12-letter words containing a, s, l, o
- mouse trails — (operating system) A feature (usually of Graphical User Interfaces) which causes the mouse pointer to leave a trail across the screen. This is done by keeping track of the last eight or so (maybe configurable) pointer positions, and only erasing the oldest. This means that at any time, there may be up to eight pointers on the screen, but if the mouse is still, they will all be in the same position, and so only one will be visible. When the mouse moves, it appears to leave a trail of pointers behind it, and this can dramatically increase the visibility of the pointer when using LCD screens. The older ones had such long persistence that a single mouse pointer, when moving, tended to be completely invisible, and on a cluttered screen, was very difficult to find.
- moveableness — The quality of being moveable.
- mrs-malaprop — Mrs. a character in Sheridan's The Rivals (1775), noted for her misapplication of words.
- mucilaginous — of, relating to, or secreting mucilage.
- multicostate — having several costae or ribs
- multifarious — having many different parts, elements, forms, etc.
- multinomials — Plural form of multinomial.
- multivarious — Many and various.
- museological — Pertaining to museology.
- myofilaments — Plural form of myofilament.
- mystagogical — someone who instructs others before initiation into religious mysteries or before participation in the sacraments.
- nailer joist — a steel joist having a permanently attached nailing strip, as for securing wooden flooring.
- nannofossils — Plural form of nannofossil.
- nanocrystals — Plural form of nanocrystal.
- narcodollars — Usually, narcodollars. money obtained through illegal drug trafficking.
- nasal concha — turbinate (def 4).
- nasal demons — Recognised shorthand on the Usenet group comp.std.c for any unexpected behaviour of a C compiler on encountering an undefined construct. During a discussion on that group in early 1992, a regular remarked "When the compiler encounters [a given undefined construct] it is legal for it to make demons fly out of your nose" (the implication is that the compiler may choose any arbitrarily bizarre way to interpret the code without violating the ANSI C standard). Someone else followed up with a reference to "nasal demons", which quickly became established.
- nasalization — (phonetics, uncountable) the articulation of a vowel or continuant consonant in such a way that air flows through the nose at the same time as it flows through the mouth.
- nasolacrimal — of or relating to the lacrimal structures and the nose.
- nasolacrymal — relating to the tear duct
- nasotracheal — (anatomy) Of or relating to the nose and trachea.
- nationalised — Simple past tense and past participle of nationalise.
- nationalisms — Plural form of nationalism.
- nationalists — Plural form of nationalist.
- nationalizes — Third-person singular simple present indicative form of nationalize.
- naval stores — supplies for warships.
- nematologist — One who studies nematology.
- neoclassical — (sometimes initial capital letter) belonging or pertaining to a revival of classic styles or something that is held to resemble classic styles, as in art, literature, music, or architecture.
- neofeudalism — A theorized contemporary rebirth of policies of governance, economy and public life reminiscent of those present in many feudal societies.
- neoplatonism — a philosophical system, originated in the 3rd century a.d. by Plotinus, founded chiefly on Platonic doctrine and Eastern mysticism, with later influences from Christianity. It holds that all existence consists of emanations from the One with whom the soul may be reunited.
- neoplatonist — a philosophical system, originated in the 3rd century a.d. by Plotinus, founded chiefly on Platonic doctrine and Eastern mysticism, with later influences from Christianity. It holds that all existence consists of emanations from the One with whom the soul may be reunited.
- neorealistic — Of or pertaining to neorealism.
- neotribalism — Ideology that humans have evolved to live in a tribal, as opposed to a modern society.
- nepotistical — Nepotistic.
- nesosilicate — any silicate, as olivine, in which the SiO 4 tetrahedra are not interlinked.
- neuroplastic — Of or pertaining to neuroplasticity.
- nicholas iii — (Giovanni Gaetani Orsini) died 1280, Italian ecclesiastic: pope 1277–80.
- nihil obstat — permission to publish a book, granted by an official censor who, upon examining it, has certified that it contains nothing contrary to faith or morals.
- nikola tesla — Nikola [nik-oh-luh] /ˈnɪk oʊ lə/ (Show IPA), 1856–1943, U.S. physicist, electrical engineer, and inventor, born in Croatia.
- nilo-saharan — a family of African languages, including the Central and Eastern Sudanic groups as well as Kanuri, Songhai, and other languages, spoken from the Sahara southward to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Tanzania.
- no less than — at least
- noahide laws — the seven laws given to Noah after the Flood, which decree the establishment of a fair system of justice in society, and prohibit idolatry, blasphemy, murder, adultery and incest, robbery, and the eating of flesh taken from a living animal
- noble savage — primitive indigenous person
- noctambulism — somnambulism.
- noctambulist — somnambulism.
- noctambulous — of, relating to, or given to sleepwalking.
- nomenclators — Plural form of nomenclator.
- nominalistic — (philosophy) Having a nominalist character.
- non-disabled — physically or mentally impaired, injured, or incapacitated.
- non-erasable — to rub or scrape out, as letters or characters written, engraved, etc.; efface.