17-letter words containing i, w
- celebrity wedding — a wedding of famous people, usually reported at length in celebrity magazines
- character witness — a witness in a trial who testifies to the accused's general good character rather than providing evidence about the specific offence which has led to him or her being on trial
- circassian walnut — the hard, heavy, brown or purplish wood of the English walnut
- circle the wagons — to take defensive action; prepare for an attack: from arranging a wagon train in a circular formation
- circuit switching — (communications) Communication via a single dedicated path between the sender and receiver. The telephone system is an example of a circuit switched network. The term connection-oriented is used in packet-based networks in contrast to connectionless communication or packet switching.
- classical pathway — the activation of complement by an antigen-antibody reaction. Compare alternative pathway.
- close to the wind — sailing as nearly as possible towards the direction from which the wind is blowing
- closing-down sale — a sale held to clear stock from a shop that is ceasing to operate
- cocktail waitress — a woman who serves in a bar or cocktail lounge
- consolidated laws — a body of laws collected together in a single codifying statute
- contingent worker — a temporary or contract worker, especially one hired for one task or project.
- cromwellian chair — an upright oaken chair, often with arms, having all pieces turned and a seat and back panel of leather or cloth attached with brass-headed nails.
- crown corporation — a corporation owned by the federal or a provincial government
- cryptic crossword — a crossword where each clue is a word puzzle
- darwinian fitness — fitness (def 3).
- darwinian-fitness — health.
- data flow diagram — (programming) A graphical notation used to describe how data flows between processes in a system. Data flow diagrams are an important tool of most structured analysis techniques.
- dead in the water — If you say that someone or something is dead in the water, you are emphasizing that they have failed, and that there is little hope of them being successful in the future.
- deepwater horizon — an offshore oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico, 40 miles (64km) south-east off the coast of Louisiana, that suffered a massive oil spill following an explosion in April 2010
- diocletian window — a window in the form of a round-headed archway with a narrower compartment on either side, the side compartments usually being capped with entablatures on which the arch of the central compartment rests.
- do your own thing — If you do your own thing, you live, act, or behave in the way you want to, without paying attention to convention or depending on other people.
- down in the dumps — If you are down in the dumps, you are feeling very depressed and miserable.
- down-in-the-mouth — glum
- downward mobility — movement from one social level to a higher one (upward mobility) or a lower one (downward mobility) as by changing jobs or marrying.
- downwardly mobile — See under vertical mobility (def 1).
- downwardly-mobile — See under vertical mobility (def 1).
- dress-down friday — In some companies employees are allowed to wear clothes that are less smart than usual on a Friday. This day is known as a dress-down Friday.
- drive to the wall — to force into an awkward situation
- drive up the wall — to cause to become crazy or furious
- drive-by download — an incidence of an unwanted program being automatically downloaded to a computer, often without the user's knowledge
- dull as dishwater — water in which dishes are, or have been, washed.
- dutch west indies — a Netherlands overseas territory in the Caribbean Sea, N and NE of Venezuela; includes the islands of Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, and St. Eustatius, and the S part of St. Martin: considered an integral part of the Dutch realm. 366 sq. mi. (948 sq. km). Capital: Willemstad.
- east renfrewshire — a council area of W central Scotland, comprising part of the historical county of Renfrewshire; part of Strathclyde region from 1975 to 1996: chiefly agricultural and residential. Administrative centre: Giffnock. Pop: 89 680 (2003 est). Area: 173 sq km (67 sq miles)
- eastern townships — an area of central Canada, in S Quebec: consists of 11 townships south of the St Lawrence
- edward fitzgerald — Edward, 1809–83, English poet: translator of drama and poetry, especially of Omar Khayyám.
- equivalent weight — the weight of an element or compound that will combine with or displace 8 grams of oxygen or 1.007 97 grams of hydrogen
- explosion welding — the welding of two parts forced together by a controlled explosion
- find fault (with) — to seek and point out faults (of); complain (about); criticize
- fish out of water — any of various cold-blooded, aquatic vertebrates, having gills, commonly fins, and typically an elongated body covered with scales.
- five-spice powder — a mixture of spices used especially in Chinese cooking, usually including cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, pepper, and star anise.
- flowering currant — an ornamental shrub, Ribes sanguineum, growing to 2 to 3 metres (6 to 9ft) in height, with red, crimson, yellow, or white flowers: family Saxifragaceae
- flowering dogwood — a North American dogwood tree, Cornus florida, having small greenish flowers in the spring, surrounded by white or pink bracts that resemble petals: the state flower and the state tree of Virginia.
- flowering tobacco — any plant belonging to the genus Nicotiana, of the nightshade family, as N. alata and N. sylvestris, having clusters of fragrant flowers that usually bloom at night, grown as an ornamental.
- forward quotation — the price quoted on a forward delivery.
- frederick william — 1795–1861, king of Prussia 1840–61 (brother of William I of Prussia).
- freewill offering — a voluntary religious contribution made in addition to what may be expected or required.
- freight forwarder — a person or firm that arranges to pick up or deliver goods on instructions of a shipper or a consignee from or to a point by various necessary conveyances and common carriers.
- front-wheel drive — a drive system in which engine power is transmitted through the front wheels only.
- funicular railway — a short, very steep railway having two parallel sets of tracks, upon each of which runs a car or train raised or lowered by means of a cable that simultaneously lowers or raises the other car or train in such a way that the two are approximately counterbalanced.
- furbish lousewort — any plant belonging to the genus Pedicularis, of the figwort family, as the wood betony, formerly supposed to cause lice in sheep feeding on it: one species, P. furbishiae (Furbish lousewort) of parts of Maine and New Brunswick, Canada, having finely toothed leaves and a cluster of yellow flowers, is endangered and was thought to be extinct until specimens were discovered in 1946 and again in 1976.