Daily Content Archive
(as of Sunday, May 5, 2019)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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decennium
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Comparative AdverbsComparative adverbs, like comparative adjectives, are used to describe differences and similarities between two things. Comparative adverbs and comparative adjectives sometimes have the same form. However, even when the forms are the same, how can we tell the difference between the two? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Vlad III the Impaler: The Original DraculaVlad III, son of Prince Vlad Dracul, briefly ruled Wallachia in the mid-15th century. Known as Dracula, meaning "Son of the Dragon" or "Son of the Devil," Vlad lived up to his moniker. He ruled with terrible cruelty, impaling tens of thousands and earning his own nickname—"the Impaler." The novel Dracula by Bram Stoker, although not based on Vlad's historical exploits, introduced the name Dracula to a global audience. What other execution methods are said to have been favored by Vlad? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Grand Opening of New York City's Carnegie Hall (1891)Carnegie Hall has long been the most famous concert hall in the US. Admired for its beauty and superb acoustics, it was designed in a Neo-Italian Renaissance style by architect William Burnet Tuthill and was endowed by industrialist Andrew Carnegie at the insistence of conductor Walter Damrosch. Pyotr Tchaikovsky was the guest of honor at its opening. The venue was slated for demolition in the 1950s but was saved by a public outcry. What was it called before it was named after Carnegie in 1893? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Eugénia María de Montijo de Guzmán (1826)The daughter of a Spanish noble, Eugénia married Napoleon III in 1853 and became the empress of France. She took an active role in the politics of the Second Empire, acting as regent when her husband was at war. She also encouraged French opposition to a Prussian candidate for the Spanish throne in the controversy that precipitated the Franco-Prussian War. Deposed after Napoleon's defeat and capture, she fled and settled in England. Why was her marriage to Napoleon controversial? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 The land of literature is a fairy-land to those who view it at a distance, but, like all other landscapes, the charm fades on a nearer approach, and the thorns and briars become visible.Washington Irving (1783-1859) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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dead of night— The middle of the night. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Ethiopia Patriots' Victory Day (2019)Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia made a grand entrance into the capital city, Addis Ababa, on May 5, 1941, to mark the end of the Italian occupation. Exactly five years earlier, the Italians had initiated a period of occupation. However, the intervention of British forces and other Allies, as well as the heroics of Ethiopian patriots, helped preserve Ethiopia's independence. In Addis Ababa, government leaders, diplomats, patriot associations, and city residents turn out to honor veterans who fought in the resistance movement between 1935 and 1941. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: strivecompete - Comes from Latin competere, "come together," but in later Latin, it developed the sense "strive together," which was the basis for the English term. More... repugn, repugnant - Repugn means "to strive against" or "be contradictory or inconsistent," giving us repugnant. More... strive - Seems to be from Old French estriver, "quarrel, strive." More... win - Its Germanic base gave it its first meaning, "to labor, strive, work." More... | |