16-letter words containing d, e, s, a
- odds are against — If you say that the odds are against something or someone, you mean that they are unlikely to succeed.
- oligosaccharides — Plural form of oligosaccharide.
- on a world scale — in a way that involves the whole world
- on her beam-ends — (of a vessel) heeled over through an angle of 90°
- on the beam-ends — tipping so far to the side as to be in danger of capsizing
- on the safe side — as a precaution
- one and the same — When two or more people or things are thought to be separate and you say that they are one and the same, you mean that they are in fact one single person or thing.
- one's salad days — If you refer to your salad days, you are referring to a period of your life when you were young and inexperienced.
- orange men's day — July 12, an annual celebration in Northern Ireland and certain cities having a large Irish section, especially Liverpool, to mark both the victory of William III over James II at the Battle of the Boyne, July 1, 1690, and the Battle of Augbrim, July 12, 1690.
- ostend manifesto — a declaration (1854) issued from Ostend, Belgium, by the U.S. ministers to England, France, and Spain, stating that the U.S. would be justified in seizing Cuba if Spain did not sell it to the U.S.
- padded shoulders — (on a garment) shoulders lined, stuffed, or filled out with soft material, esp in order to give them a higher or wider shape
- paediatric nurse — a nurse who specializes in the care of children
- panel discussion — a formal discussion before an audience for which the topic, speakers, etc., have been selected in advance.
- parts of lindsey — an area in E England constituting a former administrative division of Lincolnshire
- pass-band filter — band-pass filter
- passage to india — a novel (1924) by E. M. Forster.
- pays de la loire — a region of W France, on the Bay of Biscay: generally low-lying, drained by the River Loire and its tributaries; agricultural
- pearls of wisdom — good advice, wise words
- pelagian islands — a group of Italian islands (Lampedusa, Linosa, and Lampione) in the Mediterranean, between Tunisia and Malta. Pop: 6066 (2004 est). Area: about 27 sq km (11 sq miles)
- pelagic division — the biogeographic realm or zone that comprises the open seas and oceans, including water of all depths.
- pentothal sodium — thiopental sodium
- personal details — details about a person such as their name and address
- persulfuric acid — Also called Caro's acid, permonosulfuric acid, peroxymonosulfuric acid, peroxysulfuric acid. a white, crystalline solid, H 2 SO 5 , used as an oxidizing agent for certain organic compounds.
- phase difference — the difference between two sinusoidally varying quantities that have the same frequency, measured either as an angle or a time
- phase modulation — radio transmission in which the carrier wave is modulated by changing its phase to transmit the amplitude and pitch of the signal.
- physical address — (memory management) The address presented to a computer's main memory in a virtual memory system, in contrast to the virtual address which is the address generated by the CPU. A memory management unit translates virtual addresses into physical addresses.
- pico de sao tome — an island in the Gulf of Guinea, off the W coast of Gabon, just N of the equator: the larger component of the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe. 318 sq. mi. (824 sq. km).
- picture postcard — postcard (def 1).
- piece d'occasion — something prepared or used for a special occasion.
- pierce's disease — a disease of grapes caused by a rickettsialike organism, characterized by dwarfing of vines, mottling of woody tissues, and plant death.
- pins and needles — a tingly, prickly sensation in a limb that is recovering from numbness.
- play one's cards — to carry out one's plans; take action (esp in the phrase play one's cards right)
- pleased as punch — the chief male character in a Punch-and-Judy show.
- pocket billiards — pool2 (def 1).
- poisoned chalice — If you refer to a job or an opportunity as a poisoned chalice, you mean that it seems to be very attractive but you believe it will lead to failure.
- polycondensation — formation of a polymer by chemical condensation with the elimination of a small molecule, such as water.
- ponderosa (pine) — a yellow pine (Pinus ponderosa) of W North America, valued for its timber
- portuguese india — a former Portuguese overseas territory on the W coast of India, consisting of the districts of Gôa, Daman, and Diu: annexed by India December 1961. Capital: Gôa.
- posigrade rocket — an auxiliary rocket used to separate the sections of a multistage rocket, fired in the direction of flight.
- potassium iodide — a white, crystalline, water-soluble powder, KI, having a bitter saline taste: used chiefly in the manufacture of photographic emulsions, as a laboratory reagent, in the preparation of Gram's solution for biological staining, and in medicine as an expectorant and to treat thyroid conditions.
- predispositional — the fact or condition of being predisposed: a predisposition to think optimistically.
- prescription pad — a pad of prescriptions used by doctors, etc
- pressure-treated — (of wood) treated with a chemical or chemicals applied under pressure to reduce such problems as insect infestation, decay, and rotting.
- prestidigitation — sleight of hand; legerdemain.
- preunderstanding — to perceive the meaning of; grasp the idea of; comprehend: to understand Spanish; I didn't understand your question.
- price leadership — the setting of the price of a product or service by a dominant firm at a level that competitors can match, in order to avoid a price war
- printer's reader — a person employed to read proofs and indicate errors
- pseudo-isidorian — of or relating to the collection of documents of the 9th century a.d. that consist chiefly of the Decretals, attributed to Isidore, archbishop of Seville, a.d. 600–36, and that were rejected as spurious in the 15th century.
- pseudo-patriotic — of, like, suitable for, or characteristic of a patriot.
- pseudo-political — of, relating to, or concerned with politics: political writers.