supernumerary Definition: (adjective) More than is needed, desired, or required. Synonyms: excess, extra, redundant, supererogatory, surplus, superfluous, spare Usage: His appearance…is apt to occasion some little stir at the tea-table of a farmhouse, and the addition of a supernumerary dish […]

William Ashley “Billy” Sunday (1862) Sunday was the most popular American evangelist of the World War I era, drawing an estimated 100 million people to his revival meetings. Preaching was a second career for him. Before undergoing a religious conversion, […]

Lord I disbelieve — help thou my unbelief. E. M. Forster (1879-1970)  

deadpan Definition: (adjective) Deliberately impassive in manner. Synonyms: expressionless, poker-faced, unexpressive, impassive Usage: Although he was distraught when the guilty verdict was read, his deadpan expression made it seem as though he did not care. Discuss.  

Nnamdi Azikiwe (1904) A native Nigerian, Azikiwe was educated in the US and, upon returning to his home country, began publishing denunciatory articles as editor of the African Morning Post. He was charged with sedition in 1936 but was ultimately […]

Prejudices, it is well known, are most difficult to eradicate from the heart whose soil has never been loosened or fertilized by education; they grow firm there, firm as weeds among stones. Charlotte Bronte (1816-1855)  

highfalutin Definition: (adjective) Affectedly genteel. Synonyms: hoity-toity, la-di-da, grandiose Usage: I’m glad you didn’t load him down with some highfalutin, romantic name that he’d be ashamed of when he gets to be a grandfather. Discuss.  

John I “the Posthumous” of France (1316) For the five days he lived, John I, son of Louis X, was king of France. He thus had the shortest reign of any recognized French king. Because his uncle, Philip V, succeeded […]

Evil companions bring more hurt than profit. Aesop (620 BC-560 BC)  

constrict Definition: (verb) Become tight or as if tight. Synonyms: constringe, narrow Usage: Severe migraines can be treated with a drug which constricts the blood vessels. Discuss.  

FREE cultural event and luncheon. OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. Vishnu Mandir Diwali Cultural Show & Health Market on Saturday, November 17, 2018 from 3PM – 5PM in The Bronx at the Sotomayor Center, 1000 Rosedale Ave. Music, Food, Cultural program, […]

Sir Frederick Grant Banting (1891) Banting was a Canadian physician who, with Scottish physiologist John Macleod, won a 1923 Nobel Prize for the discovery of the hormone insulin. Banting and his assistant Charles Best experimented on diabetic dogs, demonstrating that […]

All honor and reverence to the divine beauty of form! Let us cultivate it to the utmost in men, women, and children—in our gardens and in our houses. But let us love that other beauty too, which lies in no […]

incite Definition: (verb) Provoke or stir up. Synonyms: instigate, stir up, set off Usage: Those who incite riots should be held accountable for the damage they cause. Discuss.  

Johann Eck (1486) Eck, a German Catholic theologian, was initially friendly with Martin Luther but did not hesitate to condemn Luther’s 95 Theses—which criticized papal policy—as heretical. Known for his dialectic skill, he publicly confronted Luther in 1519, and then […]