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17-letter words containing d, a, l, i, n

  • exception handler — Special code which is called when an exception occurs during the execution of a program. If the programmer does not provide a handler for a given exception, a built-in system exception handler will usually be called resulting in abortion of the program run and some kind of error indication being returned to the user. Examples of exception handler mechanisms are Unix's signal calls and Lisp's catch and throw.
  • exceptional child — a gifted child
  • falkland islander — a person from the Falkland Islands
  • falling diphthong — a diphthong in which the first of the two apparent vocalic elements is of greater stress or sonority and the second is of lesser stress or sonority, as in (ī), (ou), (oi), etc.
  • fear and loathing — (Hunter S. Thompson) A state inspired by the prospect of dealing with certain real-world systems and standards that are totally brain-damaged but ubiquitous - Intel 8086s, COBOL, EBCDIC, or any IBM machine except the Rios (also known as the RS/6000).
  • feint-ruled paper — writing paper with light horizontal lines printed across at regular intervals
  • financial adviser — A financial adviser is someone whose job it is to advise people about financial products and services.
  • find fault (with) — to seek and point out faults (of); complain (about); criticize
  • flagrante delicto — Law. in the very act of committing the offense.
  • floating dry dock — a dock that floats and can be lowered in the water for the entrance of a ship, and then raised for use as a dry dock
  • fluid lubrication — lubrication in which bearing surfaces are separated by an oil film sustained by the motion of the parts
  • folie de grandeur — a delusion of grandeur; megalomania.
  • fore-and-aft sail — any of various sails, as jib-headed sails, gaff sails, lugsails, lateen sails, spritsails, staysails, and jibs, that do not set on yards and whose normal position, when not trimmed, is in a fore-and-aft direction amidships.
  • fractal dimension — (mathematics)   A common type of fractal dimension is the Hausdorff-Besicovich Dimension, but there are several different ways of computing fractal dimension. Fractal dimension can be calculated by taking the limit of the quotient of the log change in object size and the log change in measurement scale, as the measurement scale approaches zero. The differences come in what is exactly meant by "object size" and what is meant by "measurement scale" and how to get an average number out of many different parts of a geometrical object. Fractal dimensions quantify the static *geometry* of an object. For example, consider a straight line. Now blow up the line by a factor of two. The line is now twice as long as before. Log 2 / Log 2 = 1, corresponding to dimension 1. Consider a square. Now blow up the square by a factor of two. The square is now 4 times as large as before (i.e. 4 original squares can be placed on the original square). Log 4 / log 2 = 2, corresponding to dimension 2 for the square. Consider a snowflake curve formed by repeatedly replacing ___ with _/\_, where each of the 4 new lines is 1/3 the length of the old line. Blowing up the snowflake curve by a factor of 3 results in a snowflake curve 4 times as large (one of the old snowflake curves can be placed on each of the 4 segments _/\_). Log 4 / log 3 = 1.261... Since the dimension 1.261 is larger than the dimension 1 of the lines making up the curve, the snowflake curve is a fractal. [sci.fractals FAQ].
  • french somaliland — a former name of Djibouti (def 1).
  • galapagos islands — a group of 15 islands in the Pacific west of Ecuador, of which they form a province: discovered (1535) by the Spanish; main settlement on San Cristóbal. Pop: 18 640 (2001). Area: 7844 sq km (3028 sq miles)
  • garden heliotrope — the common valerian, Valeriana officinalis, especially when cultivated as an ornamental.
  • general admission — an admission charge for unreserved seats at a theatrical performance, sports event, etc.
  • general discharge — a discharge from military service of a person who has served honorably but who has not met all the conditions of an honorable discharge.
  • generalized other — an individual's internalized impression of societal norms and expectations.
  • goldbeater's skin — the prepared outside membrane of the large intestine of the ox, used by goldbeaters to lay between the leaves of the metal while they beat it into gold leaf.
  • grand climacteric — Physiology. a period of decrease of reproductive capacity in men and women, culminating, in women, in the menopause.
  • grand union canal — a canal in S England linking London and the Midlands: opened in 1801
  • greater celandine — celandine (def 1).
  • green-winged teal — a small freshwater duck, Anas crecca, of Eurasia and North America, having an iridescent green speculum in the wing.
  • greenland halibut — a flatfish, Reinhardtius hippoglossoides, similar and related to the halibut
  • guardian ad litem — a person appointed by a court as guardian of an infant or other person to act on his or her behalf in a particular action or proceeding.
  • gunboat diplomacy — diplomatic relations involving the use or threat of military force, especially by a powerful nation against a weaker one.
  • haitian solenodon — a rare shrewlike nocturnal mammal of the Caribbean, Solenodon paradoxus, having a long hairless tail and an elongated snout: family Solenodontidae, order Insectivora (insectivores)
  • half-round chisel — a cold chisel with a semicircular cutting edge used for making narrow channels
  • hall of residence — Halls of residence are buildings with rooms or flats, usually built by universities or colleges, in which students live during the term.
  • hammer and sickle — the emblem of the Soviet Union, adopted in 1923 and consisting of an insignia of a hammer with its handle across the blade of a sickle and a star above.
  • haroun-al-raschid — Harun al-Rashid.
  • headline-grabbing — A headline-grabbing statement or activity is one that is intended to attract a lot of attention, especially from the media.
  • hillel foundation — a national organization, founded in 1924 by the B'nai B'rith, that institutes and administers programs designed to enrich the religious, cultural, and social life of Jewish college students.
  • hit the headlines — be prominently featured in the news
  • holding operation — a plan or procedure devised to prolong the existing situation
  • hollandaise sauce — a sauce of egg yolks, butter, lemon juice, and seasonings.
  • homeland security — national defence
  • homovanillic acid — the end product of dopamine metabolism, C 9 H 10 O 4 , found in human urine.
  • household ammonia — diluted ammonia, often having a small quantity of detergent, used in the home for cleaning.
  • how the land lies — the prevailing conditions or state of affairs
  • hypochondriacally — In a hypochondriacal manner.
  • i wouldn't say no — You use 'I wouldn't say no' to indicate that you would like something, especially something that has just been offered to you.
  • idiosyncratically — pertaining to the nature of idiosyncrasy, or something peculiar to an individual: The best minds are idiosyncratic and unpredictable as they follow the course of scientific discovery.
  • imitation doublet — a doublet formed entirely of glass.
  • in all likelihood — very probably
  • in broad daylight — openly, in full public view
  • in double harness — in a harness for two animals pulling the same carriage, plow, etc.
  • in-band signaling — in-band signalling
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