12-letter words containing f, e, c
- free coinage — the unrestricted coinage of bullion or of a specified metal, as silver, into money for any person bringing it to the mint, either with or without charge for minting.
- free company — a band of free companions.
- free radical — an atom or molecule that bears an unpaired electron and is extremely reactive, capable of engaging in rapid chain reactions that destabilize other molecules and generate many more free radicals: in the body, deactivated by antioxidants, uric acid, and certain enzyme activities.
- free-cutting — (of a metal alloy) having good machinability: free-cutting steel.
- french bread — a yeast-raised bread made of dough containing water and distinguished by its thick, well-browned crust, usually made in long, slender, tapered loaves. Compare baguette (def 3).
- french broad — a river in W North Carolina and E Tennessee, flowing N and NW to join the Holston River at Knoxville to form the Tennessee River. 210 miles (338 km) long.
- french chalk — a talc for marking lines on fabrics.
- french congo — former name of the People's Republic of the Congo.
- french curve — a flat drafting instrument, usually consisting of a sheet of clear plastic, the edges of which are cut into several scroll-like curves enabling a draftsperson to draw lines of varying curvature.
- french doors — a door having glass panes throughout or nearly throughout its length.
- french drain — a drainage trench filled to ground level with fragments of brick, rock, etc.
- french franc — the former standard monetary unit of France, most French dependencies, Andorra, and Monaco, divided into 100 centimes; replaced by the euro in 2002
- french fries — thin fried sticks of potato
- french india — the five small former French territories in India, including Chandernagor, Karikal, Pondicherry, and Yanaon on the E coast, and Mahé on the W coast.
- french leave — Sometimes Offensive. a departure without ceremony, permission, or notice: Taking French leave, he evaded his creditors.
- french pleat — curtain, draperies
- french shore — either of two stretches of coastline inhabited mainly by Francophone Canadians: the W coast of Newfoundland and the SW coast of Nova Scotia between Yarmouth and Digby.
- french sixth — (in musical harmony) an augmented sixth chord having a major third and an augmented fourth between the root and the augmented sixth
- french stick — a long straight notched stick loaf
- french sudan — former name of Mali.
- french toast — bread dipped in a batter of egg and milk and sautéed until brown, usually served with syrup or sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon.
- french twist — French roll.
- french union — a former association of France and its overseas territories, colonies, and protectorates as constituted in 1946: superseded by the French Community in 1958.
- french-style — French-cut.
- frenetically — In a frenetic manner.
- fresco secco — the technique of painting in watercolors on dry plaster. Also called dry fresco, secco. Compare fresco (def 1).
- fricasseeing — Present participle of fricassee.
- frictionless — surface resistance to relative motion, as of a body sliding or rolling.
- friend-court — amicus curiae.
- frog sticker — Slang. a knife, especially one carried as a weapon.
- frog-sticker — Slang. a knife, especially one carried as a weapon.
- frolicsomely — In a frolicsome manner.
- frondescence — the process or period of putting forth leaves, as a tree, plant, or the like.
- front office — the executive or administrative office of a company, organization, etc.
- frontbencher — (politics) one who sits on the front bench in a parliament. Typically the spokesmen for those who sit further back.
- frontispiece — an illustrated leaf preceding the title page of a book.
- fructiferous — fruit-bearing; producing fruit.
- fructosamine — (organic compound) A chemical compound that can be considered the result of a reaction between fructose and ammonia or an amine (with a molecule of water being released).
- fruit-picker — a person or a tool that picks fruit from trees
- fudge factor — any variable component added to an experiment, plan, or the like that can be manipulated to allow leeway for error.
- fujita scale — a scale for expressing the intensity of a tornado, ranging from F0 (light damage) to F5 (incredible damage)
- full-service — offering or providing a wide range of services related to the basic line of business, as when a filling station changes tires or makes car repairs in addition to selling gasoline.
- fumariaceous — belonging to the plant family Fumariaceae.
- function key — a key on a computer keyboard or terminal that, when pressed, alone or in combination with other keys, causes a specific computational or mechanical operation to be carried out.
- functionable — functional (def 3).
- functionless — Lacking a function.
- fundusectomy — (surgery) The surgical removal of the fundus of an organ, such as the uterus or the stomach.
- funnel cloud — a rapidly rotating funnel-shaped cloud extending downward from the base of a cumulonimbus cloud, which, if it touches the surface of the earth, is a tornado or waterspout.
- furfuraceous — of or containing bran.
- furnace room — a room containing a furnace or an enclosed chamber for producing heat, often on the bottom floor of the building that it heats