20-letter words containing d, i, a, t
- nondirective therapy — client-centered therapy.
- noninstitutionalized — Not institutionalized.
- nonrepeating decimal — a decimal representation of any irrational number, having the property that no sequence of digits is repeated ad infinitum.
- north atlantic drift — an ocean current flowing NE toward the British Isles, formed by the convergence of the Gulf Stream and the Labrador Current SE of Newfoundland.
- north canadian river — a river in NE New Mexico, E Texas, and E Oklahoma, flowing SE to the Canadian River. 760 miles (1223 km) long.
- north richland hills — a town in N Texas.
- northern white cedar — any of several chiefly coniferous trees valued for their wood, especially Chamaecyparis thyoides, of the eastern U.S., or Thuja occidentalis (northern white cedar) of northeastern North America.
- nostalgie de la boue — a desire for or attraction to crudity, vulgarity, depravity, etc.
- notre dame mountains — a mountain range in E Quebec, Canada, an extension of the Green Mountains in Vermont and a portion of the Appalachian Mountains: about 500 miles (800 km) long, rising about 2000 feet (610 meters).
- occupational disease — Also called industrial disease. a disease caused by the conditions or hazards of a particular occupation.
- ode to a nightingale — a poem (1819) by Keats.
- officer of the guard — an officer, acting under the officer of the day, who is responsible for the instruction, discipline, and performance of duty of the guard in a post, camp, or station. Abbreviation: OG, O.G.
- omega-3 (fatty acid) — a type of polyunsaturated fatty acid in fish oil, shellfish, soybeans, etc., linked to low cholesterol and low LDL levels
- on the drawing board — in the planning stage
- on the shady side of — beyond (a given age); older than
- one's heart's desire — If you say that someone or something is your heart's desire, you mean that you want that person or thing very much.
- operant conditioning — conditioning (def 1).
- operating conditions — Operating conditions are a set of conditions for operating a particular system or process.
- operational database — (database) A database containing up-to-date, modifiable data, in contrast to a decision support database.
- operator overloading — overloading
- optical mark reading — the reading of marks by an optical device whereby the information can be stored in machine-readable form
- orthopaedic mattress — a specially firm mattress designed to help correct or ameliorate the discomfort of disorders of the spine and joints
- orthophosphoric acid — a colorless, crystalline solid, H 3 PO 4 , the tribasic acid of pentavalent phosphorus: used chiefly in fertilizers, as a source of phosphorus salts, and in soft drinks as an acidulant and flavoring agent.
- oxyacetylene welding — welding using an oxyacetylene burner
- paint the town (red) — to go on a boisterous spree; carouse
- parallel of altitude — almucantar.
- parallel of latitude — parallel (def 9).
- parataxic distortion — a distortion in perception, especially of interpersonal relationships, based on a tendency to perceive others in accordance with a pattern determined by previous experiences.
- partial differential — an expression obtained from a given function of several variables by taking the partial derivative with respect to one of the variables and multiplying by the increment in that variable.
- partitioned data set — (file format) (PDS) A data set on an IBM mainframe that contains members, each of which acts like a separate data set. Partitioned data sets are more space-efficient than individual data sets, because they can put more than one data set on a track. They are also used to hold libraries, with one function per member. The syntax for a member is NAME.OF.PDS(MEMBER) although some systems (such as Phoenix) could use NAME.OF.PDS:MEMBER Original PDSes were of fixed size, and needed frequent compression to recover space after deleting or changing members. Newer PDS/E Extended PDSes do not have this problem.
- pass the time of day — to exchange casual greetings (with an acquaintance)
- pedal steel (guitar) — a steel guitar mounted on legs and equipped with pedals that serve as an additional means of changing pitch
- pentobarbital sodium — a barbiturate drug used in medicine as a sedative and hypnotic. Formula: C11H17N2O3Na
- pentose nucleic acid — a nucleic acid containing a pentose.
- periarteritis nodosa — polyarteritis.
- periodontal membrane — the collagenous, fibrous connective tissue between the cementum of the tooth and the alveolus.
- perpendicular gothic — the style of Gothic architecture in England during the 14th and 15th centuries, characterized by tracery having vertical lines, a four-centred arch, and fan vaulting
- personality disorder — any of a group of mental disorders characterized by deeply ingrained maladaptive patterns of behavior and personality style, which are usually recognizable as early as adolescence and are often lifelong in duration.
- phenyldiethanolamine — a white, crystalline, slightly water-soluble substance, C 1 0 H 1 5 NO 2 , used in the manufacture of dyes and in organic synthesis.
- physical double star — two stars that appear as one if not viewed through a telescope with adequate magnification, such as two stars that are separated by a great distance but are nearly in line with each other and an observer (optical double star) or those that are relatively close together and comprise a single physical system (physical double star)
- pleased with oneself — If someone seems very satisfied with something they have done, you can say that they are pleased with themselves, especially if you think they are more satisfied than they should be.
- possessive adjective — See at possessive (def 4a).
- postal delivery zone — zone (def 10).
- postnatal depression — a form of clinical depression that occurs in mothers after the birth of a baby
- potassium dichromate — an orange-red crystalline soluble solid substance that is a good oxidizing agent and is used in making chrome pigments and as a bleaching agent. Formula: K2Cr2O7
- potential difference — voltage
- pound cost averaging — a method of accumulating capital by investing a fixed sum in a particular security at regular intervals, in order to achieve an average purchase price below the arithmetic average of the market prices on the purchase dates
- predicate nominative — (in Latin, Greek, and certain other languages) a predicate noun or adjective in the nominative case.
- presidential primary — a direct primary for the selection of state delegates to a national party convention and the expression of preference for a U.S. presidential nominee.
- price discrimination — the practice of offering identical goods to different buyers at different prices, when the goods cost the same.