The world's most comprehensive dictionary: English, Spanish, German, French, Italian, Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch, Norwegian, Greek, Arabic, Polish, Turkish, Russian, Thesaurus, Medical, Legal, and Financial Dictionaries, Thesaurus, Acronyms and Abbreviations, Idioms, Encyclopedia, a Literature Reference Library, and a Search Engine all in one!

Monday, May 13, 2024 | View Archive ?
+ Add Content ?

What's Inside

 ?×
English:
More Languages:

Live Searches
Here's what people are searching for right now:

For Surfers

 ?×
Mobile Apps
Word of the Day
Missing Idiom Contest
Word Finder
Lists of Facts
English Usage Topics
Help
Feedback

For Webmasters

 ?×
Free content
Linking
Lookup box
Double-click lookup
Partner with us

Weather

 ?

Recent Searches

 ?×

A - Z

 ?×
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Customize Your Homepage

 ?×
TheFreeDictionary.com now allows you to create your own personal homepage by adding and removing, dragging and dropping, and "using or losing" existing content windows. In addition, you can add your own bookmarks, weather information, horoscope, and RSS feeds from anywhere on the web.

Word of the Day

 ?

plexor

Definition: (noun) A small hammer with a rubber head used in percussive examinations of the chest and in testing reflexes.
Synonyms:percussor, plessor
Usage:When the doctor tapped my knee with the plexor, my reflex was so strong that I almost kicked him in the head! Discuss. Play

Daily Grammar Lesson

 ?

Adverbials

Single-word adverbs, adverbial phrases, and adverbial clauses are sometimes grouped together under the umbrella term "adverbials," which simply means any word or group of words used as an adverb in a sentence. However, because the term is so broad in meaning, it is very common to refer to any adverbial element with what term? More... Discuss

Article of the Day

 ?

Damnatio Memoriae

Damnatio memoriae is a Latin phrase meaning "damnation of memory." The practice was a form of dishonor that could be passed by the Roman Senate upon traitors or others who brought disgrace to Rome. The sanction, a form of removal from remembrance, essentially erased all traces of a person from public life and record in order to preserve the honor of the Roman State. What interfered with the Senate's attempt to obliterate all records of Emperor Caligula? More... Discuss

This Day in History

 ?

Lei Áurea: Slavery Abolished in Brazil (1888)

By the 1870s, the plantation culture of northeast Brazil was already crumbling, and the growth of the movement to abolish slavery threatened it even more. The slave trade had been abolished in 1850, and a law for gradual emancipation was passed in 1871. In 1888, while Pedro II was in Europe and his daughter Isabel was governing, slavery was completely abolished—making Brazil the last Western nation to do so. The law that officially abolished slavery was called Lei Áurea, which means what? More... Discuss

Today's Birthday

 ?

Beatrice "Bea" Arthur (1922)

Arthur was an American actress, comedian, and singer whose lengthy career began on the stage. In 1966, she won a Tony award for her role in the musical Mame. She went on to achieve fame on television as the character Maude Findlay on the 1970s sitcoms All in the Family and Maude and as Dorothy Zbornak on the 1980s sitcom The Golden Girls, winning Emmy Awards for both roles. Arthur appeared in what notoriously poorly received 1978 holiday TV special? More... Discuss

Quotation of the Day

 ?
As for jest, there be certain things which ought to be privileged from it—namely, religion, matters of state, great persons, any man's present business of importance, and any case that deserveth pity.

Francis Bacon (1561-1626) Discuss

Mismatch
Select word:
unreality
repulsion
attraction
ricketiness
steadiness
realism
conviction
acquittal
contraction
enlargement

Match each word in the left column with its antonym (opposite) on the right. When finished, click Answer to see the results. Good luck!

 

Ad

English Language Forum
More Forum topics...

The Free Dictionary Blog

NEW at The Free Dictionary: Wordle Word Finder!

Next time you're facing a hurdle with Wordle, we can help!

Flashcards

 ?
Please log in or register to use Flashcards and Bookmarks. You can also log in with

My Bookmarks

 ?
Please log in or register to use Flashcards and Bookmarks. You can also log in with

Hangman

 ?

Grammar Quiz

 ?
Which of the following word pairs is not a correlative conjunction?

Spelling Bee
Difficulty level:
n. a narrow secluded valley (in the mountains)
Spell the word:

Match Up

 ?
Select word:
gangly
inferior
substandard
abstract
nonobjective
lanky
dubitable
doubtful
debonair
suave

Match each word in the left column with its synonym on the right. When finished, click Answer to see the results. Good luck!

 

?

Today's Holiday

 ?

Lemuralia

In ancient Rome, the lemures were the ghosts of the family's dead, who were considered to be troublesome and therefore had to be exorcized on a regular basis. The Lemuralia, or Lemuria, was a yearly festival held on the 9th, 11th, and 13th of May to get rid of the lemures. Participants walked barefoot, cleansed their hands three times, and threw black beans behind them nine times to appease the spirits of the dead. On the third day of the festival, a merchants' festival was held to ensure a prosperous year for business. More... Discuss

Horoscope

Idiom of the Day

land of plenty

— A fictional or imagined utopian place where there is an abundance of everything needed to survive and flourish. More... Discuss