17-letter words containing c, o, n, s, a
- methyl isocyanate — Chemistry. a highly toxic, flammable, colorless liquid, CH 3 NCO, used as an intermediate in the manufacture of pesticides: in 1984, the accidental release of a cloud of this gas in Bhopal, India, killed more than 1700 people and injured over 200,000.
- mexican stand-off — A Mexican stand-off is a situation in which neither of the people or groups in a conflict or dispute can win and neither wants to give in first.
- microdermabrasion — A cosmetic treatment in which the face is sprayed with exfoliant crystals to remove dead epidermal cells.
- microdistillation — the distillation of minute quantities of material.
- microencapsulated — Encapsulated using microencapsulation.
- micromanipulators — Plural form of micromanipulator.
- miscellaneousness — Quality of being miscellaneous.
- miscommunications — Plural form of miscommunication.
- misidentification — to identify incorrectly.
- missing in action — If a member of the armed forces is missing in action, they have not returned from a battle, their body has not been found, and they are not thought to have been captured.
- monkeygland sauce — a piquant sauce, made from tomatoes, ketchup, fruit chutney, garlic, spices, etc
- monolith catalyst — A monolith catalyst is a type of catalyst whose surface is flat.
- mont-saint-michel — a rocky islet near the coast of NW France, in an inlet of the Gulf of St. Malo: famous abbey and fortress.
- moon and sixpence — a novel (1919) by W. Somerset Maugham.
- morphic resonance — the idea that, through a telepathic effect or sympathetic vibration, an event or act can lead to similar events or acts in the future or an idea conceived in one mind can then arise in another
- mountain sickness — illness caused by being at high altitude
- mountain viscacha — the mountain chinchilla
- munitions factory — a factory where munitions are made
- muscae volitantes — floater (def 6).
- nakhon ratchasima — a city in central Thailand.
- nasolacrimal duct — a membranous canal extending from the lacrimal sac to the nasal cavity, through which tears are discharged into the nose.
- national security — defence of a country
- nationalist china — China, Republic of.
- nationalistically — In a nationalistic manner.
- natural harmonics — harmonics of a note produced on a stringed instrument by lightly touching an open or unstopped sounded string.
- natural resources — a naturally occurring source of wealth, as land or water.
- natural selection — the process by which forms of life having traits that better enable them to adapt to specific environmental pressures, as predators, changes in climate, or competition for food or mates, will tend to survive and reproduce in greater numbers than others of their kind, thus ensuring the perpetuation of those favorable traits in succeeding generations.
- natural-resources — a naturally occurring source of wealth, as land or water.
- neo-scholasticism — a contemporary application of Scholasticism to modern problems and life.
- neuropsychiatrist — A medical doctor specializing in neuropsychiatry; a medical doctor dealing with disorders that have both neurological and psychiatric features.
- new scotland yard — See under Scotland Yard (def 1).
- nicholas bourbaki — the pseudonym of a group of mainly French mathematicians that, since 1939, has been producing a monumental work on advanced mathematics, Eléments de Mathématique
- nikolaus von cusa — Nicholas (def 1).
- nitrogen narcosis — a semistupor, lightheadedness, or euphoria experienced by deep-sea divers when nitrogen from air enters the blood at higher than atmospheric pressure.
- non-consideration — the act of considering; careful thought; meditation; deliberation: I will give your project full consideration.
- non-controversial — of, relating to, or characteristic of controversy, or prolonged public dispute, debate, or contention; polemical: a controversial book.
- non-discretionary — subject or left to one's own discretion.
- non-instructional — the act or practice of instructing or teaching; education.
- non-materialistic — excessively concerned with physical comforts or the acquisition of wealth and material possessions, rather than with spiritual, intellectual, or cultural values.
- non-stereotypical — a process, now often replaced by more advanced methods, for making metal printing plates by taking a mold of composed type or the like in papier-mâché or other material and then taking from this mold a cast in type metal.
- non-thermoplastic — soft and pliable when heated, as some plastics, without any change of the inherent properties.
- nonaccomplishment — Something that does not achieve the intended goal.
- nonconstitutional — of or relating to the constitution of a state, organization, etc.
- nondiscriminating — differentiating; analytical.
- nondiscrimination — an act or instance of discriminating, or of making a distinction.
- nondiscriminatory — characterized by or showing prejudicial treatment, especially as an indication of bias related to age, color, national origin, religion, sex, etc.: discriminatory practices in housing; a discriminatory tax.
- nonteaching staff — employees within an academic or vocational environment whose jobs do not involve teaching
- not mince matters — to speak frankly
- nuclear isomerism — isomerism (def 2).
- nuclear threshold — the point in war at which a combatant brings nuclear weapons into use