17-letter words containing a, c, k
- linking consonant — a consonant inserted between two vowels in speech
- little black book — an address book, esp. one kept by a man, with the names of women companions considered available for dating
- locked and loaded — [Military slang for an M-16 rifle with magazine inserted and prepared for firing] Said of a removable disk volume properly prepared for use - that is, locked into the drive and with the heads loaded. Ironically, because their heads are "loaded" whenever the power is up, this description is never used of Winchester drives (which are named after a rifle).
- make a difference — have a significant impact
- make conversation — If you make conversation, you talk to someone in order to be polite and not because you really want to.
- make mincemeat of — a mixture composed of minced apples, suet, and sometimes meat, together with raisins, currants, candied citron, etc., for filling a pie.
- make reference to — mention, allude to
- market researcher — a person who carries out market research
- meech lake accord — the agreement reached in 1987 at Meech Lake, Quebec, at a Canadian federal-provincial conference that accepted Quebec's conditions for signing the Constitution Act of 1982. The Accord lapsed when the legislatures of two provinces, Newfoundland and Quebec, failed to ratify it by the deadline of June 23, 1990
- michigan bankroll — a large roll of paper money in small denominations.
- mikhail gorbachev — Mikhail S(ergeyevich) [mi-kahyl sur-gey-uh-vich,, mi-keyl;; Russian myi-khuh-yeel syir-gye-yi-vyich] /mɪˈkaɪl sɜrˈgeɪ ə vɪtʃ,, mɪˈkeɪl;; Russian myɪ xʌˈyil syɪrˈgyɛ yɪ vyɪtʃ/ (Show IPA), born 1931, Soviet political leader: general secretary of the Communist Party 1985–91; president of the Soviet Union 1988–91; Nobel Peace Prize 1990.
- monkeygland sauce — a piquant sauce, made from tomatoes, ketchup, fruit chutney, garlic, spices, etc
- mount kirkpatrick — a mountain in Antarctica, in S Victoria Land in the Queen Alexandra Range. Height: 4528 m (14 856 ft)
- mountain sickness — illness caused by being at high altitude
- nakhon ratchasima — a city in central Thailand.
- natural hat trick — three goals scored in succession by one player in one game or one period.
- negative feedback — Electronics. the process of returning part of the output of a circuit, system, or device to the input, either to oppose the input (negative feedback) or to aid the input (positive feedback) acoustic feedback.
- never looked back — If you say that someone did something and then never looked back, you mean that they were very successful from that time on.
- nicholas bourbaki — the pseudonym of a group of mainly French mathematicians that, since 1939, has been producing a monumental work on advanced mathematics, Eléments de Mathématique
- nikita khrushchev — Nikita S(ergeyevich) [ni-kee-tuh sur-gey-uh-vich;; Russian nyi-kyee-tuh syir-gye-yuh-vyich] /nɪˈki tə sɜrˈgeɪ ə vɪtʃ;; Russian nyɪˈkyi tə syɪrˈgyɛ yə vyɪtʃ/ (Show IPA), 1894–1971, Russian political leader: premier of the U.S.S.R. 1958–64.
- nikolaus von cusa — Nicholas (def 1).
- on someone's back — criticizing or pestering someone
- on the pig's back — successful; established
- on the wrong tack — a short, sharp-pointed nail, usually with a flat, broad head.
- otto von bismarck — Otto von [ot-oh von;; German aw-toh fuh n] /ˈɒt oʊ vɒn;; German ˈɔ toʊ fən/ (Show IPA), 1815–98, German statesman: first chancellor of modern German Empire 1871–90.
- packaging company — a company that packages goods on behalf of the producer
- particle kinetics — Particle kinetics is the study of the movement of particles and the forces that cause this movement.
- peach bark beetle — a bark beetle, Phloeotribus liminaris, that feeds on and nests in peach and other drupaceous trees.
- peacock butterfly — a European nymphalid butterfly, Inachis io, having reddish-brown wings each marked with a purple eyespot
- pinckney's treaty — an agreement in 1795 between Spain and the U.S. by which Spain recognized the 31st parallel as the southern boundary of the U.S. and permitted free navigation of the Mississippi to American ships.
- planck's constant — the fundamental constant of quantum mechanics, expressing the ratio of the energy of one quantum of radiation to the frequency of the radiation and approximately equal to 6.624 × 10− 27 erg-seconds. Symbol: h.
- pocket battleship — a small heavily armed and armored warship serving as a battleship because of limitations imposed by treaty.
- pocket calculator — an electronic calculator small enough to be carried on one's person.
- pocket dictionary — a small portable dictionary
- positive feedback — Electronics. the process of returning part of the output of a circuit, system, or device to the input, either to oppose the input (negative feedback) or to aid the input (positive feedback) acoustic feedback.
- protection racket — a criminal activity in which money gangsters extort money from victims in exchange for freedom from molestation
- 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.
- quarterback sneak — a play in which the quarterback charges into the middle of the line, usually immediately after receiving the ball from the center.
- quick on the draw — having fast reflexes
- rack one's brains — to strain in mental effort, esp to remember something or to find the solution to a problem
- radio alarm clock — an alarm clock which consists of a radio that can be set to play at a particular time
- receiving blanket — a small blanket, usually of cotton, for wrapping an infant, especially following a bath.
- red and the black — a novel (1832) by Stendhal.
- red-backed shrike — a common Eurasian shrike, Lanius collurio, the male of which has a grey crown and rump, brown wings and back, and a black-and-white face
- republic of korea — a former country in E Asia, on a peninsula SE of Manchuria and between the Sea of Japan and the Yellow Sea: a kingdom prior to 1910; under Japanese rule 1910–45; now divided at 38° N into North Korea and South Korea. Compare Korean War.
- richard arkwright — Sir Richard, 1732–92, English inventor of the spinning jenny.
- rock of gibraltar — a British crown colony comprising a fortress and seaport located on a narrow promontory near the S tip of Spain. 1.875 sq. mi. (5 sq. km).
- sacrifice paddock — a grassed area allowed to be grazed completely, to be cultivated and resown later
- second balkan war — Balkan War (def 2).
- second-hand smoke — from sb else's cigarette