16-letter words containing a, c, l, i, n, e
- lancashire chair — a chair similar to a Windsor chair, having a rush seat and a back formed of spindles.
- laplace equation — the second-order partial differential equation indicating that the Laplace operator operating on a given function results in zero. Compare harmonic (def 4c).
- larsen ice shelf — an ice barrier in Antarctica, in the NW Weddell Sea, on the E coast of the Antarctic Peninsula: first explored 1893.
- lattice constant — a parameter, either a measure of length or angle, that defines the size and shape of the unit cell of a crystal lattice.
- lawson criterion — (in a hypothetical nuclear fusion reactor) the requirement that in order for the energy produced by fusion to exceed the energy expended in causing the fusion, the product of the density of the fuel and the time during which it is confined at that density (Lawson product) must be greater than a certain number that depends on the kind of fuel used.
- leaf-cutting ant — any of several tropical American ants of the genus Atta that cut and chew bits of leaves and flowers into a mash that they use to cultivate a fungus garden.
- leaf-cutting bee — any of the bees of the family Megachilidae that cut circular pieces from leaves or flowers to line their nests.
- league champions — the team that has come top of the league
- learning process — a process of learning
- legal dictionary — a specialized dictionary covering terms used in the various branches of the legal profession, as civil law, criminal law, and corporate law. A comprehensive legal dictionary adds to its body of standard English entries many words and phrases that have made their way into modern legal practice from law French and Latin and are rarely found in a general English monolingual dictionary. Such a specialized dictionary is useful not only for law students and for attorneys themselves, but for members of the lay public who require legal services. Legal dictionaries published in print follow the normal practice of sorting entry terms alphabetically, while electronic dictionaries, such as the online Dictionary of Law on Dictionary.com, allow direct, immediate access to a search term.
- lenticular cloud — a very smooth, round or oval, lens-shaped cloud that is often seen, singly or stacked in groups, near a mountain ridge.
- lesbian cymatium — cyma reversa.
- lesser celandine — a Eurasian plant, Ranunculus ficaria, of the buttercup family, having heart-shaped leaves and glossy yellow flowers, naturalized in North America.
- lethal injection — dose of deadly chemical into a vein
- lexical analyser — (language) (Or "scanner") The initial input stage of a language processor (e.g. a compiler), the part that performs lexical analysis.
- lexical analysis — (programming) (Or "linear analysis", "scanning") The first stage of processing a language. The stream of characters making up the source program or other input is read one at a time and grouped into lexemes (or "tokens") - word-like pieces such as keywords, identifiers, literals and punctuation. The lexemes are then passed to the parser.
- like cat and dog — quarrelling savagely
- limited monarchy — a monarchy that is limited by laws and a constitution.
- limited-monarchy — a limited train, bus, etc.
- lipstick lesbian — a lesbian who is feminine in manner or appearance; a femme.
- little black ant — a widely distributed ant, Monomorium minimum, sometimes a household pest.
- logical relation — A relation R satisfying f R g <=> For all a, b, a R b => f a R g b This definition, by Plotkin, can be used to extend the definition of a relation on the types of a and b to a relation on functions.
- lord chamberlain — (in Britain) the chief official of the royal household
- louisiana french — French as spoken in Louisiana; Cajun. Abbreviation: LaF.
- lower california — Baja California.
- lymphangiectasia — (medicine) dilation of the lymphatic vessels.
- lymphangiectasis — Alt form lymphangiectasia.
- mach's principle — the proposition that there is no absolute space and that the inertia and acceleration of a body are determined by all of the matter of the universe.
- machiavellianism — of, like, or befitting Machiavelli.
- machine language — machine code
- machine learning — The ability of a machine to improve its performance based on previous results.
- machine moulding — the process of making moulds and cores for castings by mechanical means, usually by compacting the moulding sand by vibration instead of by ramming down
- machine readable — of or relating to data encoded on an appropriate medium and in a form suitable for processing by computer.
- machine washable — suitable for washing in a washing machine
- machine-readable — of or relating to data encoded on an appropriate medium and in a form suitable for processing by computer.
- mackinaw blanket — a thick woolen blanket, often woven with bars of color, formerly used in the northern and western U.S. by Indians, loggers, etc.
- maclaurin series — a Taylor series in which the reference point is zero.
- magellanic cloud — either of two irregular galactic clusters in the southern heavens that are the nearest independent star system to the Milky Way.
- magnetic anomaly — a departure from the normal magnetic field of the earth.
- magneto-electric — of or relating to the induction of electric current or electromotive force by means of permanent magnets.
- make a complaint — If a guest makes a complaint, they express their dissatisfaction with something.
- maleic anhydride — a colorless crystalline, unsaturated compound, C 4 H 2 O 3 , that is soluble in acetone and hydrolyzes in water: used in the production of polyester resins, pesticides, and fumaric and tartaric acids.
- marriage licence — an official document stating that a marriage will be allowed to take place
- marriage license — permit to marry
- marsh cinquefoil — a variety of cinquefoil, Potentilla palustris, that grows in marshy areas
- masculine ending — a final inflection or suffix designating that a word belongs to the masculine gender.
- medical examiner — a physician or other person trained in medicine who is appointed by a city, county, or the like, to perform autopsies on the bodies of persons supposed to have died from unnatural causes and to investigate the cause and circumstances of such deaths.
- medieval cornish — the Cornish language of the Middle Ages, usually dated from the 14th century to 1600.
- megalomaniacally — In a megalomaniacal manner.
- melodic interval — an intervening period of time: an interval of 50 years.