15-letter words containing a, f, s, l
- selfabandonment — absence or lack of personal restraint.
- semi-functional — of or relating to a function or functions: functional difficulties in the administration.
- sheffield plate — sheet copper with a cladding of silver.
- shelikof strait — a strait between the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island, in S Alaska. 130 miles (209 km) long and 30 miles (48 km) wide.
- shield of david — a hexagram used as a symbol of Judaism.
- shockwave flash — flash
- shove-halfpenny — a shuffleboard game played with coins or brass disks that are pushed by the hand and thumb down a board toward a scoring pit.
- significatively — serving to signify.
- simple fraction — a ratio of two integers.
- simple fracture — a fracture in which the bone does not pierce the skin.
- slashdot effect — a temporary surge in the numbers visiting a website and consequent service slowdown or even server crash that sometimes arises as a result of a new link being set up from a more popular website
- sleight of hand — skill in feats requiring quick and clever movements of the hands, especially for entertainment or deception, as jugglery, card or coin magic, etc.; legerdemain.
- slumpflationary — of or relating to slumpflation
- snafu principle — /sna'foo prin'si-pl/ [WWII Army acronym for "Situation Normal: All Fucked Up"] "True communication is possible only between equals, because inferiors are more consistently rewarded for telling their superiors pleasant lies than for telling the truth." - a central tenet of Discordianism, often invoked by hackers to explain why authoritarian hierarchies screw up so reliably and systematically. The effect of the SNAFU principle is a progressive disconnection of decision-makers from reality. This lightly adapted version of a fable dating back to the early 1960s illustrates the phenomenon perfectly: In the beginning was the plan, and then the specification; And the plan was without form, and the specification was void. And darkness was on the faces of the implementors thereof; And they spake unto their leader, saying: "It is a crock of shit, and smells as of a sewer." And the leader took pity on them, and spoke to the project leader: "It is a crock of excrement, and none may abide the odor thereof." And the project leader spake unto his section head, saying: "It is a container of excrement, and it is very strong, such that none may abide it." The section head then hurried to his department manager, and informed him thus: "It is a vessel of fertilizer, and none may abide its strength." The department manager carried these words to his general manager, and spoke unto him saying: "It containeth that which aideth the growth of plants, and it is very strong." And so it was that the general manager rejoiced and delivered the good news unto the Vice President. "It promoteth growth, and it is very powerful." The Vice President rushed to the President's side, and joyously exclaimed: "This powerful new software product will promote the growth of the company!" And the President looked upon the product, and saw that it was very good. After the subsequent disaster, the suits protect themselves by saying "I was misinformed!", and the implementors are demoted or fired.
- snowball effect — a process of continuously accelerating change in size, importance, etc
- social benefits — the social welfare provision made available to those in need
- soft-shell clam — an edible clam, Mya arenaria, inhabiting waters along both coasts of North America, having an oval, relatively thin, whitish shell.
- soft-shell crab — a crab, especially the blue crab, that has recently molted and therefore has a soft, edible shell.
- spanish trefoil — alfalfa.
- special effects — Usually, special effects. a video or audio illusion in film or other media, created with computer-generated images, prosthetic makeup, pyrotechnics, etc.
- special feature — an article differing from the normal format and focusing on a particular topic
- spirits of salt — a solution of hydrochloric acid in water
- stannic sulfide — a yellowish or brownish, water-insoluble powder, SnS 2 , usually used suspended in lacquer or varnish for gilding and bronzing metals, wood, paper, etc.; mosaic gold.
- starfish flower — carrion flower (def 2).
- streamline flow — the flow of a fluid past an object such that the velocity at any fixed point in the fluid is constant or varies in a regular manner.
- strike the flag — to relinquish command, esp of a ship
- subprofessional — being below professional standards: subprofessional health care.
- sulfanilic acid — a grayish-white, crystalline, slightly water-soluble solid, the para form of C 6 H 7 NO 3 S, used chiefly as an intermediate in the manufacture of dyes.
- sulfiting agent — sulfite (def 2).
- sunflower state — Kansas (used as a nickname).
- superficialness — being at, on, or near the surface: a superficial wound.
- syllabification — to form or divide into syllables.
- sylvian fissure — lateral fissure.
- telesales staff — the members of a company's staff that deal with telesales
- tentaculiferous — having tentacles
- the black ferns — the women's international Rugby Union football team of New Zealand
- the classifieds — a section of classified advertising in a publication
- to play footsie — If someone plays footsie with you, they touch your feet with their own feet, for example under a table, often as a playful way of expressing their romantic or sexual feelings towards you.
- transfer lounge — the place in an airport where you wait for a transfer from one flight to another
- transferability — to convey or remove from one place, person, etc., to another: He transferred the package from one hand to the other.
- transform fault — a strike-slip fault that offsets a mid-ocean ridge in opposing directions on either side of an axis of seafloor spreading.
- tray classifier — A tray classifier is a tank for leaching from a dispersed solid, in which pulp at the bottom of the tank is raked (= moved to the exit) while solvent is forced toward the bottom of the tank.
- true-false test — a test requiring one to mark statements as true or false.
- ultrafastidious — extremely fastidious
- unfamiliarities — not familiar; not acquainted with or conversant about: to be unfamiliar with a subject.
- velcro fastener — a fastener made of Velcro
- venus's-flytrap — a carnivorous plant, Dionaea muscipula, native to bogs of North and South Carolina, having roundish leaves with two lobes that close like a trap when certain delicate hairs on them are irritated, as by a fly: the range is now reduced, though the plants are still locally abundant.
- walking catfish — an Asian catfish, Clarias batrachus, that can survive out of water and move overland from one body of water to another: introduced into Florida.
- walnut husk fly — any of several fruit flies, as Rhagoletis completa, the larvae of which feed on and discolor walnut husks.
- waterford glass — fine cut or gilded glass made in Waterford, Ireland, having a slight blue cast due to the presence of cobalt.