23-letter words containing c, l, a, r

off the back of a lorry — If someone says that something has fallen off the back of a lorry, or that they got something off the back of a lorry, they mean that they bought something that they knew was stolen.
on-line data processing — the storing or processing of data on a computer using the internet
ordinary life insurance — life insurance with premiums paid throughout the lifetime of the insured.
out of a clear blue sky — the region of the clouds or the upper air; the upper atmosphere of the earth: airplanes in the sky; cloudy skies.
parametric polymorphism — Polymorphism was first identified by Christopher Strachey in 1967 and developed by Hindley and Milner. For example we could specify that the argument of the "head" function was a list without specifying a type for the elements of the list. In Haskell we would write: head :: [a] -> a meaning head has type function from "list of a" to "a" where "a" is a type variable). This is known as parametric polymorphism. Polymorphic typing allows strong type checking as well as generic functions. ML in 1976 was the first language with polymorphic typing. See also generic type variable.
parasexual reproduction — reproduction by recombination of genes from genetically dissimilar nuclei within binucleate or multinucleate cells, as in filamentous fungi.
parliamentary candidate — sb standing for election to government
parliamentary democracy — a system of government in which people elect representatives to a parliament to make laws, for example Canada and the UK
parliamentary secretary — government minister's assistant
particulate inheritance — the inheritance of discrete characters via genes that are independently expressed without the blending of characters from one generation to the next.
pay one's last respects — If you pay your last respects to someone who has just died, you show your respect or affection for them by coming to see their body or their grave.
pentachloronitrobenzene — a crystalline compound, C 6 Cl 5 NO 2 , used as an herbicide and insecticide. Abbreviation: PCNB.
pentagonal dodecahedron — pyritohedron.
performance-related pay — salary based on individual assessment
peroxymonosulfuric acid — persulfuric acid (def 1).
pest control department — the local government department responsible for controlling such pests as rats and mice
pharmaceuticals company — a company specialising in developing and marketing pharmaceuticals
photoelectric magnitude — the magnitude of a star determined using a photometer plus a filter to select light or other radiation of the desired wavelength
physical memory address — physical address
plan position indicator — a radarscope on which an object reflecting radar waves shows its bearing and distance from the radar detector by causing a spot of light to appear on a screen that represents a map of the area around the detector. Abbreviation: PPI.
play by electronic mail — (games) A kind of game where the players use electronic mail to communicate. This may be done via a human moderator or an automatic mailing list exploder on some central machine or it may be fully distributed with each player just addressing his mail to all other players. This is a natural extension of "play by mail" games conducted via snail mail.
political incorrectness — Political incorrectness is the attitude or policy shown by someone who does not care if they offend or upset any group of people in society who have a disadvantage, or who have been treated differently because of their sex, race, or disability.
polymethyl methacrylate — polymerized methyl methacrylate.
portable object adapter — (architecture) (POA) Part of the CORBA architecture.
portable tool interface — (programming, standard) (PTI) A standard such as PCTE, allowing interworking between different software tools via defined interfaces to the user and to the repository or object management system.
praxis critical systems — (company) The company that supplies SPARK.
precautionary principle — the precept that an action should not be taken if the consequences are uncertain and potentially dangerous
preclinical safety data — Preclinical safety data is information about the safety of a medication that is assessed before clinical trials.
price escalation clause — a clause in a contract allowing the seller to raise prices if the cost of inputs increases
print services facility — (printer) (PSF) IBM's system software which generates native IBM printer language, IPDS and, depending on the version, PostScript and LaserJet PCL. See also: Advanced Function Presentation.
printer access protocol — (networking, protocol, printer) (PAP) A protocol used in Mac OS Appletalk to provide bi-directional communication between PostScript printers and the client computer.
private limited company — a company whose shares can be bought by the public
probabilistic automaton — nondeterministic automaton
process hazard analysis — Process hazard analysis is calculating what might be a hazard in a process, how likely it is to happen, and what should be done if someone or something is exposed to this hazard.
professional misconduct — a violation of the rules or boundaries set by the governing body of a profession
profit and loss account — income account (def 2).
public-key cryptography — public-key encryption
puerto rican royal palm — a feather palm, Roystonea borinquena, of Puerto Rico and St. Croix, having leaves about 10 feet (3 meters) long and egg-shaped, yellowish-brown fruit.
quantum electrodynamics — the quantum field theory that deals with the electromagnetic field and its interaction with electrons and positrons. Abbreviation: QED.
quantum flavourdynamics — a gauge theory of the electromagnetic and weak interactions
quay financial software — CSK Software
queen charlotte islands — a group of about 150 islands off the W coast of Canada: part of British Columbia. Pop: about 6000 (latest est). Area: 9596 sq km (3705 sq miles)
radial drilling machine — a machine in which the drilling head is mounted to slide along a radial arm which can be rotated, raised, or lowered on a vertical mast to adjust the position of the drill above the workpiece
rate-of-climb indicator — a flight instrument that indicates the rate of climb or descent of an aircraft.
real simple syndication — (spelling) Illiterate form of Really Simple Syndication.
rectangular coordinates — Usually, rectangular coordinates. either of two Cartesian coordinates in which the axes meet at right angles.
red-bellied black snake — a highly venomous Australian black snake, Pseudechis porphyriacus, with a reddish underside
refuse disposal service — a place or facility where rubbish and waste can be disposed
reincarnation, cycle of — cycle of reincarnation
relative molecular mass — the sum of all the relative atomic masses of the atoms in a molecule; the ratio of the average mass per molecule of a specified isotopic composition of a substance to one-twelfth the mass of an atom of carbon-12

Was this page helpful?

Yes No

Thank you for your feedback! Tell your friends about this page

Tell us why?