Today's Highlights
| Word of the Day | |||||||
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poppycock
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Infinitives vs. Base Forms (Bare Infinitives)The base form of a verb is simply the infinitive without the particle "to"—like an infinitive, it is uninflected for tense and person. Because of this similarity, the base form of a verb is often known as a bare infinitive. However, infinitives and base-form verbs function differently—in what ways? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Messel PitOne of the most significant fossil sites in the world, the Messel Pit is a former shale quarry in Germany. About 47 million years ago during the Eocene Epoch, the area was home to a lake, and archaeologists hypothesize that it periodically released clouds of poisonous volcanic gases. Insects, fish, birds, and mammals that died there were preserved with incredible detail—down to fur and feathers—in the lake's sediment. Prehistoric versions of what modern animals have been found there? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Turkmenistan Gains Independence from the Soviet Union (1991)Following Turkmenistan's independence, the head of its Communist Party, Saparmurat Niyazov, became president. He developed a totalitarian cult of personality, isolating the Central Asian nation culturally and politically. Citizens were tested on their knowledge of Niyazov's autobiography and spiritual guide book, the Ruhnama—even on driver's license tests. Niyazov's successor later reversed many of his policies, including the decision to rename the months of the calendar after what? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Roy Lichtenstein (1923)Lichtenstein was an American artist best known for his brilliantly colored paintings in the style of large-scale comic strips, such as Whaam! and Drowning Girl. Originally an abstract expressionist, he turned to the New York-based pop art movement in the 1960s. In addition to his comic-book inspired panels, he created ironic pop art reinterpretations of famous paintings by artists such as Picasso. Which of his works was destroyed in the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 But there, everything has its drawbacks, as the man said when his mother-in-law died, and they came down upon him for the funeral expenses.Jerome K. Jerome (1859-1927) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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have skin in the game— To have a personal investment, usually monetary, in the pursuit of some goal or achievement, especially in business and finance. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 St. Vincent and the Grenadines Independence and Thanksgiving Day (2020)A group of islands in the West Indies, St. Vincent and the Grenadines gained independence from Britain on October 27, 1979, and citizens celebrate their freedom with this national holiday. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: spikepricket - A candlestick with a spike for holding up the candle (or the spike itself). More... barb - As any type of spike or projection, it is based on Latin barba, "beard"; it is also a piece of vertically pleated linen worn over or under the chin, as by nuns. More... brad - A small or thin wire nail, it is from Old Norse broddr, "spike." More... spike - Probably borrowed from Dutch spiker, "long sharp piece." More... | |
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| Mismatch | |
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