Today's Highlights
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transliterate
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| Daily Grammar Lesson | |
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Defining PhrasesPhrases are groups of two or more words that work together to perform a single grammatical function in a sentence. How do phrases differ from clauses? More... | |
| Article of the Day | |
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 Letters of MarqueA retaliatory measure once widely employed by governments around the globe, a letter of marque and reprisal is an official commission which authorizes a private ship to attack and capture merchant vessels from a hostile power. A ship operating under a letter of marque was known as a "private man-of-war" or "privateer." Widespread abuse on the part of privateers led a number of nations to ratify the 1856 Declaration of Paris abolishing the practice. What major power refused to sign the agreement? More... | |
| This Day in History | |
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 Nazi Commandos Rescue Imprisoned Benito Mussolini (1943)In 1943, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini was deposed by his own government. When German forces discovered that he was being held at a ski resort in the Apennine Mountains, they launched a daring rescue. Arriving on gliders, German troops overwhelmed Mussolini's captors and spirited him away without firing a shot. The operation was a major propaganda success for the Nazis. According to some accounts, what was Mussolini's reply when the paratroopers told him that Adolf Hitler had sent them? More... | |
| Today's Birthday | |
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 Henry Louis "H.L." Mencken (1880)Often regarded as one of the most influential American writers of the early 20th century, Mencken was a journalist, satirist, social critic, and cynic known as the "Sage of Baltimore," for the city where he lived his entire life. Perhaps best remembered for his satirical reporting on the Scopes evolution trial, which he dubbed the "Monkey trial," Mencken was frequently critical of myriad institutions. Why did the Arkansas legislature pass a motion in 1931 to pray for Mencken's soul? More... | |
| Quotation of the Day | |
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 Poverty doesn't bring unhappiness; it brings degradation.George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) | |
| Idiom of the Day | |
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sit a spell— To sit down, relax, and socialize for a while at one's leisure. More... | |
| Today's Holiday | |
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 Festival of St. Nichiren's Pardon (2025)At the Botamochi Temple in Kamakura, Japan, this festival honors St. Nichiren (1222-1282), considered to be Japan's most fervent Buddhist priest. He was exiled to the island of Sado in the Sea of Japan in 1271. After four years there, he returned and spent the rest of his life on Mount Minobu. The Festival of Nichiren's Pardon is observed by members of the Nichiren sect with massive demonstrations and the loud chanting of prayers attributed to Nichiren, accompanied by the beating of drums. People make offerings of botamochi, rice balls covered with sweet bean paste, in his honor. More... | |
| Word Trivia | |
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Today's topic: malesalpha male - A domineering man; the dominant member in a group of males, especially animals. More... kiva - In Native American Pueblo practices, an underground chamber used by the males for religious rites. More... mixed voices - Voices of both males and females united in the same performance. More... | |
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