27-letter words containing f, e, r, d
- rufus daniel isaacs reading — Rufus Daniel Isaacs, 1st Marquis of, 1860–1935, Lord Chief Justice of England 1913–21; viceroy of India 1921–26.
- seasonal affective disorder — recurrent winter depression characterized by oversleeping, overeating, and irritability, and relieved by the arrival of spring or by light therapy. Abbreviation: SAD.
- soft-coated wheaten terrier — one of an Irish breed of medium-sized sporting terriers having an abundant, soft, medium-length coat, any shade of wheat in color, with its head and face profusely covered with coat.
- someone's side of the story — If someone tells you their side of the story, they tell you why they behaved in a particular way and why they think they were right, when other people think that person behaved wrongly.
- stanford research institute — Former name of SRI International.
- supreme court of judicature — an English court formed in 1873 from several superior courts and consisting of a court of original jurisdiction (High Court of Justice) and an appellate court (Court of Appeal)
- the hunchback of notre dame — French Notre Dame de Paris. a novel (1831) by Victor Hugo.
- the long and (the) short of — the whole story of in a few words; gist or point of
- the odds are in sb's favour — If you say that the odds are in someone's favour, you mean that they are likely to succeed in what they are doing.
- third law of thermodynamics — any of three principles variously stated in equivalent forms, being the principle that the change of energy of a thermodynamic system is equal to the heat transferred minus the work done (first law of thermodynamics) the principle that no cyclic process is possible in which heat is absorbed from a reservoir at a single temperature and converted completely into mechanical work (second law of thermodynamics) and the principle that it is impossible to reduce the temperature of a system to absolute zero in a finite number of operations (third law of thermodynamics)
- third party, fire and theft — insurance, esp car insurance, which provides protection against fire and theft as well as protection against liability caused by accidental injury or death of other persons or damage to their property
- to fall over yourself to do — If you say that people are falling over themselves to do something, you mean that they are very enthusiastic about doing it, and often that you disapprove of this.
- to fight a rearguard action — if someone is fighting a rearguard action or mounting a rearguard action, they are trying very hard to prevent something from happening, even though it is probably too late for them to succeed
- to give someone a free hand — If someone gives you a free hand, they give you the freedom to use your own judgment and to do exactly as you wish.
- to give your word of honour — to solemnly promise
- weapons of mass destruction — nuclear, biological and chemical arms
- wernicke-korsakoff syndrome — a disorder of the central nervous system characterized by abnormal eye movements, incoordination, confusion, and impaired memory and learning functions, caused by thiamine deficiency, and observed in chronic alcoholism.
- wirehaired pointing griffon — griffon2 (def 2).
- working families tax credit — (in Britain) a means-tested allowance paid to single parents or families who have at least one dependent child, who work at least 16 hours per week, and whose earnings are low. It replaced family credit
- yeoman of the (royal) guard — a member of a ceremonial guard for the British royal family, made up traditionally of 100 men