Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, December 10, 2018)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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head-to-head
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Singular vs. Plural Use of "There"The dummy pronoun "there" can be used in either a singular or plural context. When it is used in a singular context, the correlating nouns and verbs have singular endings. When it is used in a plural context, what endings do the corresponding nouns and verbs have? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 The English Peasants' Revolt of 1381The first major popular rebellion in English history, the Peasants' Revolt was the result of economic, social, and political discontent that came to a head when a new poll tax angered workers already resentful of legally fixed wage limits. Under the leadership of Wat Tyler, the rebels marched to London, captured the Tower of London, and beheaded officials responsible for the tax. King Richard II promised reforms, but instead Tyler was killed at the negotiations. What did the rebel army then do? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 UN General Assembly Adopts Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)Drafted by a committee chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is the world's most translated document. Among its 30 articles are definitions of civil and political rights, as well as definitions of economic, social, and cultural rights—all of which are owed by UN member states to those under their jurisdiction. Since its adoption, it has acquired more juridical status than originally intended and has been widely used, even by national courts, in what ways? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Emily Dickinson (1830)Dickinson is widely considered one of the greatest American poets. After attending Amherst Academy and Mount Holyoke Seminary, she returned to her family home and spent the rest of her life there, writing. By 1860, she was boldly experimenting with language. Few of her poems were published in her lifetime, but after her death, her cache of poems was discovered, and heavily edited collections were published starting in 1890. It was not until what year that an unaltered collection was published? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Academy: A modern school where football is taught.Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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amount to nothing— To result in no tangible or appreciable difference. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Whirling Dervish Festival (2019)Each year up to a million people flood Konya, Turkey, on the anniversary of the death of the poet and Sufi Islamic mystic Jelaluddin al-Rumi. Rumi's teachings are the basis for the Sufi Muslim order known as Mevlevi, which uses music and dance to experience spiritual ecstasy. Leading up to December 17, thousands of visitors arrive to partake of exhibits and lectures related to Rumi and the Mevlevi order. At the climax of the festival, the Mevlevis perform their whirling dance, wearing costumes that feature white trousers, a full white overskirt, and tall cylindrical hats. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: pineJapanese garden - Often uses bamboo, mondo grasses, pine, and small pools of water containing koi. More... pine, pinecone - Pine, the tree, is from Latin pinus, from Indo-European pei-, "resin"; pinecones were originally called pineapples. More... pine, fir, spruce - Pine, fir, and spruce are quite different from each other, though they are all conifers; pine has clusters of long, needle-shaped leaves, spruce is a type of fir, and the only scientific difference between the two is that spruces have rectangular needles while firs have flat, needle-shaped leaves. More... pinot - A variant of French pineau, a diminutive of pine, from the shape of the clusters of grapes. More... | |