17-letter words containing a, l, e, t

natural selection — the process by which forms of life having traits that better enable them to adapt to specific environmental pressures, as predators, changes in climate, or competition for food or mates, will tend to survive and reproduce in greater numbers than others of their kind, thus ensuring the perpetuation of those favorable traits in succeeding generations.
natural-resources — a naturally occurring source of wealth, as land or water.
naval observatory — an astronomical observatory located in Washington, D.C., operated by the U.S. government, and responsible for the U.S. time service.
neath port talbot — a county borough in S Wales, created from part of West Glamorgan in 1996. Administrative centre: Port Talbot. Pop: 135 300 (2003 est). Area: 439 sq km (169 sq miles)
negative catalyst — an inhibitor.
negative particle — a word that indicates negativity, for example 'not' in English or 'ne pas' in French
negative polarity — the grammatical character of a word or phrase, such as ever or any, that may normally be used only in a semantically or syntactically negative or interrogative context
negative theology — a theological approach or tradition in which the nature of God is thought to be unknowable and is only understood through negative statements. See also apophasis (def 2).
negotiating table — If you say that people are at the negotiating table, you mean that they are having discussions in order to settle a dispute or reach an agreement.
neo-malthusianism — a view or doctrine advocating population control, especially by contraception.
neo-scholasticism — a contemporary application of Scholasticism to modern problems and life.
nephelometrically — By means of nephelometry.
nessler's reagent — an aqueous solution of potassium iodide, mercuric chloride, and potassium hydroxide, used as a test for the presence of ammonia.
net present value — an assessment of the long-term profitability of a project made by adding together all the revenue it can be expected to achieve over its whole life and deducting all the costs involved, discounting both future costs and revenue at an appropriate rate
neuropathological — (medicine) Of, pertaining to, or arising from neuropathology, the pathology of nerve tissue.
new age traveller — New Age travellers are people who live in tents and vehicles and travel from place to place, and who reject many of the values of modern society.
new england aster — a tall composite plant, Aster novae-angliae, of the northeastern U.S., the flowers of which have lavender to deep-purple rays.
new orleans style — a style of jazz developed in New Orleans early in the 20th century, influenced by blues, ragtime, marching band music, and minstrelsy and marked by polyphonic group improvisation.
new scotland yard — See under Scotland Yard (def 1).
newcastle disease — a rapidly spreading virus-induced disease of birds and domestic fowl, as chickens, marked by respiratory difficulty, reduced egg production and, in chicks, paralysis.
newfoundland time — a form of civil time observed on the island of Newfoundland, one and one-half hours later than Eastern time and a half hour later than Atlantic time.
ngaliema mountain — Mount, a mountain with two summits, in central Africa, between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo: highest peak in the Ruwenzori group. 16,790 feet (5119 meters).
nial systems ltd. — Distributors of Q'NIAL. Address: Ottawa Canada. Telephone: Canada (613) 234 4188.
nightshade family — the plant family Solanaceae, characterized by herbaceous plants, trees, shrubs, and vines having alternate, simple or pinnate leaves, conspicuous flowers, and fruit in the form of a berry or capsule, and including belladonna, eggplant, nightshade, peppers of the genus Capsicum, petunia, potato, tobacco, and tomato.
non-controversial — of, relating to, or characteristic of controversy, or prolonged public dispute, debate, or contention; polemical: a controversial book.
non-environmental — the aggregate of surrounding things, conditions, or influences; surroundings; milieu.
non-materialistic — excessively concerned with physical comforts or the acquisition of wealth and material possessions, rather than with spiritual, intellectual, or cultural values.
non-proliferation — Non-proliferation is the limiting of the production and spread of something such as nuclear or chemical weapons.
non-stereotypical — a process, now often replaced by more advanced methods, for making metal printing plates by taking a mold of composed type or the like in papier-mâché or other material and then taking from this mold a cast in type metal.
non-thermoplastic — soft and pliable when heated, as some plastics, without any change of the inherent properties.
nonaccomplishment — Something that does not achieve the intended goal.
nondenominational — of or relating to a denomination or denominations.
noninertial frame — a frame of reference that moves with the object, so that the moving object appears to violate Newton's laws of motion since it accelerates despite having no horizontal forces on it.
nonunderstandable — Not understandable.
nord-ostsee kanal — German name of Kiel Canal.
north lanarkshire — a council area of central Scotland: consists mainly of the NE part of the historical county of Lanarkshire; formerly (1974–96) part of Strathclyde Region: engineering and metalworking industries. Administrative centre: Motherwell. Pop: 321 820 (2003 est). Area: 1771 sq km (684 sq miles)
north-wall hammer — a type of ice axe that has a hammer as part of its head
not bat an eyelid — When something surprising or shocking happens, if someone doesn't bat an eyelid in British English, or doesn't bat an eye in American English, they remain calm and do not show any reaction.
not lift a finger — any of the terminal members of the hand, especially one other than the thumb.
not spare oneself — to exert oneself to the full
nothing less than — You can use nothing less than to emphasize your next words, often indicating that something seems very surprising or important.
nuclear chemistry — the branch of chemistry concerned with nuclear reactions
nuclear deterrent — a country's nuclear weapons viewed as a deterrent to other countries from attacking
nuclear radiation — Physics. radiation in the form of elementary particles emitted by an atomic nucleus, as alpha rays or gamma rays, produced by decay of radioactive substances or by nuclear fission.
nuclear scientist — a scientist who studies nuclear physics
nuclear threshold — the point in war at which a combatant brings nuclear weapons into use
numerical control — control of a machine tool, or other device used in a manufacturing process, by a computer, other control circuitry, or recorded digital commands.
objectionableness — The quality of being objectionable.
occipital condyle — a protrusion on the occipital bone of the skull that forms a joint with the first cervical vertebra, enabling the head to move relative to the neck.
off-site facility — An off-site facility is a facility which is not at the main industrial or commercial site.

Was this page helpful?

Yes No

Thank you for your feedback! Tell your friends about this page

Tell us why?