23-letter words containing a, c, e, p, t

provocative maintenance — [Common ironic mutation of "preventive maintenance"] Actions performed upon a machine at regularly scheduled intervals to ensure that the system remains in a usable state. So called because it is all too often performed by a field servoid who doesn't know what he is doing; such "maintenance" often *induces* problems, or otherwise results in the machine's remaining in an *un*usable state for an indeterminate amount of time. See also scratch monkey.
psychomotor retardation — a generalized slowing of psychological and physical activity, frequently occurring as a symptom of severe depression.
public-key cryptography — public-key encryption
publicly-quoted company — a company whose shares are traded on a stock exchange
puerto rican royal palm — a feather palm, Roystonea borinquena, of Puerto Rico and St. Croix, having leaves about 10 feet (3 meters) long and egg-shaped, yellowish-brown fruit.
put the record straight — to correct an error or misunderstanding
put through one's paces — a rate of movement, especially in stepping, walking, etc.: to walk at a brisk pace of five miles an hour.
quote chapter and verse — [by analogy with the mainstream phrase] To cite a relevant excerpt from an appropriate bible. "I don't care if "rn" gets it wrong; "Followup-To: poster" is explicitly permitted by RFC 1036. I'll quote chapter and verse if you don't believe me." See also legalese, language lawyer, RTFS (sense 2).
real simple syndication — (spelling) Illiterate form of Really Simple Syndication.
respectability politics — the set of beliefs holding that conformity to socially acceptable or mainstream standards of appearance and behavior will protect a member of a marginalized or minority group from prejudices and systemic injustices: Black respectability politics perpetuate the fiction of a meritocracy in public education.
rocky mountain beeplant — a rank-smelling plant, Cleome serrulata, of the caper family, native to the western U.S., having showy, dense clusters of pink or white flowers, frequented by bees.
saint christopher-nevis — St. Kitts-Nevis.
schematic type variable — generic type variable
schizotypal personality — a personality disorder characterized by a group of symptoms similar to but less severe than schizophrenia, as odd behavior, peculiar thinking, and social isolation.
silicone breast implant — silicone filled bags that are implanted into a woman in order to increase the size of her breasts
slip between the cracks — to break without complete separation of parts; become fissured: The plate cracked when I dropped it, but it was still usable.
social democratic party — History/Historical. a political party in Germany advocating a form of social organization based on the economic and political ideology of Karl Marx.
social security payment — a payment of social security made to an individual
somaliland protectorate — official name of the former British Somaliland.
specialite de la maison — the specialty of the house (used in referring to the most important dish served by a restaurant).
spigot and socket joint — a joint between two pipes using male and female parts
staggered directorships — a defence against unwelcome takeover bids in which a company resolves that its directors should serve staggered terms of office and that no director can be removed from office without just cause, thus preventing a bidder from controlling the board for some years
stand up and be counted — express opinion
stereospecific catalyst — a catalyst for stereospecific chemical reactions
structural unemployment — unemployment caused by basic changes in the overall economy, as in demographics, technology, or industrial organization.
sub specie aeternitatis — from the standpoint of eternity; from a universal perspective
supplementary insurance — Supplementary insurance is insurance coverage that is purchased in addition to an insurance policy to provide additional benefits or coverage.
the chamber of deputies — the lower legislative assembly in some parliaments
the data protection act — a United Kingdom act of parliament designed to ensure the proper handling of information stored about individuals on computers and entitling individuals to find out what information is stored about them
the metropolitan police — the police organization that is responsible for Greater London, excluding the City of London
the scottish parliament — the devolved national legislature of Scotland, located in Edinburgh
the teaching profession — the profession of a teacher
thompson submachine gun — a portable, .45-caliber, automatic weapon designed to be fired from the shoulder or hip.
to call a spade a spade — If you say that someone calls a spade a spade, you mean that they speak clearly and directly about things, even embarrassing or unpleasant things.
to clap eyes on someone — To clap eyes on someone or something, or set or lay eyes on them, means to see them.
to get/put sb's back up — If someone or something puts your back up or gets your back up, they annoy you.
to have a police record — If you say that somebody has a police record, you mean that they have committed a crime or crimes and the police have a record of this.
to keep a straight face — If you manage to keep a straight face, you manage to look serious, although you want to laugh.
to keep someone company — If you keep someone company, you spend time with them and stop them feeling lonely or bored.
to keep your nose clean — If you keep your nose clean, you behave well and stay out of trouble.
to pluck up the courage — If you pluck up the courage to do something that you feel nervous about, you make an effort to be brave enough to do it.
to send someone packing — If you send someone packing, you make them go away.
to wipe the slate clean — If you wipe the slate clean, you decide to forget previous mistakes, failures, or debts and to start again.
topological equivalence — the property of two topological spaces such that there is a homeomorphism from one to the other.
unincorporated business — a privately owned business, often owned by one person who has unlimited liability as the business is not legally registered as a company
unipress software, inc. — (company) A developer and distributor of Unix software. They produce PC-UNIX connectivity software, development tools and applications and provide technical support and maintenance, porting services, training and consulting.
variable contrast paper — printing paper in which the contrast of the image is controlled by the color of the printing light.
verifiability principle — the doctrine that if a nonanalytic statement is to be cognitively meaningful it must be empirically verifiable.
volumetric displacement — the volume of air per revolution that passes through a mechanical pump when the pressure at the intake and the exhaust is the same as that of the atmosphere
weak accumulation point — accumulation point.

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