Daily Content Archive
(as of Saturday, January 9, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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wanderlust
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Conditional Verbs and TensesConditional verbs can be in the past, present, or future tense. Which tense they take depends on whether the sentence is referring to a condition or possible result in the past, the present, or the future. Why do conditional sentences often feature a mix of tenses? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Dürer's RhinocerosBased on secondhand descriptions, German printmaker Albrecht Dürer—who never actually saw a rhinoceros himself—made a woodcut of the exotic beast gifted to the king of Portugal in 1515. The image became wildly popular in Europe despite its inaccuracies, which include a horn on the animal's back and rivets in its armor. The rhino that inspired the woodcut perished in a shipwreck while being sent to the pope, but not before the king arranged for it to battle an elephant. Which animal won? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 First iPhone Announced (2007)Development of Apple's iPhone began in 2004, when a team of about 1,000 employees began work on the highly confidential "Project Purple." Their efforts fundamentally changed the cell phone industry and prompted the development of a host of increasingly advanced smartphones that essentially function as mobile computers. Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone on January 9, 2007, at the Macworld Conference in San Francisco. What business did he prank-call as he tested features for the audience? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Richard Milhous Nixon (1913)After serving as vice president of the US under Dwight D. Eisenhower, Nixon ran for president but lost to John F. Kennedy in 1960. He was elected president in 1968 and 1972, but his second term was cut short by the Watergate scandal, which involved the burglary and wiretapping of Democratic party headquarters. Likely facing impeachment, he became the first president to resign. Although never convicted, he was pardoned by his successor, Gerald Ford. What pet did Nixon receive as a political gift? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 If you don't get what you want, it's a sign either that you did not seriously want it, or that you tried to bargain over the price.Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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loose lip(s)— The practice, habit, or manner of speaking too frequently and/or without discretion, especially as might unintentionally lead to revealing private or sensitive information to others. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Black Nazarene Fiesta (2025)The largest festival in Manila, Philippines, held each year in honor of the Quiapo District's patron saint, the Black Nazarene, a life-sized statue of Jesus carved from blackwood, whose shrine is located in Quiapo's baroque church. The traditional nine-day fiesta begins on January 1, and features nightly cultural events, band concerts, and fireworks. On the last day of the festival, the statue's translación and enshrinement in the church is commemorated by a procession of barefoot men pulling a carriage that holds the 200-year-old statue on the way to Calvary. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: limbsashtanga - Sanskrit for "having eight parts"—referring to the eight limbs or sutras of yoga; ashtanga yoga is also known as power yoga. More... basket case - Originally slang denoting a soldier who had lost all four limbs, thus unable to move independently. More... stretch - Originally meant "lengthening the limbs" or making them stiffer by stretching. More... hurkle, hurple - To hurkle or hurple is to draw one's limbs in and scrunch up the shoulders in reaction to the cold or in a storm. More... | |