15-letter words containing f, a, l, e, r
- simple fracture — a fracture in which the bone does not pierce the skin.
- snafu principle — /sna'foo prin'si-pl/ [WWII Army acronym for "Situation Normal: All Fucked Up"] "True communication is possible only between equals, because inferiors are more consistently rewarded for telling their superiors pleasant lies than for telling the truth." - a central tenet of Discordianism, often invoked by hackers to explain why authoritarian hierarchies screw up so reliably and systematically. The effect of the SNAFU principle is a progressive disconnection of decision-makers from reality. This lightly adapted version of a fable dating back to the early 1960s illustrates the phenomenon perfectly: In the beginning was the plan, and then the specification; And the plan was without form, and the specification was void. And darkness was on the faces of the implementors thereof; And they spake unto their leader, saying: "It is a crock of shit, and smells as of a sewer." And the leader took pity on them, and spoke to the project leader: "It is a crock of excrement, and none may abide the odor thereof." And the project leader spake unto his section head, saying: "It is a container of excrement, and it is very strong, such that none may abide it." The section head then hurried to his department manager, and informed him thus: "It is a vessel of fertilizer, and none may abide its strength." The department manager carried these words to his general manager, and spoke unto him saying: "It containeth that which aideth the growth of plants, and it is very strong." And so it was that the general manager rejoiced and delivered the good news unto the Vice President. "It promoteth growth, and it is very powerful." The Vice President rushed to the President's side, and joyously exclaimed: "This powerful new software product will promote the growth of the company!" And the President looked upon the product, and saw that it was very good. After the subsequent disaster, the suits protect themselves by saying "I was misinformed!", and the implementors are demoted or fired.
- soft-shell crab — a crab, especially the blue crab, that has recently molted and therefore has a soft, edible shell.
- spanish trefoil — alfalfa.
- special feature — an article differing from the normal format and focusing on a particular topic
- starfish flower — carrion flower (def 2).
- streamline flow — the flow of a fluid past an object such that the velocity at any fixed point in the fluid is constant or varies in a regular manner.
- strike the flag — to relinquish command, esp of a ship
- subprofessional — being below professional standards: subprofessional health care.
- sunflower state — Kansas (used as a nickname).
- superficialness — being at, on, or near the surface: a superficial wound.
- sylvian fissure — lateral fissure.
- tentaculiferous — having tentacles
- tetrafunctional — pertaining to molecules or groups that can bond at four sites.
- the black ferns — the women's international Rugby Union football team of New Zealand
- the rule of law — the principle that no one is above the law and that everyone must follow the law
- theatrical film — a film made for exhibition in theaters, as distinguished from one made for television.
- track and field — athletics events
- track-and-field — of, relating to, or participating in the sports of running, pole-vaulting, broad-jumping, etc.: a track-and-field athlete.
- transfer lounge — the place in an airport where you wait for a transfer from one flight to another
- transferability — to convey or remove from one place, person, etc., to another: He transferred the package from one hand to the other.
- tray classifier — A tray classifier is a tank for leaching from a dispersed solid, in which pulp at the bottom of the tank is raked (= moved to the exit) while solvent is forced toward the bottom of the tank.
- trifluoperazine — a compound, C 21 H 24 F 3 N 3 S, used as an antipsychotic.
- true-false test — a test requiring one to mark statements as true or false.
- ultracentrifuge — a high-speed centrifuge for subjecting sols or solutions to forces many times that of gravity and producing concentration differences depending on the weight of the micelle or molecule.
- ultramicrofiche — ultrafiche.
- unfamiliarities — not familiar; not acquainted with or conversant about: to be unfamiliar with a subject.
- uninformatively — in an uninformative manner
- unverifiability — the quality or state of being unverifiable
- valerian family — the plant family Valerianaceae, characterized by herbaceous plants and shrubs having simple or compound, opposite leaves, clusters of small flowers, and dry, indehiscent fruit, and including corn salad, spikenard (Nardostachys jatamansi), and valerian.
- velcro fastener — a fastener made of Velcro
- venus's-flytrap — a carnivorous plant, Dionaea muscipula, native to bogs of North and South Carolina, having roundish leaves with two lobes that close like a trap when certain delicate hairs on them are irritated, as by a fly: the range is now reduced, though the plants are still locally abundant.
- viral infection — disease caused by a virus
- wager of battle — (in medieval Britain) a pledge to do battle for a cause, esp to decide guilt or innocence by single combat
- waterfall model — (programming) A software life-cycle or product life-cycle model, described by W. W. Royce in 1970, in which development is supposed to proceed linearly through the phases of requirements analysis, design, implementation, testing (validation), integration and maintenance. The Waterfall Model is considered old-fashioned or simplistic by proponents of object-oriented design which often uses the spiral model instead. Earlier phases are sometimes called "upstream" and later ones "downstream". Compare: iterative model.
- waterford glass — fine cut or gilded glass made in Waterford, Ireland, having a slight blue cast due to the presence of cobalt.
- welfare officer — a person who gives people help and advice
- welfare statism — the belief in or practices of a welfare state.
- well-formulated — to express in precise form; state definitely or systematically: He finds it extremely difficult to formulate his new theory.
- wolf-rayet star — a very hot (35,000–100,000 K) and luminous star in the early stages of evolution, with broad emission lines in its spectrum.
- wrongful arrest — the act of arresting someone without proper reason