20-letter words containing a, v, i, g
- legislative assembly — the legislature of France 1791–92.
- linage advertisement — advertisements which are costed and paid for according to the number of lines in them
- linguistic universal — language universal.
- mechanical advantage — the ratio of output force to the input force applied to a mechanism.
- microwave background — a background of microwave electromagnetic radiation with a black-body spectrum discovered in 1965, understood to be the thermal remnant of the big bang with which the universe began
- multiplicative group — a group in which the operation of the group is multiplication.
- navigable semicircle — the less violent half of a cyclone; the half blowing in the direction opposite to that in which the cyclone is moving and in which a vessel can run before the wind.
- negative campaigning — political campaigning in which a politician or party focuses on criticizing another politician or party rather than emphasizing their own positive qualities
- negative electricity — the electricity present in a body or substance that has an excess of electrons, as the electricity developed on a resin when rubbed with flannel.
- nikkei stock average — an index of prices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange
- non-volatile storage — (storage) (NVS, persistent storage, memory) A term describing a storage device whose contents are preserved when its power is off. Storage using magnetic media (e.g. magnetic disks, magnetic tape or bubble memory) is normally non-volatile by nature whereas semiconductor memories (static RAM and especially dynamic RAM) are normally volatile but can be made into non-volatile storage by having a (rechargable) battery permanently connected. Other examples of non-volatile storage are EEPROM, CD-ROM, paper tape and punched cards.
- operator overloading — overloading
- oscillating universe — a variant model of the closed universe in which the universe undergoes cycles of expansion and contraction.
- ovo-lacto vegetarian — a vegetarian who eats eggs and dairy products
- ovo-lacto-vegetarian — lacto-ovo-vegetarian.
- pound cost averaging — a method of accumulating capital by investing a fixed sum in a particular security at regular intervals, in order to achieve an average purchase price below the arithmetic average of the market prices on the purchase dates
- prescriptive grammar — an approach to grammar that is concerned with establishing norms of correct and incorrect usage and formulating rules based on these norms to be followed by users of the language.
- private investigator — private detective. Abbreviation: PI, p.i., P.I.
- regenerative braking — Regenerative braking is a form of braking in electric vehicles in which the loss of kinetic energy from braking is stored and then fed back later to provide power to the electric motor.
- regenerative cooling — Physics. a method of cooling a gas, utilizing the rapid expansion of a compressed portion of the gas, before it becomes liquid, to cool the remainder.
- regenerative furnace — a furnace in which the incoming air is heated by regenerators.
- regional development — aid-giving to poorer areas or countries
- reminder advertising — a type of advertising designed to remind customers that an existing or well-known product is still available and for sale
- reservations manager — A reservations manager at a hotel is responsible for the reservations at the hotel.
- satellite navigation — navigation using data received from satellites
- sensitivity training — a form of group therapy designed to develop understanding of oneself and others through free, unstructured discussion.
- serve a person right — to pay a person back, esp for wrongful or foolish treatment or behaviour
- seven against thebes — (used with a plural verb) Classical Mythology. seven heroes, Amphiaraus, Capaneus, Eteoclus, Hippomedon, Parthenopaeus, Polynices, and Tydeus, who led an expedition against Thebes to depose Eteocles in favor of his brother Polynices: the expedition failed, but the Epigoni, the sons of the Seven against Thebes, conquered the city ten years later.
- shank of the evening — the latter part of the afternoon
- shifting cultivation — a land-use system, esp in tropical Africa, in which a tract of land is cultivated until its fertility diminishes, when it is abandoned until this is restored naturally
- squatter sovereignty — (used contemptuously by its opponents) popular sovereignty (def 2).
- surface-active agent — any substance that when dissolved in water or an aqueous solution reduces its surface tension or the interfacial tension between it and another liquid.
- television programme — a programme broadcast on television
- to sb's disadvantage — If something is to your disadvantage or works to your disadvantage, it creates difficulties for you.
- track-laying vehicle — A track-laying vehicle is a vehicle whose wheels run inside a continuous chain or track.
- trailing vortex drag — drag arising from vortices that occur behind a body moving through a gas or liquid
- travelling-wave tube — an electronic tube in which an electron beam interacts with a distributed high-frequency magnetic field so that energy is transferred from the beam to the field
- trustee savings bank — a British financial institution which offered savings facilities for small investors and was managed by unpaid trustees. Depositors had no voting rights and no say in financial or managerial matters. The bank is now a public limited company with the same rights and services as other banks and only retains the title in the abbreviated form TSB.
- twelve-string guitar — an acoustic guitar having twelve strings instead of six, with each pair tuned an octave apart, and more difficult to play than the standard guitar.
- valve-in-head engine — I-head engine.
- vertical integration — the joining together of all companies or firms involved in manufacturing a product into one company or firm
- vertical lift bridge — lift bridge.
- video graphics array — (hardware) (VGA) A display standard for IBM PCs, with 640 x 480 pixels in 16 colours and a 4:3 aspect ratio. There is also a text mode with 720 x 400 pixels. IBM technical references define the *product name* of their original VGA display board as "Video Graphics Array", in contrast to the preceding boards, the "Color Graphics Adapter" (CGA) and "Enhanced Graphics Adapter" (EGA). See also Super Video Graphics Adapter.
- visual merchandising — Visual merchandising is the use of attractive displays and floor plans to increase customer numbers and sales volumes.
- warrensville heights — a city in NE Ohio.
- wide-angle converter — a person or thing that converts.