17-letter words containing n, s, p
- organ-pipe cactus — a treelike or columnar cactus, Lemaireocereus marginatus, of Mexico, having a central, erect spine surrounded by spreading spines in clusters of five to eight, and funnel-shaped, brownish-purple flowers.
- organic psychosis — a severe mental illness produced by damage to the brain, as a result of poisoning, alcoholism, disease, etc
- organophosphorous — Misspelling of organophosphorus.
- origin of species — (On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life) a treatise (1859) by Charles Darwin setting forth his theory of evolution.
- over-compensation — a pronounced striving to neutralize and conceal a strong but unacceptable character trait by substituting for it an opposite trait.
- pacific northwest — the region of North America lying north of the Columbia River and west of the Rockies
- paleoconservative — a person advocating an older, traditional type of conservatism, especially in politics.
- papanicolaou test — Pap test.
- paradise regained — an epic poem (1671) by John Milton.
- parallel universe — Physics. any of a hypothetical collection of undetectable universes that are like our known universe but have branched off from our universe due to a quantum-level event. See also multiverse.
- paralysis agitans — Parkinson's disease
- paratungstic acid — an oxyacid acid of tungsten. Formula: H10W12O14
- parents anonymous — (in Britain) an association of local voluntary self-help groups offering help through an anonymous telephone service to parents who fear they will injure their children, or who have other problems in managing their children
- parmesan (cheese) — a very hard, dry cheese orig. of Italy, made from skimmed cow's milk and usually grated for sprinkling on pasta, soups, etc.
- particle kinetics — Particle kinetics is the study of the movement of particles and the forces that cause this movement.
- parts of kesteven — an area in E England constituting a former administrative division of Lincolnshire
- parts per million — the number of units (of a substance) present in a million units of another substance
- pascal's triangle — a triangular arrangement of the binomial coefficients of the expansion (x + y) n for positive integral values of n.
- pashmina politics — the adoption of political policies immediately after they have gone out of fashion
- passenger station — a station used by passengers
- passenger traffic — number of passengers
- passive obedience — unquestioning obedience to authority
- passive restraint — a safety device, as an air bag or special seat belt, that is activated automatically to protect an automobile passenger at the moment of impact when a collision occurs.
- pasteur institute — an organization in Paris that was founded in 1887. It does research on micro-organisms and diseases
- pasteur treatment — Pasteur's method of preventing certain diseases, esp. rabies, by increasing the strength of successive inoculations with a specific weakened or attenuated virus
- pastoral symphony — the Symphony No. 6 in F major (1807–08) by Ludwig van Beethoven.
- paternalistically — the system, principle, or practice of managing or governing individuals, businesses, nations, etc., in the manner of a father dealing benevolently and often intrusively with his children: The employees objected to the paternalism of the old president.
- pay someone's way — to pay someone's share of the expenses
- paymaster general — a government minister responsible for making payments by government departments
- peaches and cream — If you say that a woman or a girl has a peaches and cream complexion, you mean that she has very clear, smooth, pale skin.
- pecorino (cheese) — an Italian cheese made of sheep's milk; specif., such a cheese that is dry, sharp, and very hard
- peloponnesian war — a war between Athens and Sparta, 431–404 b.c., that resulted in the transfer of hegemony in Greece from Athens to Sparta.
- penalty shoot-out — In football, a penalty shoot-out is a way of deciding the result of a game that has ended in a draw. Players from each team try to score a goal in turn until one player fails to score and their team loses the game.
- penitential psalm — any of the Psalms (the 6th, 32nd, 38th, 51st, 102nd, 130th, and 143rd) that give expression to feelings of penitence and that are used in various Christian liturgical services.
- pension provision — the provision of a pension by the state or an employer
- peppermint spirit — a green or colorless alcoholic solution of the volatile oil produced by the peppermint leaf, used as a carminative and flavoring agent.
- percussion bullet — a bullet that is exploded by percussion
- performance bonus — a monetary bonus paid to staff who have performed well in their job
- performance drugs — the drugs that are taken illegally by athletes to enhance their sporting performance
- periodic sentence — a sentence that, by leaving the completion of its main clause to the end, produces an effect of suspense, as in Unable to join the others at the dance because of my sprained ankle, I went to a movie.
- peripheral vision — all that is visible to the eye outside the central area of focus; side vision.
- permanent address — a fixed address
- pernicious anemia — Pernicious anemia is a very severe blood disease.
- perpetual spinach — a variety of spinach that keeps producing edible leaves
- persistent memory — non-volatile storage
- persona non grata — a person who is not welcome: He has become persona non grata in our club since his angry outburst.
- personal computer — a compact computer that uses a microprocessor and is designed for individual use, as by a person in an office or at home or school, for such applications as word processing, data management, financial analysis, or computer games. Abbreviation: PC.
- personal distance — personal space.
- personal equation — the tendency to personal bias that accounts for variation in interpretation or approach and for which allowance must be made.
- personal property — an estate or property consisting of movable articles both corporeal, as furniture or jewelry, or incorporeal, as stocks or bonds (distinguished from real property).