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19-letter words containing a, l, p, e, s

  • on pins and needles — a tingly, prickly sensation in a limb that is recovering from numbness.
  • open the floodgates — If events open the floodgates to something, they make it possible for that thing to happen much more often or much more seriously than before.
  • operational testing — (testing)   A US DoD term for testing performed by the end-user on software in its normal operating environment.
  • optical double star — two stars that appear as one if not viewed through a telescope with adequate magnification, such as two stars that are separated by a great distance but are nearly in line with each other and an observer (optical double star) or those that are relatively close together and comprise a single physical system (physical double star)
  • overplay one's hand — If you say that someone is overplaying something such as a problem, you mean that they are making it seem more important than it really is.
  • palaeoethnobotanist — someone who studies fossil seeds and grains to further archaeological knowledge, esp of the domestication of cereals
  • paleoanthropologist — the study of the origins and predecessors of the present human species, using fossils and other remains.
  • palisade parenchyma — the upper layer of ground tissue in a leaf, consisting of elongated cells beneath and perpendicular to the upper epidermis and constituting the primary area of photosynthesis.
  • palomar observatory — an astronomical observatory situated on Palomar Mountain in S California, having a 200-inch (508-cm) reflecting telescope and a 48-inch (122-cm) Schmidt telescope.
  • parainfluenza virus — any of a group of viruses that cause respiratory infections with influenza-like symptoms, esp in children
  • parallactic ellipse — the apparent ellipse, as seen against the background of more distant stars, described annually by a nearby star because of the earth's orbital motion around the sun. Compare parallax (def 2).
  • parallel processing — extending in the same direction, equidistant at all points, and never converging or diverging: parallel rows of trees.
  • paraphase amplifier — an amplifier that produces a push-pull output from a single input.
  • particle dispersoid — A particle dispersoid is a suspension of solid particles in a gas.
  • particle kinematics — Particle kinematics is the study of the movement of particles, without considering the forces that cause this movement.
  • particle separation — a rule that moves the particle of a phrasal verb, thus deriving a sentence like He looked the answer up from a structure that also underlies He looked up the answer
  • pass someone's lips — to be eaten or drunk by someone
  • pastoral counseling — the use of psychotherapeutic techniques by trained members of the clergy to assist parishioners who seek help for personal or emotional problems.
  • peak listening time — the time at which the highest numbers of audiences are listening to the radio
  • peninsular malaysia — part of Malaysia, on the Malay Peninsula: consists of the former Federated Malay States, the former Unfederated Malay States, and the former Straits Settlements. Capital: Kuala Lumpur. Pop: 17 144 322 (2000). Area: 131 587 sq km (50 806 sq miles)
  • periodontal disease — any of various mixed bacterial infections that affect the soft tissues and bones supporting the teeth.
  • peritoneal dialysis — a form of dialysis in which the peritoneum is used as an autogenous semipermeable membrane
  • peroxysulfuric acid — persulfuric acid (def 1).
  • persian gulf states — group of Arab sheikdoms along the Persian Gulf: Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, & United Arab Emirates
  • personal belongings — possessions; things that belong to someone
  • personal stationery — headed notepaper
  • personal watercraft — a jet-propelled boat ridden like a motorcycle.
  • phacoemulsification — the removal of a cataract by first liquefying the affected lens with ultrasonic vibrations and then extracting it by suction.
  • phakoemulsification — the removal of a cataract by first liquefying the affected lens with ultrasonic vibrations and then extracting it by suction.
  • physical addressing — (networking)   The low level addressing scheme used on Ethernet. The 48-bit destination Ethernet address in a packet is compared with the receiving node's Ethernet address. Compare IP address.
  • physical impairment — A physical impairment is a condition in which a part of a person's body is damaged or is not working properly.
  • physical sequential — (file format)   (PS, QSAM, Queued Sequential Access Method) The simplest data set on an IBM mainframe. Sequential files can only be read or written from the beginning: they do not support random access.
  • physically impaired — with reduced or weakened physical capacity
  • pillars of hercules — the two promontories at the E end of the Strait of Gibraltar: the Rock of Gibraltar on the European side and the Jebel Musa on the African side; according to legend, formed by Hercules
  • pinwheel escapement — a clock escapement in which two pallets, usually of unequal length, alternately engage and release pins set on the escape wheel perpendicular to its plane of rotation.
  • pistol-handle knife — a table knife, especially of the 18th century, having a slightly curved handle resembling the grip of a flintlock pistol.
  • planning permission — In Britain, planning permission is official permission that you must get from the local authority before building something new or adding something to an existing building.
  • plastic deformation — In plastic deformation a material changes shape when a stress is applied to it and does not go back to its original state when the stress is removed.
  • play fast and loose — a dramatic composition or piece; drama.
  • play footsie (with) — to touch feet or rub knees (with) in a caressing way, as under the table
  • pleased to meet you — greeting
  • pointe-aux-trembles — a city in S Quebec, in E Canada, N of Montreal, on the St. Lawrence.
  • police headquarters — building where police are stationed
  • political scientist — A political scientist is someone who studies, writes, or lectures about political science.
  • political-scientist — a social science dealing with political institutions and with the principles and conduct of government.
  • popular sovereignty — the doctrine that sovereign power is vested in the people and that those chosen to govern, as trustees of such power, must exercise it in conformity with the general will.
  • population genetics — the branch of genetics concerned with the hereditary makeup of populations.
  • population pressure — the force exerted by a growing population upon its environment, resulting in dispersal or reduction of the population.
  • post-and-rail fence — a fence constructed of upright wooden posts with horizontal timber slotted through it
  • potassium bisulfate — a colorless, crystalline, water-soluble solid, KHSO 4 , used chiefly in the conversion of tartrates to bitartrates.
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