15-letter words containing p, a, c
- casters-up mode — [IBM, probably from slang belly up] Yet another synonym for "broken" or "down". Usually connotes a major failure. A system (hardware or software) which is "down" may be already being restarted before the failure is noticed, whereas one which is "casters up" is usually a good excuse to take the rest of the day off (as long as you're not responsible for fixing it).
- castner process — a process for extracting sodium from sodium hydroxide, devised by Hamilton Young Castner (1858–98)
- catastrophising — Present participle of catastrophise.
- catastrophizing — Present participle of catastrophize.
- celandine poppy — a poppy, Stylophorum diphyllum, of the east-central U.S., having one pair of deeply lobed leaves and yellow flowers.
- centipede grass — a slow-growing grass, Eremochloa ophiuroides, introduced into the U.S. from China and used for lawns in warm areas.
- cephalochordate — any chordate animal of the subphylum Cephalochordata, having a fishlike body and no vertebral column; lancelet
- cephalohematoma — A hemorrhage of blood between the skull and periosteum of a newborn baby secondary to rupture of blood vessels crossing the periosteum.
- cephalothoracic — the anterior part of the body in certain arachnids and crustaceans, consisting of the coalesced head and thorax.
- cephalothoraxes — Plural form of cephalothorax.
- cervical plexus — a network of nerves branching from the spinal nerves of the neck region and innervating the neck, chest, diaphragm, and part of the face.
- ceteris paribus — other things being equal
- chairpersonship — a person who presides over a meeting, committee, board, etc.
- champagne flute — a tall, thin champagne glass
- champagne glass — a glass for drinking champagne, either a glass with a wide mouth and a roughly triangular shape or a tall flute
- chandler period — the period of the oscillation (Chandler wobble) of the earth's axis, varying between 416 and 433 days.
- channel captain — the most powerful member, and often the one that decides specifications, in a channel for distributing goods (which usually consists of a manufacturer, wholesaler, and retailer). The channel captain is sometimes the manufacturer but in the case of a chain store it may be the retailer
- channel hopping — (chat) To rapidly switch channels on IRC, or a GEnie chat board. This term may derive from the TV idiom, "channel surfing".
- channel-hopping — Channel-hopping means switching quickly between different television channels because you are looking for something interesting to watch.
- character piece — a short, simple piece, usually for piano, of a type developed chiefly during the 19th century, often of a descriptive or seemingly improvisatory character.
- character space — a space in a computer file into which a character can be fitted or which can be left blank
- charleston peak — a mountain in SE Nevada: highest peak in the Spring Mountains. 11,919 feet (3635 meters).
- chartophylacium — (in a medieval church) a place for the keeping of records and documents.
- cheap assembler — (tool) (CHASM) A shareware assembler for MS-DOS.
- chemoautotrophs — Plural form of chemoautotroph.
- chemoautotrophy — the process of deriving energy through oxidizing inorganic chemical compounds, as opposed to photosynthesis
- chemopsychiatry — the study and application of chemical substances in psychiatry
- chenopodiaceous — belonging to the Chenopodiaceae, formerly the goosefoot family, now considered part of the amaranth family of plants.
- chile saltpeter — sodium nitrate, esp. as found naturally in Chile and Peru
- chile saltpetre — a naturally occurring form of sodium nitrate: a soluble white or colourless mineral occurring in arid regions, esp in Chile and Peru
- chimney-pot hat — a high silk hat; top hat.
- chinese parsley — coriander leaves used as an herb; cilantro
- chloramphenicol — a broad-spectrum antibiotic used esp in treating typhoid fever and rickettsial infections: obtained from the bacterium Streptomyces venezuelae or synthesized. Formula: C11H12N2O5Cl2
- cholangiography — radiographic examination of the bile ducts after the introduction into them of a contrast medium
- chop and change — When people chop and change, they keep changing their minds about what to do or how to act.
- chopped almonds — almonds cut into small pieces
- choral speaking — recitation of poetry, dramatic pieces, etc. by a chorus of speakers
- chorale prelude — a composition for organ using a chorale as a cantus firmus or as the basis for variations
- christadelphian — a member of a Christian millenarian sect founded in the US about 1848, holding that only the just will enter eternal life, that the wicked will be annihilated, and that the ignorant, the unconverted, and infants will not be raised from the dead
- christmas party — a party organized before Christmas, usually by a firm or organization
- chromatographer — A person skilled in chromatography or who operates a chromatograph.
- chromatographic — (analytical chemistry) Of or pertaining to chromatography.
- chromium-plated — having been plated with chromium
- chromoxylograph — a coloured print created from printing with wooden blocks
- chryse planitia — a plain on Mars, the landing site of the Viking I spacecraft.
- cigarette paper — a piece of thin paper rolled around tobacco to form a cigarette
- ciliary process — one of the folds on the ciliary body, connected with the suspensory ligament of the crystalline lens.
- cineangiography — the use of motion-picture recording to trace the passage of dye through blood vessels, for the diagnosis of heart and blood vessel disease
- cinematographed — a motion-picture projector.
- cinematographer — A cinematographer is a person who decides what filming techniques should be used during the shooting of a film.