20-letter words containing f, i, o, n
- magnification factor — the size of a magnified image of an object divided by the size of the object itself
- make a/no difference — If something makes a difference or makes a lot of difference, it affects you and helps you in what you are doing. If something makes no difference, it does not have any effect on what you are doing.
- master of ceremonies — a person who directs the entertainment at a party, dinner, nightclub, radio or television broadcast, or the like, acting as host and introducing the speakers or performers. Abbreviation: M.C., MC.
- member of parliament — A Member of Parliament is a person who has been elected by the people in a particular area to represent them in a country's parliament. The abbreviation MP is often used.
- microsoft networking — (networking) Microsoft's name for the networking subsystems of Windows 95 and later. Not to be confused with The Microsoft Network. Microsoft networking uses the SMB file sharing protocol. It is implemented as file system drivers i.e. "installable file systems" (IFS). The network redirector "Client for Microsoft Networks", is implemented in the VREDIR.VXD virtual device driver. Peer resource sharing is provided by "File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks" (VSERVER.VXD). Windows 95's support for Netware (NCP) networks is provided in a similar way via NWREDIR.VXD and NWSERVER.VXD.
- modify a reservation — If you modify a reservation, you change a detail of a booking because someone who has booked a room has asked you to.
- molybdenum disulfide — a black crystalline powder, MoS 2 , insoluble in water, used as a lubricant and as a hydrogenation catalyst.
- morning glory family — the plant family Convulvulaceae, characterized by twining herbaceous vines, shrubs, and trees having alternate, simple, or compound leaves, funnel-shaped, often showy flowers, and fruit in the form of a berry or capsule, and including bindweed, dodder, moonflower, morning glory, and sweet potato.
- most general unifier — (logic) If U is the most general unifier of a set of expressions then any other unifier, V, can be expressed as V = UW, where W is another substitution. See also unification.
- most significant bit — (MSB) Bit n-1 in an n bit binary number, the bit with the greatest weight (2^(n-1)). The first or leftmost bit when the number is written in the usual way.
- no lack of something — If you say there is no lack of something, you are emphasizing that there is a great deal of it.
- normal magnification — the magnification produced by a telescope or microscope such that the diameter of the exit pupil of the instrument is equal to the diameter of the pupil of the eye.
- north atlantic drift — an ocean current flowing NE toward the British Isles, formed by the convergence of the Gulf Stream and the Labrador Current SE of Newfoundland.
- 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.
- norwegian forest cat — a breed of long-haired cat with a long bushy tail and a long mane
- occupation franchise — the right of a tenant to vote in national and local elections
- of no/little account — If you say that something is of no account or of little account, you mean that it is very unimportant and is not worth considering.
- off-the-job training — training which is carried out away from your normal place of work
- olfactory anesthesia — absence or loss of the sense of smell.
- on (or off) the air — that is (or is not) broadcasting or being broadcast
- on the shady side of — beyond (a given age); older than
- on the sunny side of — younger than (a specified age)
- order bill of lading — a bill of lading that is issued to the order of a shipper or consignee for delivery of the goods and that can be transferred by endorsement to third parties.
- ostensive definition — the definition of a term by pointing to one or more examples to which the term can be applied.
- paper qualifications — qualifications gained through official examinations, etc, rather than through experience
- pappus of alexandria — 3rd century bc, Greek mathematician, whose eight-volume Synagoge is a valuable source of information about Greek mathematics
- patagonian toothfish — a large food fish, Dissostichus eleginoides, found in the cold deep waters of the southern Atlantic and Indian oceans
- peaceful coexistence — competition without war, or a policy of peace between nations of widely differing political systems and ideologies, especially between Communist and non-Communist nations: peaceful coexistence between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.
- period of revolution — a rather large interval of time that is meaningful in the life of a person, in history, etc., because of its particular characteristics: a period of illness; a period of great profitability for a company; a period of social unrest in Germany.
- permonosulfuric acid — persulfuric acid (def 1).
- pest control officer — a person who gets rid of pests such as rats and mice
- piezomagnetic effect — the production of a magnetic field by applying a mechanical stress to certain crystals
- 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.
- pledge of allegiance — a solemn oath of allegiance or fidelity to the U.S., beginning, “I pledge allegiance to the flag,” and forming part of many flag-saluting ceremonies in the U.S.
- polymorphic function — a function in a computer program that can deal with a number of different types of data
- portfolio employment — the practice of working for several employers simultaneously rather than working full-time for a single employer
- potential difference — voltage
- power of appointment — the authority granted by a donor to a donee to select the person or persons who are to enjoy property rights or income upon the death of the donor or of the donee or after the termination of existing rights or interests.
- pride of the morning — light mist or precipitation observed at sea in the morning and regarded as indicating a fine day.
- probability function — the function the values of which are probabilities of the distinct outcomes of a discrete random variable
- proof of the pudding — the true value or quality of something, as seen when it is experienced, tried, or put to use: The proof of the pudding for a business is what customers say about it.
- put one's foot in it — (in vertebrates) the terminal part of the leg, below the ankle joint, on which the body stands and moves.
- 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.
- queen of the prairie — a tall plant, Filipendula rubra, of the rose family, having branching clusters of pink flowers, growing in meadows and prairies.
- radio interferometer — any of several different types of instrumentation designed to observe interference patterns of electromagnetic radiation at radio wavelengths: used in the discovery and measurement of radio sources in the atmosphere.
- rapid reaction force — a force that can be deployed swiftly to a site of conflict or potential conflict
- recursive definition — a definition consisting of a set of rules such that by repeated application of the rules the meaning of the definiendum is uniquely determined in terms of ideas that are already familiar.
- reflecting telescope — an optical instrument for making distant objects appear larger and therefore nearer. One of the two principal forms (refracting telescope) consists essentially of an objective lens set into one end of a tube and an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses set into the other end of a tube that slides into the first and through which the enlarged object is viewed directly; the other form (reflecting telescope) has a concave mirror that gathers light from the object and focuses it into an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses through which the reflection of the object is enlarged and viewed. Compare radio telescope.
- refracting telescope — an optical instrument for making distant objects appear larger and therefore nearer. One of the two principal forms (refracting telescope) consists essentially of an objective lens set into one end of a tube and an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses set into the other end of a tube that slides into the first and through which the enlarged object is viewed directly; the other form (reflecting telescope) has a concave mirror that gathers light from the object and focuses it into an adjustable eyepiece or combination of lenses through which the reflection of the object is enlarged and viewed. Compare radio telescope.
- refuse disposal unit — a unit or part of a sink that disposes of waste food, etc, by grinding