Daily Content Archive
(as of Friday, February 12, 2021)| Word of the Day | |||||||
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gravitas
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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TenseGrammatical tense refers to the conjugation of a verb to reflect its place in time—that is, when the action occurred. There are technically only two grammatical tenses in English. What are they? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Human VestigialityThanks to evolution, humans have a number of anatomical structures that today have little or no use. Along with vestigial features such as wisdom teeth and the tail bone—which are thought to hearken back to a time when our ancestors consumed lots of raw plants and balanced with their tails—there are also vestigial reflexes. One example is goose bumps, which would raise our fur, if we still had it, and make us seem more menacing. What purpose might the appendix, long considered vestigial, serve? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 The Battle of the Herrings (1429)The meatless days of Lent were approaching when Sir John Fastolf set off from Paris with hundreds of wagons laden with weapons and barrels of herring to resupply the English troops that had been laying siege to the French town of Orléans for months. Engaged by thousands of French troops attempting to sever his supply route, Fastolf made a defensive formation with his wagons, lending the battle its name. What group's poorly timed attempt to help the French may have caused them to lose the battle? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 George Meredith (1828)One of the great English novelists, Meredith wrote complex, often comic yet highly cerebral works that contain striking psychological character studies. Though he ostensibly launched a law career at age 18, he focused instead on journalism, poetry writing, and translation. Unable to earn a living this way, he began writing novels and eventually became a critical and popular success. In one of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's tales, Sherlock Holmes asks Dr. Watson to talk about Meredith instead of what? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 I never thrust my nose into other men's porridge. It is no bread and butter of mine; every man for himself, and God for us all.Miguel de Cervantes (1547-1616) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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at the end of (one's) tether— Completely worn out, exasperated, or exhausted; having no more patience, endurance, or energy left. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Myanmar Union Day (2024)In the Union of Myanmar, also known as Burma, Union Day commemorates the day in 1947 that Bogyoke Aung San, a Burmese nationalist leader, helped to unify all of Burma. Five days before Union Day, an annual relay of the Union flag begins. A ceremony to mark the start of the relay is held at City Hall. The flag is carried through 45 townships before arriving at People's Square on Pyay Road for a Union Day ceremony. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: obligationobstriction - An obligation. More... convert into, convert to - Convert into means to change from one thing to another; convert to means to switch allegiance, loyalty, or obligation. More... delinquent - Literally "completely having left" one's duty or obligation. More... likely, liable - Use likely if you mean "probable, expected"; use liable if you mean "bound by law or obligation." More... | |