16-letter words containing o, a, n, s
- self-indignation — strong displeasure at something considered unjust, offensive, insulting, or base; righteous anger.
- self-integration — an act or instance of combining into an integral whole.
- self-lubrication — the process of becoming lubricated without external factors
- self-observation — an act or instance of noticing or perceiving.
- self-opinionated — conceited; having an inordinately high regard for oneself, one's own opinions, views, etc.
- self-pollination — the transfer of pollen from the anther to the stigma of the same flower, another flower on the same plant, or the flower of a plant of the same clone.
- self-preparation — a proceeding, measure, or provision by which one prepares for something: preparations for a journey.
- self-proclaiming — to announce or declare in an official or formal manner: to proclaim war.
- self-propagating — to cause (an organism) to multiply by any process of natural reproduction from the parent stock.
- self-realization — the fulfillment of one's potential.
- self-reformation — the act of reforming; state of being reformed.
- self-stimulation — to rouse to action or effort, as by encouragement or pressure; spur on; incite: to stimulate his interest in mathematics.
- self-subjugation — the act, fact, or process of subjugating, or bringing under control; enslavement: The subjugation of the American Indians happened across the country.
- self-vindication — the act of vindicating.
- semi-hibernation — Zoology. to spend the winter in close quarters in a dormant condition, as bears and certain other animals. Compare estivate.
- semi-mountainous — abounding in mountains: a mountainous wilderness.
- semiconservative — disposed to preserve existing conditions, institutions, etc., or to restore traditional ones, and to limit change.
- semiprofessional — actively engaged in some field or sport for pay but on a part-time basis: semiprofessional baseball players.
- senate committee — a committee formed from the upper chamber of the legislature in, for example, the US, Canada, Australia, etc
- seneca snakeroot — any of various plants whose roots have been regarded as a remedy for snakebites, as the herb Aristolochia serpentaria (Virginia snakeroot) having a medicinal rhizome and rootlets, and the white-flowered Polygala senega (Seneca snakeroot) having a medicinal root.
- sensationalistic — subject matter, language, or style producing or designed to produce startling or thrilling impressions or to excite and please vulgar taste.
- sensory overload — being overwhelmed by sights, sounds, etc.
- separate opinion — an opinion written by a judge separately from other judges, which can either agree or disagree with the opinion written by the majority of judges
- series resonance — the resonance that results when circuit elements are connected with their inductance and capacitance in series, so that the impedance of the combination falls to a minimum at the resonant frequency
- service contract — law: between employer and employee
- session musician — a studio musician, esp one who works freelance
- set on one's ear — the organ of hearing and equilibrium in vertebrates, in humans consisting of an external ear that gathers sound vibrations, a middle ear in which the vibrations resonate against the tympanic membrane, and a fluid-filled internal ear that maintains balance and that conducts the tympanic vibrations to the auditory nerve, which transmits them as impulses to the brain.
- severance motion — an application made to a judge or court for the division into separate parts of a joint estate, contract, etc
- sex-and-shopping — (of a novel) belonging to a genre of novel in which the central character, a woman, has a number of sexual encounters, and the author mentions the name of many up-market products
- sexual deviation — a type of mental disorder characterized by a preference for or obsession with unusual sexual practices, as pedophilia, sadomasochism, or exhibitionism.
- sexual relations — sexual intercourse; coitus.
- sexual selection — a special type of natural selection in which the sexes acquire distinct forms either because the members of one sex choose mates with particular features or because in the competition for mates among the members of one sex only those with certain traits succeed.
- shake one's head — to move or sway with short, quick, irregular vibratory movements.
- shakedown cruise — extortion, as by blackmail or threats of violence.
- shaker and mover — mover and shaker
- share and enjoy! — 1. Commonly found at the end of software release announcements and README files, this phrase indicates allegiance to the hacker ethic of free information sharing (see hacker ethic). 2. The motto of the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation (the ultimate gaggle of incompetent suits) in Douglas Adams's "Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy". The irony of using this as a cultural recognition signal appeals to freeware hackers.
- shared ownership — (in Britain) a form of house purchase whereby the purchaser buys a proportion of the dwelling, usually from a local authority or housing association, and rents the rest
- sharia-compliant — (of a product or service) produced or offered in accordance with the doctrines of the sharia
- shipping company — business that sends goods overseas
- shoestring catch — a catch of a ball on the fly, made close to the ground while running.
- shoot one's load — (of a man) to ejaculate at orgasm
- shooting gallery — a place equipped with targets and used for practice in shooting.
- shopping channel — television station used to sell goods
- shopping village — a shopping centre that designed to look like a village
- shortfin corvina — See under corvina.
- shorthand typing — shorthand and typing
- shorthand typist — A shorthand typist is a person who types and writes shorthand, usually in an office.
- shorthand writer — a person trained to write in shorthand
- shot in the dark — a discharge of a firearm, bow, etc.
- shotgun marriage — a wedding occasioned or precipitated by pregnancy.