Daily Content Archive
(as of Thursday, December 17, 2020)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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titivate
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Conjunctive Adverbs for Weak ContrastThere are two types of contrast that we can illustrate using conjunctive adverbs. One, known as "weak contrast," is when two clauses are opposing but are not complete opposites. For this type of contrast, we are limited to using only the weaker of the contrasting conjunctive adverbs. What are they? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 KohlAncient Egyptians used kohl eyeliner for cosmetic as well as medical reasons, believing that it protected the eyes from the Sun. It remains popular in Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East today. Though homemade preparations are made from soot, commercial kohl products often contain galena—also known as lead sulfide—and have the potential to expose users to lead. Many Indian parents line their babies' eyes with kohl or apply a dot of it behind their babies' ears to protect them from what? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Romanos Is Crowned Co-Emperor of the Byzantine Empire (920 CE)Romanos advanced through the ranks of the Byzantine military to become an influential figure in the royal court. In May 919, he arranged for the marriage of his daughter to the teenage Emperor Constantine VII and was declared "Father of the Emperor." The next year, he was crowned co-emperor, and he then made his own sons co-emperors. However, in 944, Romanos's sons arrested him and made him become a monk to prevent him from naming Constantine VII his successor. What happened to them? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Gabrielle-Émilie Le Tonnelier de Breteuil, Marquise du Châtelet (1706)The wife of a French marquis, du Châtelet defied convention in both her personal and professional life. She was a mathematician and physicist and wrote a number of scientific treatises as well as a translation of Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica. She had several extramarital affairs—the most enduring of which was with philosopher and writer Voltaire, who once described her as "a great man whose only fault was being a woman." How did she once think her way out of a gambling debt? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Fear is sharp-sighted, and can see things underground, and much more in the skies.Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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be tied (up) in knots— To be confused, anxious, worried, and/or upset (about something). More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Wright Brothers Day (2025)It was on the morning of December 17, 1903, that Wilbur and Orville Wright became the first men to fly and control a powered heavier-than-air machine. Events on December 17 traditionally include a "flyover" by military aircraft and a special ceremony held at the Wright Brothers National Memorial, a 425-acre area that features a 60-foot granite pylon on top of Kill Devil Hill, where the Wright Brothers' camp was located. The flyover takes place at precisely 10:35 AM, the time of the original flight in 1903. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: notchcrenelation, crenelle - A crenelation (from Latin crena, "notch") is a series of indentations or loopholes around the top of a castle, battlement, or wall—with each indentation being a crenelle (or crenel). More... carf, kerf - A cut or notch in timber is a carf or kerf—which are also used to describe the width of such a cut. More... dent - As in "notch," it comes from the French word for tooth; its original meaning was "blow, stroke" in general. More... score - First a notch used to keep count, as on a stick. More... | |