16-letter words containing a, r, o, w, i
- immigration laws — regulations on incoming foreigners
- in a brown study — in a reverie or daydream
- in so many words — a unit of language, consisting of one or more spoken sounds or their written representation, that functions as a principal carrier of meaning. Words are composed of one or more morphemes and are either the smallest units susceptible of independent use or consist of two or three such units combined under certain linking conditions, as with the loss of primary accent that distinguishes black·bird· from black· bird·. Words are usually separated by spaces in writing, and are distinguished phonologically, as by accent, in many languages.
- in the worst way — bad or ill in the highest, greatest, or most extreme degree: the worst person.
- jailhouse lawyer — a prisoner who has taught himself or herself law while serving time, is knowledgeable about technical legal matters, and gives legal advice, especially to fellow prisoners.
- javelin throwing — the sport of throwing the javelin
- kirchhoff's laws — the law that the algebraic sum of the currents flowing toward any point in an electric network is zero.
- kitagawa utamaro — Kitagawa [kee-tah-gah-wah] /ˈki tɑˈgɑ wɑ/ (Show IPA), 1753–1806, Japanese painter, draftsman, and designer of prints.
- kondratieff wave — a long business cycle of economic expansion and contraction, postulated to last about 60 years.
- law of parsimony — a principle according to which an explanation of a thing or event is made with the fewest possible assumptions.
- lawson criterion — (in a hypothetical nuclear fusion reactor) the requirement that in order for the energy produced by fusion to exceed the energy expended in causing the fusion, the product of the density of the fuel and the time during which it is confined at that density (Lawson product) must be greater than a certain number that depends on the kind of fuel used.
- little brown bat — any of several small to medium-sized common bats of the genera Myotis and Eptesicus, found worldwide in caves, trees, and buildings, including M. lucifugus (little brown bat) and E. fuscus (big brown bat) a widespread North American species.
- littoral warfare — military combat conducted in coastal areas.
- long-wire aerial — a travelling-wave aerial consisting of one or more conductors, the length of which usually exceeds several wavelengths
- lord howe island — an island in the S Pacific, E of Australia: a dependency of New South Wales. 5 sq. mi. (13 sq. km).
- lower california — Baja California.
- lower palatinate — See under Palatinate (def 1).
- magnolia warbler — a black and yellow wood warbler, Dendroica magnolia, of North America.
- maid of all work — a maid who does all types of housework
- mallowpuff māori — a Māori who is considered to behave like a white person
- matthew of paris — c1200–59, English chronicler.
- minerva software — A company producing software for the Acorn Archimedes.
- molecular weight — the average weight of a molecule of an element or compound measured in units once based on the weight of one hydrogen atom taken as the standard or on 1/16 (0.0625) the weight of an oxygen atom, but after 1961 based on 1/12 (0.083) the weight of the carbon-12 atom; the sum of the atomic weights of all the atoms in a molecule. Abbreviation: mol. wt.
- narrowmindedness — Alternative spelling of narrow-mindedness.
- network analysis — a mathematical method of analyzing complex problems, as in transportation or project scheduling, by representing the problem as a network of lines and nodes.
- new frontiersman — an advocate or follower of the New Frontier, especially one in public service.
- newspaper office — an office where the editorial and production staff of a newspaper work
- nine-days wonder — something that arouses great interest, but only for a short period
- norwegian buhund — a slightly-built medium-sized dog of a breed with erect pointed ears and a short thick tail carried curled over its back
- not worth a shit — useless, valueless, etc.
- observation ward — a ward in a hospital where patients are monitored
- of it own accord — If something happens of its own accord, it seems to happen by itself, without anyone making it happen.
- on a war footing — If a country or armed force is on a war footing, it is ready to fight a war.
- one with another — on average
- optical tweezers — a laser device used to study, manipulate, or trap a microscopic object, as a microorganism or cell, with nanometer precision.
- overhead railway — elevated railroad.
- pearls of wisdom — good advice, wise words
- place of worship — religious house: church, temple
- poor white trash — white trash.
- proposal writing — Extension of Fortran for proposal writing.
- purchasing power — Also called buying power. the ability to purchase goods and services.
- rainbow lorikeet — a small Australasian parrot, Trichoglossus haematodus, with brightly-coloured plumage
- rainbow seaperch — an embiotocid fish, Hypsurus caryi, living off the Pacific coast of North America, having red, orange, and blue stripes on the body.
- raise an eyebrow — If something causes you to raise an eyebrow or to raise your eyebrows, it causes you to feel surprised or disapproving.
- rear-view mirror — a mirror mounted on the side, windshield, or instrument panel of an automobile or other vehicle to provide the driver with a view of the area behind the vehicle.
- redbank whiteoak — a city in S Tennessee.
- regional network — mid-level network
- royal water lily — a water lily, Victoria amazonica (or V. regia), of the Amazon River and British Guiana, having floating leaves from three to six feet (0.9 to 1.8 meters) wide, the upturned margins from two to four inches (5 to 10 cm) high, and dull crimson flowers.
- shakedown cruise — extortion, as by blackmail or threats of violence.
- shared ownership — (in Britain) a form of house purchase whereby the purchaser buys a proportion of the dwelling, usually from a local authority or housing association, and rents the rest