17-letter words containing a, l, s, i
- pyrosulfuric acid — a strong, crystalline acid, H2S2O7, prepared commercially as a heavy, oily, fuming liquid: used in making explosives and dyes, as a sulfating agent, etc.
- qualified success — If you describe something as a qualified success, you mean that it is only partly successful.
- quality assurance — a system for ensuring a desired level of quality in the development, production, or delivery of products and services: Quality assurance for nursing homes begins with a set of standards. Abbreviation: QA.
- quality newspaper — a more serious newspaper which gives detailed accounts of world events, as well as reports on business, culture, and society
- quasi-legislative — having the function of making laws: a legislative body.
- quasiexperimental — (medicine) Describing a trial in which the assignment to a group is based upon an experimental condition.
- quasquicentennial — pertaining to or marking a period of 125 years.
- racial harassment — persecution on the basis of race
- radioluminescence — luminescence induced by nuclear radiation.
- railroad crossing — place for vehicles to cross train tracks
- recoil escapement — anchor escapement.
- recreationalist's — recreationist.
- recrystallization — to become crystallized again.
- rectangle slinger — polygon pusher
- recursion formula — a formula for determining the next term of a sequence from one or more of the preceding terms.
- rehospitalization — the act, process, or state of being hospitalized.
- relativistic mass — the mass of a body in motion relative to the observer: it is equal to the rest mass multiplied by a factor that is greater than 1 and that increases as the magnitude of the velocity increases.
- res ipsa loquitur — the rule that an injury is due to the defendant's negligence when that which caused it was under his or her control or management and the injury would not have happened had proper management been observed.
- revascularization — the restoration of the blood circulation of an organ or area, achieved by unblocking obstructed or disrupted blood vessels or by surgically implanting replacements.
- reza shah pahlavi — Muhammad Riza (or Reza) [ri-zah] /rɪˈzɑ/ (Show IPA), 1919–80, shah of Iran 1941–79; in exile after 1979 (son of Riza Shah Pahlavi).
- rhetorical stress — stress required by the meaning of a line, as distinguished from that required by the meter.
- rhode island bent — a European pasture grass, Agrostis tenuis, naturalized in North America, having red flower clusters.
- rio grande do sul — a state in S Brazil. 107,923 sq. mi. (279,520 sq. km). Capital: Pôrto Alegre.
- riza shah pahlavi — Pahlavi (def 2).
- roman catholicism — the faith, practice, and system of government of the Roman Catholic Church.
- roseate spoonbill — a tropical New World spoonbill, Ajaia ajaja, having rose-colored plumage and a bare head.
- royal institution — a British society founded in 1799 for the dissemination of scientific knowledge
- russian wolfhound — borzoi.
- sable island pony — a variety of wild pony found on Sable Island, Nova Scotia
- sacrificial anode — Chemistry. an anode that is attached to a metal object subject to electrolysis and is decomposed instead of the object.
- saint elmo's fire — corona discharge.
- salt negotiations — international diplomatic discussions carried out in connection with SALT
- salt-rising bread — a kind of bread leavened with a fermented mixture of salted milk, cornmeal, flour, sugar, and soda.
- san quentin quail — jailbait.
- sandro botticelli — Sandro [san-droh,, sahn-;; Italian sahn-draw] /ˈsæn droʊ,, ˈsɑn-;; Italian ˈsɑn drɔ/ (Show IPA), (Alessandro di Mariano dei Filipepi) 1444?–1510, Italian painter.
- sanitary landfill — landfill.
- santa rosa island — an island off the coast of California, in the Santa Barbara (Channel Islands) of California. 17 miles (27 km) long.
- satellite station — a radio or television station that receives programs from another station and rebroadcasts at a different wavelength.
- scarlet firethorn — a Eurasian evergreen, thorny shrub, Pyracantha coccinea, of the rose family, having white, hairy flower clusters and bright red berries.
- scarlet lightning — scarlet lychnis.
- scarlet pimpernel — a plant belonging to the genus Anagallis, of the primrose family, especially A. arvensis (scarlet pimpernel) having scarlet or white flowers that close at the approach of bad weather.
- scrophulariaceous — belonging to the Scrophulariaceae, the figwort family of plants.
- sea-island cotton — a long-staple cotton, Gossypium barbadense, raised originally in the Sea Islands and now grown chiefly in the West Indies.
- second lieutenant — an Army, Air Force, or Marine officer of the lowest commissioned rank. Compare ensign (def 4).
- secondary glazing — insulation by means of a second pane of glass, or a sheet of plastic: a simple form of double glazing
- secondary quality — one of the qualities attributed by the mind to an object perceived, such as color, temperature, or taste.
- secondary sealing — Secondary sealing is a system of wiper seals used in floating roof tanks.
- securities dealer — a person who buys and sells securities
- selective amnesia — the deliberate forgetting of something
- self-administered — to manage (affairs, a government, etc.); have executive charge of: to administer the law.