16-letter words containing e, f, l, o
- error of closure — the amount by which a computed, plotted, or observed quantity or position differs from the true or established one, esp when plotting a closed traverse
- exemplifications — Plural form of exemplification.
- exhaust manifold — An exhaust manifold is a heat-resistant tube that connects an engine to an exhaust pipe.
- eyjafjallajökull — a cone-shaped ice cap in south Iceland that covers an active volcano. The volcano’s eruption in 2010 resulted in large high-altitude clouds of volcanic ash that caused major disruption to European passenger air traffic. Height: 1666 m (5466 ft)
- false beechdrops — either of two parasitic or saprophytic plants of the genus Monotropa, especially the tawny or reddish M. hypopithys (false beechdrops) of eastern North America.
- false dragonhead — a North American plant, Physostegia virginiana, of the mint family, having a spike of tubular, two-lipped, pink or white flowers.
- family allowance — a regular government payment to the parents of children up to a certain age
- family of curves — a collection of curves whose equations differ only by values assigned a parameter or parameters.
- farewell to arms — a novel (1929) by Ernest Hemingway.
- fast of gedaliah — Tzom Gedaliah.
- 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.
- fellow passenger — a person travelling on the same vehicle, plane, ship etc as you
- fellow traveller — a companion on a journey
- feme-sole trader — a married woman who is entitled to carry on business on her own account and responsibility, independently of her husband.
- fend for oneself — to manage by oneself; get along without help
- ferroelectricity — (physics) The electric polarization of a substance (spontaneous presence of a dipole moment) that is analagous to ferromagnetism.
- ferrous sulphate — an iron salt with a saline taste, usually obtained as greenish crystals of the heptahydrate, which are converted to the white monohydrate above 100°C: used in inks, tanning, water purification, and in the treatment of anaemia. Formula: FeSO4
- fertility factor — a sex-determining chromosome or gene.
- fertility symbol — an object, esp a phallic symbol, used in fertility-cult ceremonies to symbolize regeneration
- 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
- 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.
- fill one's boots — to take or do as much of something as one wants
- filter promotion — (algorithm) In a generate and test algorithm, combining part of the filter with the generator in order to reduce the number of potential solutions generated. A trivial example: filter (< 100) [1..1000] ==> [1..99] where [1..n] generates the list of integers from 1 to n. Here the filter has been combined completely with the generator. This is an example of fusion.
- find one's level — to find one's most suitable place socially, professionally, etc
- finless porpoise — a porpoise Neophocaena phocaenoides of the Indian and pacific Oceans that completely lacks a dorsal fin
- fire regulations — rules intended to make sure that people and property stay safe in the event of a fire
- fire-tube boiler — any boiler for generating steam by passing hot gases and other combustible products through tubes (fire tubes) immersed in water to a chimney or uptake.
- firework display — a public event at which fireworks are set alight
- fit like a glove — fit perfectly
- flabbergastation — (colloquial) Bewildered shock or surprise; the state or condition of being flabbergasted.
- flamborough head — a chalk promontory in NE England, on the coast of the East Riding of Yorkshire
- flame cultivator — an implement that kills weeds by scorching them with a directed flow of flaming gas.
- flash eliminator — a device fitted to the muzzle of a firearm to reduce the flash made by the ignited propellant gases
- flashbulb memory — the clear recollections that a person may have of the circumstances associated with a dramatic event
- flat-bed plotter — a mechanized drafting device, usually computer driven, incorporating a moving pen whose horizontal and vertical range in two dimensions is limited only by the size of the bed of the device.
- flatheaded borer — the larva of a metallic wood-boring beetle, having an expanded and flattened anterior end.
- flettner control — servocontrol (def 3).
- florencio varela — a city in E Argentina, near Buenos Aires.
- floridean starch — the storage polysaccharide of red algae.
- flower arranging — Flower arranging is the art or hobby of arranging cut flowers in a way which makes them look attractive.
- 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.
- flutter tonguing — a method of sounding a wind instrument, esp the flute, with a rolling movement of the tongue
- follicular phase — a stage of the menstrual cycle, from onset of menstruation to ovulation.
- follow the crowd — copy what others are doing
- follow-my-leader — a game in which the players must repeat the actions of the leader