18-letter words containing n, s, r
- water stick insect — a slender sticklike flightless water bug, Ranatra linearis, that is predatory on small creatures such as water fleas
- watson-crick model — a widely accepted model for the three-dimensional structure of DNA, featuring a double-helix configuration for the molecule's two hydrogen-bonded complementary polynucleotide strands.
- weberian apparatus — (in certain fishes) a chain of small bones and ligaments connecting the inner ear with the air bladder.
- wernicke's aphasia — a type of aphasia caused by a lesion in Wernicke's area of the brain and characterized by grammatical but more or less meaningless speech and an apparent inability to comprehend speech.
- west-northwestward — moving, bearing, facing, or situated toward the west-northwest.
- western alienation — a feeling of resentment by some inhabitants of western Canada against perceived favouritism by the national government towards the eastern provinces
- western hemisphere — the western part of the terrestrial globe, including North and South America, their islands, and the surrounding waters.
- western isles pony — a breed of large pony, typically grey, with a dense waterproof coat. The only surviving variety is the Eriskay pony
- western meadowlark — any of several American songbirds of the genus Sturnella, of the family Icteridae, especially S. magna (eastern meadowlark) and S. neglecta (western meadowlark) having a brownish and black back and wings and a yellow breast, noted for their clear, tuneful song.
- westinghouse brake — a railroad air brake operated by compressed air.
- wheelchair housing — housing designed or adapted for a chairbound person
- whispering gallery — a space or gallery beneath a dome or broad arch in which low sounds produced at any of certain points are clearly audible at certain other distant points.
- white iron pyrites — marcasite
- white man's burden — the alleged duty of white colonizers to care for nonwhite indigenous subjects in their colonial possessions.
- wild passionflower — the maypop, Passiflora incarnata.
- wildlife sanctuary — an area where wild animals and plants are protected
- wilson's phalarope — a phalarope, Phalaropus tricolor, that breeds in the prairie regions of North America and winters in Argentina and Chile.
- wind river systems — (company) A company founded in 1981, now a world leader in embedded systems, providing real-time operating systems and development tools. Wind River's development tools enable customers to standardise designs across projects and quickly develop feature-rich products. Wind River Systems employs over 500 people worldwide (1998). Service and support is provided through its U.S. headquarters and overseas operations in the U.K., France, Germany, Scandinavia and Japan. Address: Alameda, California, USA.
- winged everlasting — a bushy composite plant, Ammobium alatum, of Australia, having winged branches, javelin-shaped leaves, and white flowers.
- wireless telephone — Now Rare. radiotelephony.
- wireless telephony — Now Rare. radiotelephony.
- with flying colors — with flying colors, with an overwhelming victory, triumph, or success: He passed the test with flying colors.
- women at point sur — a narrative poem (1927) by Robinson Jeffers.
- women's liberation — a movement to combat sexual discrimination and to gain full legal, economic, vocational, educational, and social rights and opportunities for women, equal to those of men.
- wood-burning stove — cooker: fueled by wood
- work one's ass off — work extremely hard
- work out the kinks — If someone works out the kinks in a situation, they resolve the problems associated with it.
- work-study student — a student who is permitted to work while studying, and use the money earned to pay for their studies
- working hypothesis — See under hypothesis (def 1).
- working men's club — A working men's club is a place where working people, especially men, can go to relax, drink alcoholic drinks, and sometimes watch live entertainment.
- world championship — an international competition in a particular sport or activity for people all around the world
- world of one's own — a state of mental detachment from other people
- wrangell mountains — a mountain range in SE Alaska, extending into the Yukon, Canada. Highest peak: Mount Blackburn, 5037 m (16 523 ft)
- writ of assistance — a writ issued by a superior colonial court authorizing officers of the British crown to summon aid and enter and search any premises.
- wrongful dismissal — the act of making someone redundant for reasons which are illegal or unjust
- young conservative — a member of the youth section of the United Kingdom Conservative Party
- yves saint laurent — Louis Stephen [lwee ste-fen] /lwi stɛˈfɛn/ (Show IPA), 1882–1973, prime minister of Canada 1948–57.
- zone of saturation — the ground below the water table