Daily Content Archive
(as of Monday, September 20, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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uproarious
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Words with the Same Plural and Singular FormsSome nouns remain the same in singular and plural forms. "Sheep" is one such noun. What are some others? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 AveragenessIn studies of attractiveness, researchers have found that average faces—those with the most conventional traits—are rated as the most attractive. Such studies often use composite photography, a tool developed in the 19th century by Sir Francis Galton, who believed that he could use composite images to identify "types" by facial appearance. Hypothesizing that certain types have similar facial features, he began creating composite photos of the faces of criminals and vegetarians. What did he find? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 James Meredith Is Barred from the University of Mississippi (1962)After a US federal court ruled that colleges could not deny admission to qualified students on the basis of race, civil rights activist James Meredith prepared to enter the segregated University of Mississippi. On the day of Meredith's enrollment, Mississippi Governor Ross Barnett stood in the doorway of the admissions office, physically blocking Meredith's entry, and informed him that his application was denied. Ten days later, Meredith returned—with 500 federal marshals. What happened then? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Maxwell Perkins (1884)After joining the publishing firm of Charles Scribner's Sons, Perkins became an enormously well-regarded editor with a genius for recognizing and fostering new talent. Though best known for the intensive editorial work that shaped Thomas Wolfe's sprawling manuscripts into publishable form, he also edited and published early works by then-unknown writers such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and Erskine Caldwell. How many words did Perkins persuade Wolfe to cut from his first novel? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 It is a capital mistake to theorize before you have all the evidence. It biases the judgment.Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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not get a wink of sleep— To not get any sleep. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Mothman Festival (2025)In 1966, the first sightings of a creature that came to be known as Mothman were first reported in the small town of Point Pleasant, West Virginia. Since 2001, the Mothman Museum of Point Pleasant has sponsored the Mothman Festival. Those interested in the Mothman phenomena and in such paranormal topics as ghosts and UFOs gather in the town. Merchandise booths are set up along the town's main streets, and posters, books, T-shirts, and a host of other products are available. Music concerts are also held along the river. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: thiefjilt - A female accomplice to a thief. More... furtive - Someone who is furtive literally "carries things away like a thief." More... ferret - Its name comes from Latin furritus, "little thief"—alluding to the animal's affinity for stealing hens' eggs. More... thief - Has the underlying meaning of "crouching, furtive person." More... | |