20-letter words containing f, i, l, h, e
- justifiable homicide — murder committed under extenuating circumstances
- kill the fatted calf — the young of the domestic cow or other bovine animal.
- last of the mohicans — a historical novel (1826) by James Fenimore Cooper.
- let someone off with — to give (a light punishment) to someone
- liberty of the press — freedom of the press.
- life-support machine — A life-support machine is the equipment that is used to keep a person alive when they are very ill and cannot breathe without help.
- lifetime achievement — the notable successes that someone achieves during their life
- lighthouse coffeepot — a coffeepot of the late 17th and 18th centuries, having a tapering, circular body with a domed lid.
- like a house on fire — If two people get on like a house on fire, they quickly become close friends, for example because they have many interests in common.
- liturgy of the hours — a revision (promulgated in 1970) of the arrangement and texts of the Divine Office
- make head or tail of — to attempt to understand (a problem, etc)
- member of the public — a member of the general population
- no lack of something — If you say there is no lack of something, you are emphasizing that there is a great deal of it.
- northern leaf blight — a disease of corn caused by the fungus Exsherohilum turcicum, characterized by elongate tan-gray elliptical spots with subsequent blighting and necrosis of leaves.
- olfactory anesthesia — absence or loss of the sense of smell.
- order of the thistle — an ancient Scottish order of knighthood revived by James VII of Scotland in 1687. It consists of the sovereign, 16 knights brethren, and extra members created by statute. It is the equivalent of the Order of the Garter, and is usually conferred on Scots
- photoelectric effect — the phenomenon in which the absorption of electromagnetic radiation, as light, of sufficiently high frequency by a surface, usually metallic, induces the emission of electrons from the surface.
- 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.
- quantum field theory — any theory in which fields are treated by the methods of quantum mechanics; each field can then be regarded as consisting of particles of a particular kind, which may be created and annihilated.
- ring of the nibelung — Richard Wagner's tetralogy of music dramas: Das Rheingold (completed 1869), Die Walküre (completed 1870), Siegfried (completed 1876), and Götterdämmerung (completed 1876): the cycle was first performed at Bayreuth, 1876.
- sb's future lies swh — If you say that someone's future lies in a particular place or activity, you think they will be most successful or happy in that place or doing that activity.
- see the light of day — come into being
- see with half an eye — the organ of sight, in vertebrates typically one of a pair of spherical bodies contained in an orbit of the skull and in humans appearing externally as a dense, white, curved membrane, or sclera, surrounding a circular, colored portion, or iris, that is covered by a clear, curved membrane, or cornea, and in the center of which is an opening, or pupil, through which light passes to the retina.
- spiral of archimedes — a curve that is the locus of a point that moves outward with uniform speed along a vector, beginning at the origin, while the vector rotates about the origin with uniform angular velocity. Equation (in polar coordinates): r = aθ.
- split the difference — the state or relation of being different; dissimilarity: There is a great difference between the two.
- strike off the rolls — to expel from membership
- the beautiful people — rich, fashionable people in international high society
- the legal profession — the profession of law
- the like(s) of which — If you refer to something the like of which or the likes of which has never been seen before, you are emphasizing how important, great, or noticeable the thing is.
- theory of relativity — relativity (def 2).
- there is no call for — If you say that there is no call for someone to behave in a particular way, you are criticizing their behaviour, usually because you think it is rude.
- theresa of avila, st — Saint. Also, Teresa. Also called Theresa of Avila [ah-vee-lah] /ˈɑ viˌlɑ/ (Show IPA), 1515–82, Spanish Carmelite nun, mystic, and writer.
- thorn in one's flesh — a sharp excrescence on a plant, especially a sharp-pointed aborted branch; spine; prickle.
- to shake like a leaf — If you say that someone is shaking like a leaf, you mean that their body is shaking a lot, for instance because they are very cold or frightened.
- twilight of the gods — Götterdämmerung.
- unified field theory — electroweak theory.
- until further notice — If a situation is said to exist until further notice, it will continue for an uncertain length of time until someone changes it.
- uranium hexafluoride — a colorless, water-insoluble, crystalline, volatile solid, UF 6 , used in its gaseous state in separating uranium 235 from uranium.
- viscount northcliffe — Viscount, Alfred Charles William Harmsworth.
- war of the rebellion — American Civil War.
- warehouse facilities — places for storing goods
- white-flowered gourd — the hard-shelled fruit of any of various plants, especially those of Lagenaria siceraria (white-flowered gourd or bottle gourd) whose dried shell is used for bowls and other utensils, and Cucurbita pepo (yellow-flowered gourd) used ornamentally. Compare gourd family.
- white-fringed beetle — any of several weevils of the genus Graphognathus, native to South America and now of southeastern and mid-Atlantic U.S., whose larvae feed on roots and cause serious damage to a wide variety of plants.
- whole-life insurance — a type of insurance with a savings element that is guaranteed to pay out on death provided premiums have been paid as required by the policy
- whyte classification — a system for classifying steam locomotives according to the total number of wheels on the front trucks, drivers, and rear trucks, in that order. For example, a Pacific locomotive is designated as 4-6-2.
- yu-shiang whole fish — /yoo-shyang hohl fish/ An obsolete name for the Greek character gamma (extended SAIL ASCII code 9, Unicode glyph 0x0263) which with a loop in its tail looks like a little fish swimming down the page. The term is actually the name of a Chinese dish in which a fish is cooked whole (not parsed) and covered with Yu-Shiang (or Yu-Hsiang) sauce. Used primarily by people on the MIT LISP Machine, which could display this character on the screen. Tends to elicit incredulity from people who hear about it second-hand.