16-letter words containing c, l, e, f
- federal district — a district in which the national government of a country is located, especially one in Latin America.
- feedback control — (electronics) A control system which monitors its effect on the system it is controlling and modifies its output accordingly. For example, a thermostat has two inputs: the desired temperature and the current temperature (the latter is the feedback). The output of the thermostat changes so as to try to equalise the two inputs. Computer disk drives use feedback control to position the read/write heads accurately on a recording track. Complex systems such as the human body contain many feedback systems that interact with each other; the homeostasis mechanisms that control body temperature and acidity are good examples.
- feel constrained — If you feel constrained to do something, you feel that you must do it, even though you would prefer not to.
- feel-good factor — When journalists refer to the feel-good factor, they mean that people are feeling hopeful and optimistic about the future.
- ferroelectricity — (physics) The electric polarization of a substance (spontaneous presence of a dipole moment) that is analagous to ferromagnetism.
- fertile crescent — an agricultural region extending from the Levant to Iraq.
- fertility clinic — a place at which a couple who are unable to conceive may receive medical advice and treatments to help them to have a child
- fertility factor — a sex-determining chromosome or gene.
- feulgen reaction — a reaction in which an aldehyde combines with a modified Schiff's reagent to produce a purplish compound: used especially to test for the presence of DNA
- field dependence — a psychological trait associated with having an external locus of orientation (contrasted with field independence).
- fielder's choice — a fielder's attempt to put out a base runner rather than the batter when a play at first base would put out the batter.
- file composition — A typesetting language.
- file compression — (algorithm) The compression of data in a file, usually to reduce storage requirements.
- filter cigarette — a cigarette with a filter tip
- firewall machine — (networking, security) A dedicated gateway server with special security precautions on it, used to service external connections (typically from the public Internet). The firewall machine protects servers and networks hidden behind it from crackers. The typical firewall is an inexpensive microprocessor-based Unix machine with no critical data, with public network ports on it, but just one carefully watched connection back to the rest of the cluster. The special precautions may include threat monitoring, call-back, and even a complete iron box keyable to particular incoming IDs or activity patterns. The type of network and security environment of a firewall machine is often called a De-Militarised Zone (DMZ). It may contain other servers such as e-mail servers or proxy gateways - machines that need to be publicly accessible but also need some access to internal systems. Also known as a (Venus) flytrap after the insect-eating plant.
- flame cultivator — an implement that kills weeds by scorching them with a directed flow of flaming gas.
- flat-bed scanner — a type of optical scanner having a flat, stationary surface on which a page is scanned by a moving head.
- flathead catfish — a yellow and brown catfish, Pylodictus olivaris, common in the central U.S., having a flattened head and a projecting lower jaw.
- flettner control — servocontrol (def 3).
- florencio varela — a city in E Argentina, near Buenos Aires.
- floridean starch — the storage polysaccharide of red algae.
- flowering quince — any shrub belonging to the genus Chaenomeles, of the rose family, native to eastern Asia, having showy, waxy flowers and a quincelike fruit, grown widely as an ornamental.
- fluorescent lamp — a tubular electric discharge lamp in which light is produced by the fluorescence of phosphors coating the inside of the tube.
- flying ambulance — an aircraft used to take sick or injured people to hospital
- follicular phase — a stage of the menstrual cycle, from onset of menstruation to ovulation.
- follow the crowd — copy what others are doing
- food intolerance — an intolerance of a specific type of food, causing an adverse reaction
- football special — a train service provided specially to transport football supporters to and from a match
- for all sb cares — You can use for all I care to emphasize that it does not matter at all to you what someone does.
- four-course meal — A four-course meal is a meal that consists of four parts served one after the other.
- four-leaf clover — a clover leaf having four leaflets instead of the usual three, purported to bring good luck.
- franchise clause — a clause stipulating that the insured will be responsible for any loss not in excess of a stated amount, and the insurance company will be liable for full payment of the loss equaling or exceeding the amount up to the insured amount.
- francis of sales — Saint, 1567–1622, French ecclesiastic and writer on theology: bishop of Geneva 1602–22.
- franco-provencal — a Romance dialect group of western Switzerland and neighboring parts of France: closely related to both Provençal and northern French.
- frederic mistral — Frédéric [frey-dey-reek] /freɪ deɪˈrik/ (Show IPA), 1830–1914, French Provençal poet: Nobel prize 1904.
- french polynesia — a French overseas territory in the S Pacific, including the Society Islands, Marquesas Islands, and other scattered island groups. 1544 sq. mi. (4000 sq. km). Capital: Papeete.
- french telephone — handset (def 1).
- friction welding — a method of welding thermoplastics or metals by the heat generated by rubbing the members to be joined against each other under pressure.
- friedrich engels — Friedrich [free-drikh] /ˈfri drɪx/ (Show IPA), 1820–95, German socialist in England: collaborated with Karl Marx in systematizing Marxism.
- friedrich wohler — Friedrich [free-drikh] /ˈfri drɪx/ (Show IPA), 1800–82, German chemist.
- friendly society — law: mutual group providing benefits
- frigate mackerel — a small, blue-green, black-striped fish, Auxis thazard, abundant in tropical seas, having dark, oily flesh that is sometimes used as food.
- fuel consumption — use of a material to generate power
- full court press — Basketball. a tactic of harassing, close-guarding defense in which the team without the ball pressures the opponent man-to-man the entire length of the court in order to disrupt dribbling or passing and force a turnover: Suddenly behind by eighteen points, they went to a full-court press.
- full-court press — Basketball. a tactic of harassing, close-guarding defense in which the team without the ball pressures the opponent man-to-man the entire length of the court in order to disrupt dribbling or passing and force a turnover: Suddenly behind by eighteen points, they went to a full-court press.
- functional water — water containing additives that provide extra nutritional value
- functionlessness — The quality or state of being functionless.
- fundamentalistic — Fundamentalist.
- funeral director — a person, usually a licensed embalmer, who supervises or conducts the preparation of the dead for burial and directs or arranges funerals.
- gas liquefaction — Gas liquefaction is the process of refrigerating a gas to a temperature that is below its critical temperature in order to form a liquid.