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15-letter words containing c, l, a, s, p

  • simplicidentate — belonging or pertaining to the Simplicidentata, formerly regarded as a suborder or division of rodents having only one pair of upper incisor teeth.
  • slap and tickle — sexual play
  • snafu principle — /sna'foo prin'si-pl/ [WWII Army acronym for "Situation Normal: All Fucked Up"] "True communication is possible only between equals, because inferiors are more consistently rewarded for telling their superiors pleasant lies than for telling the truth." - a central tenet of Discordianism, often invoked by hackers to explain why authoritarian hierarchies screw up so reliably and systematically. The effect of the SNAFU principle is a progressive disconnection of decision-makers from reality. This lightly adapted version of a fable dating back to the early 1960s illustrates the phenomenon perfectly: In the beginning was the plan, and then the specification; And the plan was without form, and the specification was void. And darkness was on the faces of the implementors thereof; And they spake unto their leader, saying: "It is a crock of shit, and smells as of a sewer." And the leader took pity on them, and spoke to the project leader: "It is a crock of excrement, and none may abide the odor thereof." And the project leader spake unto his section head, saying: "It is a container of excrement, and it is very strong, such that none may abide it." The section head then hurried to his department manager, and informed him thus: "It is a vessel of fertilizer, and none may abide its strength." The department manager carried these words to his general manager, and spoke unto him saying: "It containeth that which aideth the growth of plants, and it is very strong." And so it was that the general manager rejoiced and delivered the good news unto the Vice President. "It promoteth growth, and it is very powerful." The Vice President rushed to the President's side, and joyously exclaimed: "This powerful new software product will promote the growth of the company!" And the President looked upon the product, and saw that it was very good. After the subsequent disaster, the suits protect themselves by saying "I was misinformed!", and the implementors are demoted or fired.
  • social spending — the money that is spent on welfare payments
  • socialist party — a U.S. political party advocating socialism, formed about 1900 chiefly by former members of the Social Democratic Party and the Socialist Labor Party.
  • socio-political — Socio-political systems and problems involve a combination of social and political factors.
  • solipsistically — in a solipsistic manner
  • sophisticatedly — (of a person, ideas, tastes, manners, etc.) altered by education, experience, etc., so as to be worldly-wise; not naive: a sophisticated young socialite; the sophisticated eye of an experienced journalist.
  • space telescope — a satellite put in orbit around the earth and equipped with an extremely accurate reflecting telescope, cameras, etc.: it is designed to relay astronomical data to the earth
  • special edition — newspaper, magazine: extra issue
  • special effects — Usually, special effects. a video or audio illusion in film or other media, created with computer-generated images, prosthetic makeup, pyrotechnics, etc.
  • special feature — an article differing from the normal format and focusing on a particular topic
  • special library — a library maintained by an organization, as a business, association, or government agency, to collect materials and provide information of special relevance to the work of the organization.
  • special licence — a licence permitting a marriage to take place by dispensing with the usual legal conditions
  • special partner — a partner whose liability for the firm's debts is limited to the amount that partner has invested in the firm.
  • special session — a session, as of a legislature or council, called to meet in addition to those held regularly.
  • special student — a student who is not seeking a degree but enrols in a course, esp to gain academic credits
  • special subject — an area of knowledge in which someone specializes
  • speckle pattern — the visual appearance of a star as viewed through a large telescope, with irregularities caused by the distorting effect of local turbulence in the earth's atmosphere.
  • spectral series — a series of lines in the spectrum of light emitted by excited atoms of an element, each line being related to the others in the series by a simple numerical equation and identified with a particular energy level of an atom of the element.
  • spectrochemical — of, relating to, or utilizing the techniques of spectrochemistry.
  • spell a paddock — to give a field a rest period by letting it lie fallow
  • spermatoblastic — relating to a spermatoblast
  • spherical angle — an angle formed by arcs of great circles of a sphere.
  • splanchnopleure — the double layer formed by the association of the lower layer of the lateral plate of mesoderm with the underlying entoderm, which develops into the embryonic viscera.
  • spring-cleaning — a complete cleaning of a place, as a home, done traditionally in the spring of the year.
  • sprinkler dance — a celebratory dance in which participants extend one arm and shake it to imitate the action of a rotating water sprinkler
  • stereotypically — in a stereotypical manner
  • streptobacillus — any of various bacilli that form in chains.
  • sulphurous acid — an unstable acid produced when sulphur dioxide dissolves in water: used as a preservative for food and a bleaching agent. Formula: H2SO3
  • superficialness — being at, on, or near the surface: a superficial wound.
  • superplasticity — the phenomenon, exhibited by certain metals and alloys usually at high temperatures, of stretching to extreme lengths without breaking
  • superspecialist — a highly skilled specialist
  • surgical spirit — Surgical spirit is a liquid which is used to clean wounds or surgical instruments. It consists mainly of alcohol.
  • sycophantically — a self-seeking, servile flatterer; fawning parasite.
  • sympathetically — characterized by, proceeding from, exhibiting, or feeling sympathy; sympathizing; compassionate: a sympathetic listener.
  • symptomatically — pertaining to a symptom or symptoms.
  • symptomological — relating to symptomology
  • thalassographic — relating to thalassography
  • the black stump — an imaginary marker of the extent of civilization (esp in the phrase beyond the black stump)
  • the paralympics — a sporting event, modelled on the Olympic Games, held solely for disabled competitors
  • tricuspid valve — the valve, consisting of three triangular flaps of tissue between the right auricle and ventricle of the heart, that keeps blood from flowing back into the auricle.
  • turk's-cap lily — either of two lilies, Lilum martagon or L. superbum, having nodding flowers with the perianth segments rolled backward.
  • ultramicroscope — an instrument that uses scattering phenomena to detect the position of objects too small to be seen by an ordinary microscope.
  • ultramicroscopy — the use of the ultramicroscope.
  • unapostolically — in an unapostalic manner
  • uncomplaisantly — in an uncomplaisant manner
  • uncompromisable — that cannot or should not be compromised
  • undisciplinable — unable to be disciplined or controlled
  • unpeaceableness — the quality or state of being unpeaceable; quarrelsomeness
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