17-letter words containing a, c, e, t, y
- polyacrylonitrile — a polymer of acrylonitrile used in the manufacture of Orlon and other synthetic textiles.
- polyvinyl acetate — a colorless, odorless, nontoxic, transparent, thermoplastic, water-insoluble resin used as an adhesive in certain paints and as an intermediate in the synthesis of polyvinyl acetal and polyvinyl alcohol.
- potassium cyanide — a white, granular, water-soluble, poisonous powder, KCN, having a faint almondlike odor, used chiefly in metallurgy and photography.
- predatory pricing — If a company practises predatory pricing, it charges a much lower price for its products or services than its competitors in order to force them out of the market.
- presentation copy — a copy of a book given by the publisher or author
- primary education — junior, elementary schooling
- primary structure — Biochemistry. the basic sequence of amino acids in a polypeptide or protein.
- private secretary — a person who attends to the individual or confidential correspondence, files, etc., of a business executive, official, or the like.
- probability curve — a curve that describes the distribution of probability over the values of a random variable.
- protocol analyser — (communications, hardware, networking, testing, tool) Any device that captures and interprets the network traffic between two or more connected computer systems. The traffic can then be decoded so that it is possible to see what processes are occurring. By examining the flow of traffic, protocol analysers can be used to find out where problems (such as bottlenecks or the failure of a network device) are on a LAN. Advanced protocol analysers can also provide statistics on the traffic that can help to identify trends that may in future lead to further problems with the network.
- psychoeducational — designating or of psychological methods, as intelligence tests, used in evaluating learning ability
- psychotherapeutic — psychotherapy.
- pythagorean scale — the major scale as derived acoustically by Pythagoras from the perfect fifth.
- quality assurance — a system for ensuring a desired level of quality in the development, production, or delivery of products and services: Quality assurance for nursing homes begins with a set of standards. Abbreviation: QA.
- quality paperback — a softbound book that is usually larger and more expensive than a mass market paperback and is sold primarily in bookstores as a trade book.
- quantum chemistry — the application of quantum mechanics to the study of chemical phenomena.
- radioactive decay — decay (def 8).
- reality principle — the motivating force or mechanism by which the child, who has previously sought immediate gratification of all wishes, realizes that gratification must sometimes be deferred or forgone.
- recrystallization — to become crystallized again.
- refractory period — a short period after a nerve or muscle cell fires during which the cell cannot respond to additional stimulation.
- regulated tenancy — (in Britain) the letting of a dwelling by a nonresident private landlord, usually at a registered fair rent, from which the landlord cannot evict the tenant without a possession order from a court
- repertory catalog — a catalog containing bibliographic records that indicate locations of materials in more than one library or in several units of one library.
- repertory company — repertory (def 2).
- respiratory chain — a series of mitochondrial proteins that transport electrons of hydrogen, released in the Krebs cycle, from acetyl coenzyme A to inhaled oxygen to form H 2 O: the energy released in the process is conserved as ATP.
- respiratory tract — the passages through which air enters and leaves the body
- reticulate python — a python, Python reticulatus, of southeastern Asia and the East Indies, sometimes growing to a length of 32 feet (10 meters): usually considered to be the largest snake in the world.
- rich site summary — (web, standard) (RSS, blog, feed) A family of standard web document types containing regularly updated, short articles or news items. RSS documents (generally called "RSS feeds", "news feeds" or just "feeds") can be read with an RSS reader like BottomFeeder or Feedly. These are sometimes called "aggregators" because they combine multiple RSS feeds which the user can browse as a single list. The RSS reader tracks which articles the use has read, and is typically set to show only new articles, hence the idea of a "feed" or flow of new items. Most RSS feeds are based on RDF. RDF is a structured document format for describing textual resources such as news articles available on the web. RSS originally stood for "RDF Site Summary" as it was designed to provide short descriptions of (changes to) a website. Because it provides a standard way to deliver, or "syndicate", news or updates from one site to another, RSS is sometimes expanded as "Really Simple Syndication". It is closely associated with blogs, most of which provide an RSS feed of articles.
- safety inspection — an inspection of a place carried out to ensure that it is safe and not dangerous
- safety precaution — a precaution that is taken in order to ensure that something is safe and not dangerous
- scentless mayweed — a similar and related plant, Matricaria maritima, with scentless leaves
- secondary battery — storage battery.
- secondary boycott — a boycott by union members against their employer in order to induce the employer to bring pressure on another company involved in a labor dispute with the union.
- secondary contact — communication or relationship between people characterized by impersonal and detached interest on the part of those involved.
- secondary product — a product that is not the main product of an industry; a by-product
- secondary quality — one of the qualities attributed by the mind to an object perceived, such as color, temperature, or taste.
- secretary-general — the head or chief administrative officer of a secretariat.
- shorthold tenancy — letting of a dwelling for between one and five years at a fair rent
- shuttle diplomacy — diplomatic negotiations carried out by a mediator who travels back and forth between the negotiating parties.
- sister of charity — a member of one of several congregations of sisters founded in 1634 by St. Vincent de Paul.
- sodium salicylate — a white, crystalline compound, C 7 H 5 NaO 3 , soluble in water, alcohol, and glycerol: used in medicine as an analgesic, antipyretic, and anti-inflammatory, and as a preservative.
- south sea company — a British joint stock company that traded in South America in the 18th century. The South Sea Company took over the national debt in return for a monopoly of trade with the South Seas, causing feverish speculation in their stocks, and a financial crash in 1720 (the South Sea Bubble)
- spatial frequency — the measure of fine detail in an optical image in terms of cycles per millimetre
- spectroscopically — an optical device for producing and observing a spectrum of light or radiation from any source, consisting essentially of a slit through which the radiation passes, a collimating lens, and an Amici prism.
- spectrum analyser — an instrument that splits an input waveform into its frequency components, which are then displayed
- spectrum analysis — the determination of the constitution or condition of bodies and substances by means of the spectra they produce.
- stand on ceremony — to insist on or act with excessive formality
- stay of execution — If you are given a stay of execution, you are legally allowed to delay obeying an order of a court of law.
- steamship company — a company which has a fleet of steamships
- stray capacitance — undesired capacitance in equipment, occurring between the wiring, between the wiring and the chassis, or between components and the chassis
- structural survey — an examination of a property carried out by surveyor which should reveal any problems with the building