17-letter words containing a, s, y
- deadly nightshade — a poisonous Eurasian solanaceous plant, Atropa belladonna, having dull purple bell-shaped flowers and small very poisonous black berries
- defence secretary — the member of a government who is responsible for the country's armed forces
- dehydrochlorinase — an enzyme that catalyzes the removal of hydrogen and chlorine atoms or ions from chlorinated hydrocarbons.
- delay instruction — delayed control-transfer
- deoxyribonuclease — DNase.
- dephosphorylation — the removal of a phosphate group from an organic compound, as in the changing of ATP to ADP.
- desaix de veygoux — Louis Charles Antoine [lwee sharl ahn-twan] /lwi ʃærl ɑ̃ˈtwan/ (Show IPA), 1768–1800, French general.
- despotic monarchy — absolute monarchy.
- desynchronisation — (British spelling) Alternative form of desynchronization.
- desynchronization — to cause to indicate the same time, as one timepiece with another: Synchronize your watches.
- deterministically — the doctrine that all facts and events exemplify natural laws.
- diaphragm pessary — a device for inserting into the vagina to deliver a drug, such as a contraceptive
- disability clause — a clause in a life-insurance policy providing for waiver of premium and sometimes payment of monthly income if the policyholder becomes totally and permanently disabled.
- disadvantageously — In a disadvantageous manner.
- disaster recovery — (business) (DR) Planning and implementation of procedures and facilities for use when essential systems are not available for a period long enough to have a significant impact on the business, e.g. when the head office is blown up. Disasters include natural: fire, flood, lightning, hurricane; hardware: power failure, component failure, head crash; software failure: bugs, resources; vandalism: arson, bombing, cracking, theft; data corruption or loss: human error, media failure; communications: computer network equipment, network storm, telephones; security: passwords compromised, computer virus; legal: change in legislation; personnel: unavailability of essential staff, industrial action. Companies need to plan for disaster: before: risk analysis, preventive measures, training; during: how should staff and systems respond; after: recovery measures, post mortem analysis. Hardware can usually be replaced and is usually insured. Software and data needs to be backed up off site. Alternative communication systems should be arranged in case of network failure or inaccessible premises, e.g. emergency telephone number, home working, alternative data center.
- display standards — display standard
- disproportionally — not in proportion; disproportionate.
- disrespectability — Lack of respectability.
- district attorney — an officer who acts as attorney for the people or government within a specified district.
- dog and pony show — an elaborate sales, advertising, or publicity presentation or campaign.
- dress-down friday — In some companies employees are allowed to wear clothes that are less smart than usual on a Friday. This day is known as a dress-down Friday.
- dynamic insurance — Dynamic insurance is a type of insurance coverage where the policyholder can choose to increase benefits and premiums by a fixed percentage each year to offset the effects of inflation.
- dynamics analyzer — (language) (DYANA) An early language specialised for vibrational and other dynamic physical systems.
- early closing day — a day on which most shops in a town or area close after lunch
- early renaissance — a style of art developed principally in Florence, Italy, during the 15th century and characterized chiefly by the development of linear perspective, chiaroscuro, and geometrically based compositions.
- eastern orthodoxy — the faith, practice, membership, and government of the Eastern Orthodox Church.
- egyptian brackets — (programming, humour) A humourous term for K&R indent style, referring to the "one hand up in front, one down behind" pose which popular culture inexplicably associates with Egypt.
- electrostatically — In an electrostatic manner, by electrostatic means.
- elementary school — primary school
- emergency rations — food and drink that is designated for use in an emergency: for example, in a famine, after a plane crash, when hill-walkers or mountaineers are stranded, etc.
- encephalomyelitis — Inflammation of the brain and spinal cord, typically due to acute viral infection.
- epistemologically — In a manner that pertains to epistemology.
- escaping tendency — a property of a gas, related to its partial pressure, that expresses its tendency to escape or expand, given by d(log ef) = dμ/ RT, where μ is the chemical potential, R the gas constant, and T the thermodynamic temperature
- ethinyloestradiol — Alternative form of ethinylestradiol.
- exclusionary rule — a legal rule that evidence obtained illegally, as from a search without a warrant, may not be introduced at trial
- exemplary damages — law: fine imposed as a deterrent
- factory inspector — a person who inspects factories
- fancy dress party — a party at which the guests wear fancy dress
- feasibility study — (systems analysis) Part of the systems develpment life cycle which aims to determine whether it is sensible to develop some system. The most popular model of feasibility study is "TELOS", standing for Technical, Economic, Legal, Operational, Schedule. Technical Feasibility: does the technology exist to implement the proposed system? Is it a practical proposition? Economic Feasibility: is the system cost-effective? Do benefits outweigh costs? Legal Feasibility: is there any conflict between the proposed system and legal requirements, e.g. the Data Protection Act? Operational Feasibility: are the current work practices and procedures adequate to support the new system? Schedule Feasibility: can the system be developed in time? After the feasibility study, the requirements analysis should be carried out.
- fee-paying school — a school which charges fees to parents of pupils
- flash photography — photography using a momentary flash of artificial light as a source of illumination.
- footmen's gallery — the rearmost section of seats in the balcony of an English theater, especially in the late 17th and early 18th centuries.
- foreign secretary — foreign minister.
- fraternal society — a club or other association, usually of men, having a limited membership and devoted to professional, religious, charitable, or social activities.
- gamblers' fallacy — the fallacy that in a series of chance events the probability of one event occurring increases with the number of times another event has occurred in succession
- game as ned kelly — extremely brave; indomitable
- gamma-ray burster — a source of gamma-ray bursts
- garden strawberry — a plant which has white flowers and red edible fruits and is spread by runners, Fragaria ananassa
- garlic mayonnaise — mayonnaise flavoured with garlic
- gastroenterostomy — the making of a new passage between the stomach and the duodenum (gastroduodenostomy) or, especially, the jejunum (gastrojejunostomy)