meadows Park in Queens, New York. The U.S. National Lawn Tennis Association was established in 1881, and the first official U.S. National Championship was played under its auspices that year in Newport, Rhode Island. The first women's championship was played in 1887. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: suggestionsuggest - To suggest something is, etymologically, to "carry it under," from Latin sub-, "under" and gerere, "bring, carry." More... addubitation - The suggestion of a doubt. More... lonely, lonesome, forlorn, desolate - Lonely adds to solitary a suggestion of longing for companionship, while lonesome heightens the suggestion of sadness; forlorn and desolate are even more isolated and sad. More... suggestion - Started out as "prompting to evil, temptation by the devil." More... | |