16-letter words containing a, e, o, l, t, r
- exploration well — An exploration well is a borehole which is drilled to find out if there is any oil or gas in a place.
- exponential horn — a horn for the radiation of acoustic or high-frequency electromagnetic waves, of which the cross-sectional area increases exponentially with the length
- extemporaneously — In an extemporaneous manner; without prior preparation or planning.
- extension ladder — a ladder that can be made longer by pulling out an extra section
- external auditor — sb brought in to check financial records
- external storage — storage, as on disk or tape, supplemental to and slower than main storage, not under the direct control of the CPU and generally contained outside it: Secondary storage for this system is contained on videodisk.
- exterritoriality — Extraterritoriality.
- extrachromosomal — Happening outside a chromosome.
- extracorporeally — Outside the body.
- extradimensional — (jargon, science fiction) Originating outside the known physical reality of the universe.
- extraterritorial — (of a law or decree) valid outside a country's territory.
- farewell to arms — a novel (1929) by Ernest Hemingway.
- feedback control — (electronics) A control system which monitors its effect on the system it is controlling and modifies its output accordingly. For example, a thermostat has two inputs: the desired temperature and the current temperature (the latter is the feedback). The output of the thermostat changes so as to try to equalise the two inputs. Computer disk drives use feedback control to position the read/write heads accurately on a recording track. Complex systems such as the human body contain many feedback systems that interact with each other; the homeostasis mechanisms that control body temperature and acidity are good examples.
- feel constrained — If you feel constrained to do something, you feel that you must do it, even though you would prefer not to.
- feel-good factor — When journalists refer to the feel-good factor, they mean that people are feeling hopeful and optimistic about the future.
- fellow traveller — a companion on a journey
- feme-sole trader — a married woman who is entitled to carry on business on her own account and responsibility, independently of her husband.
- ferrous sulphate — an iron salt with a saline taste, usually obtained as greenish crystals of the heptahydrate, which are converted to the white monohydrate above 100°C: used in inks, tanning, water purification, and in the treatment of anaemia. Formula: FeSO4
- fertility factor — a sex-determining chromosome or gene.
- feulgen reaction — a reaction in which an aldehyde combines with a modified Schiff's reagent to produce a purplish compound: used especially to test for the presence of DNA
- fire regulations — rules intended to make sure that people and property stay safe in the event of a fire
- flabbergastation — (colloquial) Bewildered shock or surprise; the state or condition of being flabbergasted.
- flame cultivator — an implement that kills weeds by scorching them with a directed flow of flaming gas.
- flash eliminator — a device fitted to the muzzle of a firearm to reduce the flash made by the ignited propellant gases
- flat-bed plotter — a mechanized drafting device, usually computer driven, incorporating a moving pen whose horizontal and vertical range in two dimensions is limited only by the size of the bed of the device.
- flatheaded borer — the larva of a metallic wood-boring beetle, having an expanded and flattened anterior end.
- floridean starch — the storage polysaccharide of red algae.
- fluorescent lamp — a tubular electric discharge lamp in which light is produced by the fluorescence of phosphors coating the inside of the tube.
- food intolerance — an intolerance of a specific type of food, causing an adverse reaction
- for external use — If medicine is for external use, it is intended to be used only on the outside of your body, and not to be eaten or drunk.
- foreign national — citizen of another country
- fort leavenworth — a military reservation and U.S. Army training center in E Kansas adjoining Leavenworth, one of the oldest (1827) military posts W of the Mississippi and site of federal penitentiary.
- four-star petrol — petrol containing lead, formerly sold in the UK
- freeboard length — the length of a vessel, measured on the summer load line from the fore side of the stem to some part of the stern, usually the after side of the rudderpost.
- front-end loader — a loader having a shovel or bucket at the end of an articulated arm located at the front of the vehicle.
- frontier orbital — the highest-energy occupied orbital or lowest-energy unoccupied orbital in a molecule. Such orbitals have a large influence on chemical properties
- functional water — water containing additives that provide extra nutritional value
- funeral director — a person, usually a licensed embalmer, who supervises or conducts the preparation of the dead for burial and directs or arranges funerals.
- galactic equator — the great circle on the celestial sphere that is equidistant from the galactic poles, being inclined approximately 62° to the celestial equator and lying about one degree north of the center line of the Milky Way.
- gastroenterology — the study of the structure, functions, and diseases of digestive organs.
- gastroesophageal — Of or relating to the stomach and to the esophagus.
- gastrointestinal — of, relating to, or affecting the stomach and intestines.
- general aviation — aviation including business flying, sports flying, and crop dusting.
- general election — U.S. Politics. a regularly scheduled local, state, or national election in which voters elect officeholders. Compare primary (def 15). a state or national election, as opposed to a local election.
- general factotum — a person who does all sorts of jobs; general assistant
- general hospital — A general hospital is a hospital that does not specialize in the treatment of particular illnesses or patients.
- general solution — a solution to a differential equation that contains arbitrary, unevaluated constants.
- geometrical pace — a pace of 5 feet (1.5 meters), representing the distance between the places at which the same foot rests on the ground in walking.
- geothermal power — power generated using steam produced by heat emanating from the molten core of the earth
- globular cluster — a comparatively older, spherically symmetrical, compact group of up to a million old stars, held together by mutual gravitation, that are located in the galactic halo and move in giant and highly eccentric orbits around the galactic center.