21-letter words containing i, s, r

the probation service — a criminal justice service that is mainly responsible for dealing with offenders by placing them under the supervision of a probation officer
the shipping forecast — a radio broadcast made by the BBC of weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the British Isles
the stars and stripes — the national flag of the United States of America, consisting of 50 white stars representing the present states on a blue field and seven red and six white horizontal stripes representing the original states
the stationery office — (in the UK) the company that supplies the civil service with all its office supplies, machinery, printing and binding, etc
the supreme sacrifice — the sacrifice of one's life
the throwaway society — a society full of excessive consumption and waste of food, products, etc
theater of operations — the part of the theater of war, including a combat zone and a communications zone, that is engaged in military operations and their support.
theoretical physicist — a scientist who studies theoretical physics
there's nothing to it — If you say 'There's nothing to it', 'There's not much to it', or 'That's all there is to it', you are emphasizing how simple you think something is.
thermal decomposition — Thermal decomposition is the process in which a chemical species breaks down when its temperature is increased.
thermal power station — a power station in which heat is converted into electricity
third-party insurance — insurance that compensates for a loss to a party other than the insured for which the insured is liable.
threshold wage policy — a policy whereby wages are increased in accordance with inflation
throw one's hat at it — to give up all hope of getting or achieving something
to be arrayed against — to be opposed to
to be in dire straits — to be in a position of acute difficulty
to cross your fingers — If you cross your fingers, you put one finger on top of another and hope for good luck. If you say that someone is keeping their fingers crossed, you mean they are hoping for good luck.
to have green fingers — If someone has green fingers, they are very good at gardening and their plants grow well.
to lay something bare — If you lay something bare, you uncover it completely so that it can then be seen.
to mix your metaphors — If you mix your metaphors, you use two conflicting metaphors. People do this accidentally, or sometimes deliberately as a joke.
to rear its ugly head — If something unpleasant rears its head or rears its ugly head, it becomes visible or noticeable.
to risk life and limb — If someone risks life and limb, they do something very dangerous that may cause them to die or be seriously injured.
to rub shoulders with — If you rub shoulders with famous people, you meet them and talk to them. You can also say that you rub elbows with someone, especially in American English.
to shoot from the hip — If you say that someone shoots from the hip or fires from the hip, you mean that they react to situations or give their opinion very quickly, without stopping to think.
to sink without trace — If you say that someone or something sinks without trace or sinks without a trace, you mean that they stop existing or stop being successful very suddenly and completely.
to sow your wild oats — If a young person sows their wild oats, they behave in a rather uncontrolled way, especially by having a lot of sexual relationships.
to stick in your mind — If something sticks in your mind, it remains firmly in your memory.
to stick to your guns — If you stick to your guns, you continue to have your own opinion about something even though other people are trying to tell you that you are wrong.
toussaint l'ouverture — François Dominique [frahn-swa dawmee-neek] /frɑ̃ˈswa dɔmiˈnik/ (Show IPA), 1743–1803, Haitian patriot and leader of the Haitian Revolution slave rebellion.
trades union congress — The Trades Union Congress in Britain is the same as the TUC.
trans-alaska pipeline — a pipeline system opened in 1977 that transports oil 800 miles (1300 km) across Alaska, from Prudhoe Bay on the North Slope S to Valdez harbor.
transactinide element — any element having an atomic number higher than 103, the last of the actinide series. These superheavy, radioactive elements are extremely short-lived, and can only be created in the laboratory.
transformational rule — Linguistics. a rule of transformational grammar that relates two phrase markers in the course of a derivation from the deep to the surface syntactic representation of a sentence, as by reordering, inserting, or deleting elements; a rule that converts deep structures into surface structures.
transport segregation — Transport segregation is when particles from a mixture separate because the mixture vibrates while it is being moved.
traveling salesperson — a representative of a business firm who travels in an assigned territory soliciting orders for a company's services.
triangulation station — a point used in triangulation as a basis for making maps. Triangulation stations are marked in a number of ways, such as by a tapering stone pillar on a hilltop
triple superphosphate — superphosphate (def 2).
triple-superphosphate — Also called acid phosphate. a mixture of calcium acid phosphate and calcium sulfate prepared by treating phosphate rock with sulfuric acid: used chiefly as a fertilizer.
trustee in bankruptcy — a person appointed by a court to administer the property of a bankrupt.
tubercular meningitis — an infection of the membranes of the central nervous system caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis; features can include fever, headache, and coma
tumor necrosis factor — a protein, produced in humans and other animals, that is destructive to cells showing abnormally rapid growth: identical with cachectin. Abbreviation: TNF.
turn queen's evidence — (of an accomplice) to act as witness for the prosecution and testify against those associated with him or her in crime
turn state's evidence — If someone who is accused of a crime turns state's evidence, they agree to give evidence in a law court against another person such as a former accomplice, usually in exchange for a reduced sentence for themselves.
two-point perspective — a mathematical system for representing three-dimensional objects and space on a two-dimensional surface by means of intersecting lines that are drawn vertically and horizontally and that radiate from one point (one-point perspective) two points (two-point perspective) or several points on a horizon line as perceived by a viewer imagined in an arbitrarily fixed position.
uk overseas territory — any of the territories that are governed by the UK but lie outside the British Isles; many were formerly British crown colonies: includes Bermuda, Falkland Islands, and Montserrat
ulster unionist party — a Northern Irish political party advocating the maintenance of union with the UK
ultraviolet astronomy — the branch of astronomy that deals with celestial objects emitting electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet range.
undesirable discharge — a discharge under other than honorable conditions of a person from military service by administrative action.
uniform business rate — a local tax in the UK paid by businesses, based on a local valuation of their premises and a rate fixed by central government that applies throughout the country
uniform resource name — (web) (URN, previously Uniform/Universal Resource Number) 1. Any URI which is not a URL. 2. A particular scheme which is currently (1991-4) under development by the IETF, which should provide for the resolution using Internet protocols of names which have a greater persistence than that currently associated with Internet host names or organisations (as used in URLs). Uniform Resource Names will be URI schemes that improve on URLs in reliability over time, including authenticity, replication, and high availability. When defined, a URN in sense 1 will be an example of a URN in sense 2.

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