23-letter words containing a, d, e, v
- 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).
- refuse disposal service — a place or facility where rubbish and waste can be disposed
- relativity of knowledge — the theory that all knowledge is relative to the mind, or that things can be known only through their effects on the mind, and that consequently there can be no knowledge of reality as it is in itself
- residual current device — a circuit-breaking device installed in electrical equipment to protect the operator from electrocution
- secondary seventh chord — a chord formed by superposition of three thirds upon any degree of the scale except the dominant.
- self-addressed envelope — addressed to self
- severinus de monzambano — Samuel von [zah-moo-uh l fuh n] /ˈzɑ mu əl fən/ (Show IPA), ("Severinus de Monzambano") 1632–94, German jurist and historian.
- software developers kit — (jargon, product) (SDK, or "Software Development Kit") Software provided by a software vendor to allow their products to be used with those of other software vendors.
- sustainable development — supporting economy via renewable resources
- swine vesicular disease — a viral disease of swine characterized by vesicular lesions on the feet, legs, snout, and tongue
- talk/speak of the devil — People say speak of the devil, or in British English talk of the devil, if someone they have just been talking about appears unexpectedly.
- the haves and have-nots — the people who are very wealthy and the people who are very poor
- to drive a hard bargain — If people drive a hard bargain, they argue with determination in order to achieve a deal which is favourable to themselves.
- 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 have an axe to grind — If someone has an axe to grind, they are doing something for selfish reasons.
- to have your hands full — If you have your hands full with something, you are very busy because of it.
- tongue-and-groove joint — a long, narrow cut or indentation in a surface, as the cut in a board to receive the tongue of another board (tongue-and-groove joint) a furrow, or a natural indentation on an organism.
- van de graaff generator — a device for producing high-voltage static electricity.
- van der waals' equation — an equation of state relating the pressure, volume, and absolute temperature of a gas, taking into account the finite size of the molecules and the attractive force between them.
- ventricular tachycardia — a cardiac arrhythmia in which the muscles of the ventricles contract irregularly in a rapid, uncoordinated manner, impairing the normal pumping of blood.
- veterans administration — the federal agency charged with administering benefits provided by law for veterans of the armed forces. Abbreviation: VA, V.A.
- video cassette recorder — See VCR.
- villiers de l'isle adam — August, Comte de (oɡyst, kɔ̃t də). 1838–89, French poet and dramatist; pioneer of the symbolist movement. His works include Contes cruels (1883) and the play Axel (1885)
- virtual device location — (Or "Virtual Address") The address of a device (e.g. disk, printer, terminal) belonging to a "guest" operating system. Such an address is mapped to a physical device. VM may remap several virtual disks to different parts of a single physical disk.
- virtual loadable module — (networking) (VLM) Novell's term for software modules that can be dynamically loaded to extend the functionality of the "VLM" NetWare Requester for MS-DOS that became standard beginning with Novell NetWare 4.
- visual display terminal — video display terminal. Abbreviation: VDT.
- 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
- voter registration card — a card that enables a person to register in order to vote
- willow-leaved jessamine — a Chilean shrub, Cestrum parqui, of the nightshade family, having willowlike leaves and clusters of whitish or yellowish flowers that are very fragrant at night.
- wind cave national park — a national park in SW South Dakota. 41½ sq. mi. (107 sq. km).