17-letter words containing o, u, r, i, e
- double refraction — the separation of a ray of light into two unequally refracted, plane-polarized rays of orthogonal polarizations, occurring in crystals in which the velocity of light rays is not the same in all directions.
- double track line — a railway line with double track
- drained of colour — colourless
- droit du seigneur — the supposed right claimable by a feudal lord to have sexual relations with the bride of a vassal on her first night of marriage.
- ductus arteriosis — a fetal blood vessel that connects the left pulmonary artery directly to the descending aorta, normally closing after birth.
- electroconvulsive — Of or relating to the treatment of mental illness by the application of electric shocks to the brain.
- emission spectrum — the continuous spectrum or pattern of bright lines or bands seen when the electromagnetic radiation emitted by a substance is passed into a spectrometer. The spectrum is characteristic of the emitting substance and the type of excitation to which it is subjected
- empirical formula — a chemical formula indicating the proportion of each element present in a molecule
- enrolment figures — the numbers of people enrolling at an institution, on a course, etc
- equal opportunity — policies that bar discrimination
- equatorial guinea — a republic of W Africa, consisting of Río Muni on the mainland and the island of Bioko in the Gulf of Guinea, with four smaller islands: ceded by Portugal to Spain in 1778; gained independence in 1968. Official languages: Spanish and French. Religion: Roman Catholic majority. Currency: franc. Capital: Malabo. Pop: 704 000 (2013 est). Area: 28 049 sq km (10 830 sq miles)
- exclusionary rule — a legal rule that evidence obtained illegally, as from a search without a warrant, may not be introduced at trial
- executive burnout — a total loss of energy and interest and an inability to function effectively, experienced by some executives as a result of excessive demands upon their resources or chronic overwork
- executive officer — the second-in-command of any of certain military units
- extension courses — courses offered to outsiders by an educational establishment
- fade in (or out) — to appear or cause to appear (or disappear) gradually; make or become more (or less) distinct
- fictitious person — a legal entity or artificial person, as a corporation.
- figure-eight knot — a kind of knot
- fish out of water — any of various cold-blooded, aquatic vertebrates, having gills, commonly fins, and typically an elongated body covered with scales.
- floating currency — a currency that is free to fluctuate against other currencies in accordance with market forces
- flowering currant — an ornamental shrub, Ribes sanguineum, growing to 2 to 3 metres (6 to 9ft) in height, with red, crimson, yellow, or white flowers: family Saxifragaceae
- fluorescent light — a fluorescent lamp in domestic or commercial use; a fluorescent strip
- fluorescent strip — a fluorescent light in the form of a long strip
- fluvioterrestrial — (of animals) able to live in rivers and on land
- folie de grandeur — a delusion of grandeur; megalomania.
- forcing frequency — the frequency of an oscillating force applied to a system
- foundation course — A foundation course is a course that you do at some colleges and universities in order to prepare yourself for a longer or more advanced course.
- fouquier-tinville — Antoine Quentin [ahn-twan kahn-tan] /ɑ̃ˈtwan kɑ̃ˈtɛ̃/ (Show IPA), 1747?–95, French revolutionist: prosecutor during the Reign of Terror.
- fourier transform — a mapping of a function, as a signal, that is defined in one domain, as space or time, into another domain, as wavelength or frequency, where the function is represented in terms of sines and cosines.
- french revolution — the revolution that began in 1789, overthrew the absolute monarchy of the Bourbons and the system of aristocratic privileges, and ended with Napoleon's overthrow of the Directory and seizure of power in 1799.
- full linear group — the group of all nonsingular linear transformations mapping a finite-dimensional vector space into itself.
- functional isomer — any of several structural isomers that have the same molecular formula but with the atoms connected in different ways and therefore falling into different functional groups.
- furbish lousewort — any plant belonging to the genus Pedicularis, of the figwort family, as the wood betony, formerly supposed to cause lice in sheep feeding on it: one species, P. furbishiae (Furbish lousewort) of parts of Maine and New Brunswick, Canada, having finely toothed leaves and a cluster of yellow flowers, is endangered and was thought to be extinct until specimens were discovered in 1946 and again in 1976.
- further education — adult education.
- geological survey — U.S. Government. a division of the Department of the Interior, created in 1879, that studies the nation's water and mineral resources, makes topographic surveys, and classifies and leases public lands.
- get a rise out of — to get up from a lying, sitting, or kneeling posture; assume an upright position: She rose and walked over to greet me. With great effort he rose to his knees.
- globus hystericus — the sensation of having a lump in the throat or difficulty in swallowing for which no medical cause can be found.
- graduated pension — the money that an employee receives after retirement if they have paid into the graduated pension scheme
- gridiron pendulum — a clock pendulum having, as part of its shaft, an arrangement of brass and steel rods having different coefficients of expansion, such that the pendulum has the same length at any temperature.
- ground connection — the conductor used to establish a ground.
- guglielmo marconi — Guglielmo [goo-lyel-maw] /guˈlyɛl mɔ/ (Show IPA), Marchese, 1874–1937, Italian electrical engineer and inventor, especially in the field of wireless telegraphy: Nobel Prize in physics 1909.
- guinea-hen flower — checkered lily.
- half-round chisel — a cold chisel with a semicircular cutting edge used for making narrow channels
- hasbrouck heights — a borough in NE New Jersey.
- have a reputation — to be known or notorious, esp for promiscuity, excessive drinking, or the like
- homeland security — national defence
- horseradish sauce — a piquant sauce made from horseradish root, vinegar, etc, and traditionally eaten in Britain with roast beef
- household rubbish — the unwanted things and waste material produced in the running of a household, such as used paper, empty tins and bottles, and waste food
- housekeeping cart — A housekeeping cart is a large metal basket on wheels which is used by a cleaner in a hotel to move clean bed linen, towels, and cleaning equipment.
- hydrogen fluoride — a colorless corrosive gas, HF, the anhydride of hydrofluoric acid, used chiefly as a catalyst and in the fluorination of hydrocarbons.