13-letter words containing n, s, w
- pay one's way — to settle (a debt, obligation, etc.), as by transferring money or goods, or by doing something: Please pay your bill.
- peninsula war — a war (1808–14) in Spain and Portugal, with British, Spanish, and Portuguese troops opposing the French.
- penny whistle — a type of flageolet with six finger holes, esp a cheap one made of metal
- piers plowman — (The Vision Concerning Piers Plowman) an alliterative poem written in three versions (1360–99), ascribed to William Langland.
- play on words — a pun or the act of punning.
- power station — a generating station.
- power-sharing — Power-sharing is a political arrangement in which different or opposing groups all take part in government together.
- powerlessness — unable to produce an effect: a disease against which modern medicine is virtually powerless.
- prison warder — an officer in charge of prisoners in a jail
- queen's award — either of two awards instituted by royal warrant (1976) for a sustained increase in export earnings by a British firm (Queen's Award for Export Achievement) or for an advance in technology (Queen's Award for Technological Achievement)
- rainbow snake — a burrowing snake, Farancia erytrogramma, of the southeastern U.S., having red and black stripes along the body, a red and yellow underside, and a sharp-tipped tail used in maneuvering prey.
- real soon now — (jargon, humour) (RSN) A phrase used ironically when you believe an event will take a long or unknown time to occur. The term originated in SF's fanzine community, popularised by Jerry Pournelle's column in BYTE. The phrase can be used, for example, when a manager asks how long it will take you to debug some software and you have no idea. "I'll have it working Real Soon Now."
- reverse swing — a type of swing in which a ball that has been scuffed on one side will move in the opposite direction to that of a new ball
- rewriteperson — rewriteman.
- sadie hawkins — Also called Sadie, Sadies. a party, dance, or other social event, especially one held annually among high school or college students, to which each girl escorts the boy of her choice, or invites him to escort her.
- saint andrews — a seaport in the Fife region, in E Scotland: resort; golf courses.
- saint matthew — a tax collector of Capernaum called by Christ to be one of the 12 apostles (Matthew 9:9–13; 10:3). Feast day: Sept 21 or Nov 16
- sandwich beam — flitch beam.
- sandwich cake — a cake that is made up of two or more layers with a jam or other filling
- sandwich coin — a coin having a layer of one metal between outside layers of another, as a quarter with a layer of copper between layers of silver.
- sandwich loaf — a loaf of the type of soft white sliced bread often used to make sandwiches
- sandwich tern — a European tern, Sterna sandvicensis, that has a yellow-tipped bill, whitish plumage, and white forked tail, and nests in colonies on beaches, etc
- sanitary ware — plumbing fixtures, as sinks or toilet bowls, made of ceramic material or enameled metal.
- scale drawing — illustration made in proportion
- scarlet woman — a sexually promiscuous woman, especially a prostitute or a woman who commits adultery.
- schwenkfelder — a member of a Protestant group that emigrated in 1734 from Germany and settled in Pennsylvania, where they organized the Schwenkfelder Church.
- screenwriting — writing film scripts
- scribble down — If you scribble down something, you write it quickly or roughly.
- scriptwriting — a person who writes scripts, as for movies, radio, or television.
- second growth — the plant growth that follows the destruction of virgin forest.
- secret weapon — Someone's secret weapon is a thing or person which they believe will help them achieve something and which other people do not know about.
- see one's way — to find it possible and be willing (to do something)
- self-renewing — of or relating to the act of renewing oneself or itself
- seminole wars — a series of conflicts in 1818–19 between American forces under Andrew Jackson and the Seminole Indians in Spanish-controlled eastern Florida.
- send away for — order by post
- sepia drawing — a drawing with a brownish tone, produced by first bleaching it (after fixing) and then immersing it for a short time in a solution of sodium sulphide or of alkaline thiourea
- sewing basket — box for sewing accessories
- sewing circle — a group, especially of women, meeting regularly to sew.
- sewing cotton — cotton thread used for sewing, embroidery, etc.
- sewing needle — Northern U.S. a dragonfly.
- shadow boxing — to make the motions of attack and defense, as in boxing, as a training or conditioning procedure.
- shadowcasting — the enhancement of images by the casting of shadows
- shetland wool — the fine wool undercoat pulled by hand from Shetland sheep.
- shivering owl — screech owl.
- shock and awe — US military: use of extreme force
- shooting-down — fatal shooting
- show and tell — an activity for young children, especially in school, in which each participant produces an object of unusual interest and tells something about it.
- show business — the entertainment industry, as theater, motion pictures, television, radio, carnival, and circus.
- show of hands — an indication of approval, disapproval, volunteering, etc., on the part of a group of persons, usually made by each assenting person raising his or her hand.
- show signs of — indicate possibility of