15-letter words containing p, e, a
- packet-switched — packet switching
- packing density — a measure of the amount of data that can be held by unit length of a storage medium, such as magnetic tape
- paedophile ring — a group of people who take part in illegal sexual activity involving children
- paget's disease — Pathology. a chronic disease characterized by episodic accelerated bone resorption and growth of abnormal replacement bone, causing bone pain, deformation, fractures, and osteosarcoma; osteitis deformans.
- pain in the net — flamer
- painted bunting — a brilliantly colored bunting, Passerina ciris, of the southern U.S.
- painter's colic — Pathology. lead poisoning causing intense intestinal pain.
- palaeoanthropic — relating to palaeoanthropology
- palaeogeography — the study of geographical features of the geological past
- palaeolimnology — the study of ancient lake ecologies
- palaeomagnetism — the study of the fossil magnetism in rocks, used to determine the past configurations of the continents and to investigate the past shape and magnitude of the earth's magnetic field
- palaeomagnetist — a student of or expert in palaeomagnetism
- palaeontography — the branch of palaeontology concerned with the description of fossils
- palaeopathology — the study of diseases of ancient man and fossil animals
- palaeophytology — the study of ancient botany
- palais de danse — a dance hall
- palato-alveolar — articulated with the blade or tip of the tongue approaching or touching the alveolar ridge and the main body of the tongue near the hard palate; having a primary alveolar articulation and a secondary palatal articulation.
- paleoencephalon — paleencephalon.
- paleogeophysics — (used with a plural verb) inferred geophysical conditions or processes of designated periods of the geologic past.
- paleolithic man — any of the prehistoric populations of humans, as the Cro-Magnon, living in the late Pliocene and the Pleistocene epochs.
- palliative-care — medical care focused on improving the quality of life of patients with serious illnesses, as by treating symptoms and providing emotional support.
- pan-americanism — the idea or advocacy of a political alliance or union of all the countries of North, Central, and South America.
- pancake make-up — make up in cake form applied to the face with a sponge in order to cover up imperfections and even out skin tone
- pandorae fretum — an area in the southern hemisphere of Mars.
- panhandle state — West Virginia (used as a nickname).
- panzer division — an armored division of the German army, especially in World War II, consisting chiefly of tanks and organized for making rapid attacks.
- paperbark maple — a shrub or tree, Acer griseum, native to China, cultivated for its attractive papery brownish bark.
- paphian goddess — Aphrodite, worshiped in Cyprus as the goddess of sexual love.
- paracel islands — a group of uninhabited islets and reefs in the N South China Sea, the subject of territorial claims by China and Vietnam
- paracetaldehyde — paraldehyde.
- parachute brake — a parachute opened horizontally from the tail of an airplane upon landing, used as an aid in braking. Also called parabrake. Compare drogue parachute (def 2).
- paradise flower — a prickly vine, Solanum wendlandii, of the nightshade family, native to Costa Rica, having branched clusters of showy lilac-blue flowers.
- paradise valley — a town in SW Arizona.
- paraffin heater — a heater which is fuelled by paraffin
- paraffin series — methane series
- paraheliotropic — (of leaves) turning away from light; sun-avoiding
- parallel cousin — a cousin who is the child either of one's mother's sister or of one's father's brother.
- parallel motion — a mechanism arranged so as to impart rectilinear motion to a rod connected to a lever that moves through an arc.
- parallel pascal — (language) A data-parallel language, similar to Actus and Glypnir.
- parallel-veined — having closely spaced longitudinal veins, as the leaves of most monocotyledonous plants.
- parallelopipeda — plural of parallelopipedon
- parametrization — a parametric representation; the act of representing as or defining parameters
- parasiticalness — the condition or characteristic of being parasitic
- parasympathetic — pertaining to that part of the autonomic nervous system consisting of nerves and ganglia that arise from the cranial and sacral regions and function in opposition to the sympathetic system, as in inhibiting heartbeat or contracting the pupil of the eye.
- parchment paper — a waterproof and grease-resistant paper produced by treating ordinary paper with concentrated sulfuric acid.
- pareira (brava) — the stem of a South American curare plant
- parent compound — a compound from which derivatives may be obtained.
- parent language — an earlier language from which another is derived.
- parenthetically — of, pertaining to, noting, or of the nature of a parenthesis: several unnecessary parenthetic remarks.
- parhelic circle — a white, horizontal band passing through the sun, either incomplete or extending around the horizon, produced by the reflection of the sun's rays from the vertical faces of ice prisms in the atmosphere.