16-letter words containing p, a, i, n, s
- band-pass filter — a filter that transmits only those currents having a frequency lying within specified limits
- bargaining scope — the range of topics within the scope of a particular set of negotiations leading to a collective agreement
- basque provinces — an autonomous region of N Spain, comprising the provinces of Álava, Guipúzcoa, and Vizcaya: inhabited mainly by Basques, who retained virtual autonomy from the 9th to the 19th century. Pop: 1 840 700 (2003 est). Area: about 7250 sq km (2800 sq miles)
- bastard pointing — an imitation of tuck pointing, having a fillet made from the mortar of the joint.
- batch processing — manufacturing products or treating materials in batches, by passing the output of one process to subsequent processes
- bearing pedestal — an independent support for a bearing, usually incorporating a bearing housing
- belgian sheepdog — any of a Belgian breed of large herding dog with a black coat, sometimes used as a guide dog
- bicapitalisation — The act said to have been performed on trademarks (such as PostScript, NeXT, NeWS, VisiCalc, FrameMaker, TK!solver, EasyWriter) that have been raised above the ruck of common coinage by nonstandard capitalisation. Too many marketroid types think this sort of thing is really cute, even the 2,317th time they do it. Compare studlycaps.
- birthday present — a gift given to someone on their birthday
- blenheim spaniel — a variety of toy spaniel that is white with reddish-brown spots
- boatswain's pipe — a whistle used formerly to give orders on board ship
- boston cream pie — a cake of two layers with icing and a creamy filling
- boundary dispute — dispute between neighbours about the boundary between their properties
- branchiopneustic — breathing by means of gills, as certain aquatic insect larvae.
- brittany spaniel — a short-tailed French bird dog that typically has a smooth orange- or liver-and-white coat
- bypass operation — an operation involving redirection of blood flow, either to avoid a diseased blood vessel or in order to perform heart surgery
- canine distemper — distemper1 (def 1a).
- capital sentence — the punishment of death for a crime
- capsizing moment — the moment of an upsetting couple.
- castor-oil plant — a tall euphorbiaceous Indian plant, Ricinus communis, cultivated in tropical regions for ornament and for its poisonous seeds, from which castor oil is extracted
- catch sb napping — If someone is caught napping, something happens when they are not prepared for it, although they should have been.
- chemical weapons — toxic chemicals used as weapons
- children's panel — (in Scotland) a group of representatives of relevant agencies, with the power to deal with a child under sixteen who is in criminal or family trouble. Its hearings are private and replace most of the functions of juvenile courts
- chinese fan palm — a fan palm, Livistona chinensis, of southern Japan, having very large, deeply cleft leaves and bluish-green, ovalish fruit.
- chinese pavilion — crescent (def 6).
- chinese shar-pei — Shar-Pei.
- chinese-pavilion — a shape resembling a segment of a ring tapering to points at the ends.
- chipping sparrow — a common North American sparrow, Spizella passerina, having brown-and-grey plumage and a white eye stripe
- chondrodysplasia — (medicine) A genetic disorder characterized by short-limbed dwarfism.
- chryselephantine — (of ancient Greek statues) made of or overlaid with gold and ivory
- closed-captioned — (of a video recording) having subtitles which appear on screen only if the cassette is played through a special decoder
- colorado springs — a city and resort in central Colorado. Pop: 370 448 (2003 est)
- compartmentalise — to divide into categories or compartments.
- complex analysis — the branch of mathematics dealing with analytic functions of a complex variable.
- compositionality — The property of being compositional.
- compression wave — a shock wave that compresses the medium through which it is transmitted.
- conspicuity tape — a highly reflective strip or tape used on a vehicle, clothing, etc., to make it more visible in low light.
- conspiratorially — the act of conspiring.
- constant mapping — (networking) A precursor to ARP used by some TCP software in which the destination Ethernet address is constructed from the top 24 bits of the source Ethernet address followed by the low 24 bits of the (class A) destination Internet address. For this scheme the top 24 bits of the Ethernet address must be the same on all hosts on the network.
- contemporariness — existing, occurring, or living at the same time; belonging to the same time: Newton's discovery of the calculus was contemporary with that of Leibniz.
- conversation pit — a usually sunken portion of a room or living area with chairs, sofas, etc., often grouped around a fireplace, where people can gather to talk.
- coping mechanism — something a person does to deal with a difficult situation
- cornet à pistons — a three-valved brass instrument of the trumpet family. Written range: about two and a half octaves upwards from E below middle C. It is a transposing instrument in B flat or A
- cornet-a-pistons — cornet (def 1).
- coroutine pascal — ["Control Separation in Programming languages", Lemon et al, ACM Ann Conf 1977].
- corporation stop — a cock controlling the flow of water or gas from mains to individual consumers.
- counterespionage — Counterespionage is the same as counterintelligence.
- craftspersonship — The body of activities, skills, techniques, knowledge, and expertise pertinent to (a) particular craft(s).
- crime of passion — a crime, often a murder, committed from passion, esp sexual passion
- crime passionnel — a crime committed from passion, esp sexual passion