Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, April 12, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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tomfoolery
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Using Absolute PhrasesWe generally use absolute phrases at the beginning of a sentence to introduce additional information, or at the end of a sentence to provide a final comment on the sentence as a whole. It is also possible to use an absolute phrase in the middle of a sentence. What does that placement add to the sentence? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Pyotr StolypinStolypin was the prime minister of Russia from 1906 to 1911 under Nicholas II, the last tsar of Russia. Stolypin instituted agrarian reforms that improved the welfare of peasants, reasoning that as a landed class they would be more loyal to the tsar. At the same time, he was ruthless in suppressing the growing revolutionary movement and executed hundreds in 1906 and 1907. He was, in turn, assassinated by a revolutionary. What did Tsar Nicholas reportedly say to Stolypin on his deathbed? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Liberian President William R. Tolbert Is Killed in Military Coup (1980)Liberia was founded in the 1820s by former slaves from the US, and tensions between the Americo-Liberian minority and the indigenous majority have persisted since that time. On April 12, 1980, a group of soldiers led by Samuel Kanyon Doe stormed the executive mansion, killing Americo-Liberian President William R. Tolbert and 27 other government leaders. Doe, a member of the ethnic Krahn tribe, then declared himself president. How had a rice scandal seriously undermined Tolbert? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock (1940)Hancock is a jazz and funk pianist, composer, and bandleader who emerged as part of Miles Davis's group in the mid-1960s. An early adopter of electronic instruments, he became involved with funk and disco in the 70s, while continuing to tour with jazz groups, such as that of Wynton Marsalis. He won an Academy Award for his original score of the 1986 film 'Round Midnight and has won 14 Grammys, including "Album of the Year" for a work that paid tribute to what fellow musician? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The world would do well to reflect, that injustice is in itself, to every generous and properly constituted mind, an injury, of all others the most insufferable, the most torturing, and the most hard to bear.Charles Dickens (1812-1870) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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naff off— A forceful exclamation of dismissal, disdain, or impatience. Primarily heard in UK. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Halifax Day (2025)Also known as Halifax Resolves Day, Halifax Resolutions Day, Halifax Independence Day, or Halifax Resolutions of Independence Day, this is the day on which, in the spring of 1776, North Carolina's delegates to the Second Continental Congress were given permission to join with representatives from other colonies in declaring their independence from British rule. The Halifax Resolutions helped lay the groundwork for the American Revolution. Halifax Day observances take place in Halifax, North Carolina, with reenactments and living history camps. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: profitRoman holiday - Enjoyment or profit derived from others' discomfort or suffering, based on the gladiator matches enjoyed by ancient Romans. More... bottom line - A reference to the line at the bottom of a financial statement that shows the profit or balance. More... improve - First meant "to make a profit for oneself" or "to employ to advantage; to make profitable use of." More... broker - Originally, a broker or brokour bought wine cheaply in quantity and sold it at a profit; broker came to mean any retailer who did this, or a middleman/agent. More... | |