20-letter words containing o, u, a, g
- oscillating universe — a variant model of the closed universe in which the universe undergoes cycles of expansion and contraction.
- part way through sth — in the course of something; in the middle of something
- pay through the nose — the part of the face or facial region in humans and certain animals that contains the nostrils and the organs of smell and functions as the usual passageway for air in respiration: in humans it is a prominence in the center of the face formed of bone and cartilage, serving also to modify or modulate the voice.
- perpendicular gothic — the style of Gothic architecture in England during the 14th and 15th centuries, characterized by tracery having vertical lines, a four-centred arch, and fan vaulting
- physiologic jaundice — a transitory jaundice that affects some infants for the first few days after birth.
- portuguese water dog — one of a breed of medium-sized dogs originally developed to assist Portuguese fishermen and having a profuse black or brown coat with or without white markings and webbed feet.
- postgraduate student — a student who has obtained a degree from a university, etc, and is pursuing studies for a more advanced qualification
- pound cost averaging — a method of accumulating capital by investing a fixed sum in a particular security at regular intervals, in order to achieve an average purchase price below the arithmetic average of the market prices on the purchase dates
- procedural agreement — regulations agreed between the parties to collective bargaining, defining the bargaining units, bargaining scope, procedures for collective bargaining, and the facilities to be provided to trade union representatives
- production agreement — a contract concerning the production or manufacture of something
- programming language — a high-level language used to write computer programs, as COBOL or BASIC, or, sometimes, an assembly language.
- prosecuting attorney — the public officer in a county, district, or other jurisdiction charged with carrying on the prosecution in criminal proceedings.
- pseudo-psychological — of or relating to psychology.
- pyroligneous alcohol — methyl alcohol.
- quaker meeting house — a place where Quakers gather for worship
- quantum bogodynamics — /kwon'tm boh"goh-di:-nam"iks/ A theory that characterises the universe in terms of bogon sources (such as politicians, used-car salesmen, TV evangelists, and suits in general), bogon sinks (such as taxpayers and computers), and bogosity potential fields. Bogon absorption causes human beings to behave mindlessly and machines to fail (and may also cause both to emit secondary bogons); however, the precise mechanics of bogon-computron interaction are not yet understood. Quantum bogodynamics is most often invoked to explain the sharp increase in hardware and software failures in the presence of suits; the latter emit bogons, which the former absorb.
- quantum cryptography — a method of coding information based on quantum mechanics, which is said to be unbreakable
- quarantine anchorage — an anchorage for ships awaiting a pratique.
- radial triangulation — triangulation based upon lines radiating from the center of each of two overlapping photographs to certain objects appearing on each photograph.
- red badge of courage — a novel (1895) by Stephen Crane.
- ring wall foundation — A ring wall foundation is a base made of concrete, used to put large tanks on.
- rough-legged buzzard — a buzzard, Buteo lagopus, of Europe, Asia, and North America, having feathers covering its legs
- rough-winged swallow — either of two New World swallows of the genus Stelgidopteryx, having outer primary feathers with small barblike hooks on the margins.
- rub up the wrong way — to arouse anger (in); annoy
- scatter site housing — public housing, especially for low-income families, built throughout an urban area rather than being concentrated in a single neighborhood.
- schrodinger equation — the wave equation of nonrelativistic quantum mechanics. Also called Schrödinger wave equation. Compare wave equation (def 2).
- semiautobiographical — pertaining to or being a fictionalized account of an author's own life.
- shifting cultivation — a land-use system, esp in tropical Africa, in which a tract of land is cultivated until its fertility diminishes, when it is abandoned until this is restored naturally
- shoulder-length hair — hair that reaches a person's shoulders
- soft gelatin capsule — A soft gelatin capsule is a type of capsule that is usually used to contain medicine in the form of liquid or powder, and which dissolves more quickly than a hard gelatin capsule.
- sound-and-light show — a nighttime spectacle or performance, at which a building, historic site, etc., is illuminated and the historic significance is imparted to spectators by means of narration, sound effects, and music.
- special patrol group — a former police unit tasked with counter terrorism in the Royal Ulster Constabulary
- squatter sovereignty — (used contemptuously by its opponents) popular sovereignty (def 2).
- straight-cut tobacco — tobacco that is cut in such a way that it will lie flat.
- strong nuclear force — an interaction between elementary particles responsible for the forces between nucleons in the nucleus. It operates at distances less than about 10–15 metres, and is about a hundred times more powerful than the electromagnetic interaction
- sunday-go-to-meeting — most presentable; best: Sunday-go-to-meeting clothes.
- sweat one's guts out — to work very hard
- the day of judgement — a Christian term for the ending of the world
- the founding fathers — any of the men who were members of the U.S. Constituional Convention of 1787
- the thousand guineas — an annual horse race, restricted to fillies, run at Newmarket since 1814
- thought transference — transference of thought by extrasensory means from the mind of one individual to another; telepathy.
- thread language zero — (language) (TL0) The instruction set of the TAM (Threaded Abstract Machine), used to implement Id.
- to bring up the rear — If a person or vehicle is bringing up the rear, they are the last person or vehicle in a moving line of them.
- to get your bearings — to find out where one is or to find out what one should do next
- to get your own back — If you get your own back on someone, you have your revenge on them because of something bad that they have done to you.
- to spread your wings — If you spread your wings, you do something new and rather difficult or move to a new place, because you feel more confident in your abilities than you used to and you want to gain wider experience.
- to stand your ground — If you stand your ground or hold your ground, you continue to support a particular argument or to have a particular opinion when other people are opposing you or trying to make you change your mind.
- transposed conjugate — adjoint (def 2).
- underground railroad — Also called underground railway. a railroad running through a continuous tunnel, as under city streets; subway.
- unsaddling enclosure — the area at a racecourse where horses are unsaddled after a race and often where awards are given to owners, trainers, and jockeys