17-letter words containing a, p, l, y
- positive polarity — the grammatical characteristic of a word or phrase, such as delicious or rather, that may normally only be used in a semantically or syntactically positive or affirmative context
- postal stationery — an envelope, postal card, wrapper, or aérogramme, with the stamp printed directly on the paper.
- powder metallurgy — the art or science of manufacturing useful articles by compacting metal and other powders in a die, followed by sintering.
- pre-revolutionary — of, pertaining to, characterized by, or of the nature of a revolution, or a sudden, complete, or marked change: a revolutionary junta.
- prelingually deaf — deaf from birth or having acquired deafness before learning to speak
- primary qualities — any of the qualities inherent in an object, namely quantity, extent, figure, solidity, and motion or rest.
- prior probability — the probability assigned to a parameter or to an event in advance of any empirical evidence, often subjectively or on the assumption of the principle of indifference
- probability curve — a curve that describes the distribution of probability over the values of a random variable.
- product liability — the responsibility of a manufacturer for injury or loss caused by its product.
- professional army — an army of trained soldiers
- protocol analyser — (communications, hardware, networking, testing, tool) Any device that captures and interprets the network traffic between two or more connected computer systems. The traffic can then be decoded so that it is possible to see what processes are occurring. By examining the flow of traffic, protocol analysers can be used to find out where problems (such as bottlenecks or the failure of a network device) are on a LAN. Advanced protocol analysers can also provide statistics on the traffic that can help to identify trends that may in future lead to further problems with the network.
- psychoeducational — designating or of psychological methods, as intelligence tests, used in evaluating learning ability
- psychographically — Psychology. a graph indicating the relative strength of the personality traits of an individual.
- psychoprophylaxis — Lamaze method.
- pull your head in — be quiet!
- purely and simply — You use purely and simply to emphasize that the thing you are mentioning is the only thing involved.
- pyroligneous acid — a yellowish, acidic, water-soluble liquid, containing about 10 percent acetic acid, obtained by the destructive distillation of wood: used for smoking meats.
- 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.
- pythagorean scale — the major scale as derived acoustically by Pythagoras from the perfect fifth.
- quality newspaper — a more serious newspaper which gives detailed accounts of world events, as well as reports on business, culture, and society
- quality paperback — a softbound book that is usually larger and more expensive than a mass market paperback and is sold primarily in bookstores as a trade book.
- radial (ply) tire — a motor vehicle tire having a foundation of plies of rubberized cords running at right angles to the center line of the tread: it provides better handling, etc. than a bias ply tire
- reality principle — the motivating force or mechanism by which the child, who has previously sought immediate gratification of all wishes, realizes that gratification must sometimes be deferred or forgone.
- repertory catalog — a catalog containing bibliographic records that indicate locations of materials in more than one library or in several units of one library.
- reticulate python — a python, Python reticulatus, of southeastern Asia and the East Indies, sometimes growing to a length of 32 feet (10 meters): usually considered to be the largest snake in the world.
- role-playing game — a game in which participants adopt the roles of imaginary characters in an adventure under the direction of a Game Master.
- sable island pony — a variety of wild pony found on Sable Island, Nova Scotia
- school playground — school's outdoor recreation area
- semi-permeability — permeable only to certain small molecules: a semipermeable membrane.
- sensory paralysis — impairment or loss of sensation in a part or area of the body
- shopping bag lady — bag lady (def 1).
- shopping-bag lady — bag lady (def 1).
- shuttle diplomacy — diplomatic negotiations carried out by a mediator who travels back and forth between the negotiating parties.
- social psychology — the psychological study of social behavior, especially of the reciprocal influence of the individual and the group with which the individual interacts.
- spastic paralysis — a condition in which the muscles affected are marked by tonic spasm and increased tendon reflexes.
- spatial frequency — the measure of fine detail in an optical image in terms of cycles per millimetre
- spectroscopically — an optical device for producing and observing a spectrum of light or radiation from any source, consisting essentially of a slit through which the radiation passes, a collimating lens, and an Amici prism.
- spectrum analyser — an instrument that splits an input waveform into its frequency components, which are then displayed
- spectrum analysis — the determination of the constitution or condition of bodies and substances by means of the spectra they produce.
- spherical polygon — a closed figure formed by arcs of great circles on a spherical surface.
- split keyboarding — the act or practice of editing data from one terminal on another terminal
- split personality — multiple personality.
- stereolithography — a process for creating three-dimensional objects using a computer-controlled laser to build up the required structure, layer by layer, from a liquid photopolymer that solidifies.
- stymphalian birds — a flock of predacious birds of Arcadia that were driven away and killed by Hercules as one of his labors.
- sunday supplement — a special section incorporated in the Sunday editions of many newspapers, often containing features on books, celebrities, home entertainment, gardening, and the like.
- supply and demand — economy: basic market theory
- supply management — business purchasing
- tapestry brussels — a carpet made with three-ply or four-ply worsted yarn drawn up in uncut loops to form a pattern over the entire surface (body Brussels) or made of worsted or woolen yarns on which a pattern is printed (tapestry Brussels)
- terminal capacity — The terminal capacity is the volume which can be stored in a terminal (= building or area with tanks).
- tertiary syphilis — the third stage of syphilis, characterized by involvement of the internal organs, especially the brain, spinal cord, heart, and liver.