15-letter words containing a, d, o, p
- bit-mapped font — a computer font whose characters are held in memory as series of dots.
- bladder campion — a European caryophyllaceous plant, Silene vulgaris, having white flowers with an inflated calyx
- blasting powder — a form of gunpowder made with sodium nitrate instead of saltpeter, used chiefly for blasting rock, ore, etc.
- board of parole — an agency that determines which prisoners are to be released on parole
- boiled potatoes — potatoes, usually peeled, cooked in boiling water
- break-in period — a period during which certain restrictions or moderation in operating should be followed, as the avoidance of high speed, rapid acceleration, or severe braking for a new automobile.
- cache la poudre — a river in N Colorado, flowing N and E to the South Platte River. 126 miles (203 km) long.
- camphorated oil — a liniment consisting of camphor and peanut oil, used as a counterirritant
- cardinal points — the four main points of the compass: north, south, east, and west
- cardiopulmonary — of, relating to, or affecting the heart and lungs
- casters-up mode — [IBM, probably from slang belly up] Yet another synonym for "broken" or "down". Usually connotes a major failure. A system (hardware or software) which is "down" may be already being restarted before the failure is noticed, whereas one which is "casters up" is usually a good excuse to take the rest of the day off (as long as you're not responsible for fixing it).
- celandine poppy — a poppy, Stylophorum diphyllum, of the east-central U.S., having one pair of deeply lobed leaves and yellow flowers.
- cephalochordate — any chordate animal of the subphylum Cephalochordata, having a fishlike body and no vertebral column; lancelet
- chandler period — the period of the oscillation (Chandler wobble) of the earth's axis, varying between 416 and 433 days.
- chenopodiaceous — belonging to the Chenopodiaceae, formerly the goosefoot family, now considered part of the amaranth family of plants.
- chop and change — When people chop and change, they keep changing their minds about what to do or how to act.
- chopped almonds — almonds cut into small pieces
- chorale prelude — a composition for organ using a chorale as a cantus firmus or as the basis for variations
- chromium-plated — having been plated with chromium
- cinematographed — a motion-picture projector.
- cineradiography — the filming of motion pictures through a fluoroscope or x-ray machine.
- clamp down (on) — to become more strict (with)
- clouded leopard — a feline, Neofelis nebulosa, of SE Asia and Indonesia with a yellowish-brown coat marked with darker spots and blotches
- common-isdn-api — Common ISDN Application Programming Interface
- completion date — (in Britain) the date on which the sale of a piece of property is final
- complicatedness — composed of elaborately interconnected parts; complex: complicated apparatus for measuring brain functions.
- compound animal — any animal, such as most hydroids, corals, and bryozoans, composed of a number of individuals produced by budding from a single parent and usually so fused together that no demarcation is clearly distinguishable
- compound magnet — a magnet consisting of two or more separate magnets placed together with like poles pointing in the same direction.
- computer dating — the use of computers by dating agencies to match their clients
- connected graph — (mathematics) A graph such that there is a path between any pair of nodes (via zero or more other nodes). Thus if we start from any node and visit all nodes connected to it by a single edge, then all nodes connected to any of them, and so on, then we will eventually have visited every node in the connected graph.
- contadora group — a group of four Latin American nations, Colombia, Mexico, Panama, and Venezuela, formed in January, 1983, to help solve the problems of the region.
- corn-leaf aphid — a green aphid, Rhopalosiphum maidis, widely distributed in the U.S.: a pest of corn and other grasses.
- corn-root aphid — an aphid, Anuraphis maidiradicis, that lives as a symbiont in colonies of cornfield ants and feeds on the roots of corn: an agricultural pest.
- corps de ballet — In ballet, the corps de ballet is the group of dancers who dance together, in contrast to the main dancers, who dance by themselves.
- cottage pudding — plain cake covered with a sweet sauce
- coup de theatre — a dramatic turn of events, esp in a play
- cowper's glands — two small yellowish glands near the prostate that secrete a mucous substance into the urethra during sexual stimulation in males
- critical period — a period in a lifetime during which a specific stage of development usually occurs. If it fails to do so, it cannot readily occur afterwards
- cyanide process — a process for recovering gold and silver from ores by treatment with a weak solution of sodium cyanide
- cyclopentadiene — a colourless liquid unsaturated cyclic hydrocarbon obtained in the cracking of petroleum hydrocarbons and the distillation of coal tar: used in the manufacture of plastics and insecticides. Formula: C5H6
- d. c. power lab — The former site of SAIL. This name was very funny because the obvious connection to electrical engineering was nonexistent - the lab was named after a Donald C. Power. Compare Marginal Hacks.
- dadchelor party — a party primarily attended by men and held to honour and present gifts to a prospective father
- daguerreotyping — Present participle of daguerreotype.
- daguerreotypist — an obsolete photographic process, invented in 1839, in which a picture made on a silver surface sensitized with iodine was developed by exposure to mercury vapor.
- dark adaptation — the adaptation of the eye to vision in the dark by dilation of the pupil, increased sensitivity of the retina, etc.
- data processing — Data processing is the series of operations that are carried out on data, especially by computers, in order to present, interpret, or obtain information.
- data protection — (in Britain) safeguards for individuals relating to personal data stored on a computer
- davenport table — a table with drawers, having drop leaves at both ends, often placed in front of or behind a sofa.
- deception table — a table of the 18th century made so as to conceal its true function, as in serving as a cabinet for a chamber pot.
- decomposability — (uncountable) The condition of being decomposable.