16-letter words containing p, e, l, i, t
- the body politic — the people of a nation or the nation itself considered as a political entity; the state
- the devil to pay — Theology. (sometimes initial capital letter) the supreme spirit of evil; Satan. a subordinate evil spirit at enmity with God, and having power to afflict humans both with bodily disease and with spiritual corruption.
- the first couple — the US president and their spouse
- the mendip hills — a range of limestone hills in SW England, in N Somerset: includes the Cheddar Gorge and numerous caves. Highest point: 325 m (1068 ft)
- the public purse — money from or controlled by the government
- thermoacidophile — any organism, especially a type of archaebacterium, that thrives in strongly acidic environments at high temperatures.
- thermoplasticity — soft and pliable when heated, as some plastics, without any change of the inherent properties.
- three-point line — Basketball. a field goal worth three points, made from behind a specified line (three-point line)
- three-point play — a play in which a player sinks the free throw that was awarded when the player was fouled while scoring a basket.
- thrombophlebitis — the presence of a thrombus in a vein accompanied by inflammation of the vessel wall.
- tightrope walker — performer who walks on high wire
- to bite your lip — If you bite your lip or your tongue, you stop yourself from saying something that you want to say, because it would be the wrong thing to say in the circumstances.
- to play for time — If you play for time, you try to make something happen more slowly, because you do not want it to happen or because you need time to think about what to do if it happens.
- topical-sentence — a sentence that expresses the essential idea of a paragraph or larger section, usually appearing at the beginning.
- topless swimsuit — swimsuit which has no covering for the breasts
- topsail schooner — a sailing vessel fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts with square sails above the foresail, and often with a square sail before the foresail.
- torsion pendulum — a pendulum the weight of which is rotated alternately in opposite directions through a horizontal plane by the torsion of the suspending rod or spring: used for clocks intended to run a long time between windings.
- transalpine gaul — an ancient region in W Europe, including the modern areas of N Italy, France, Belgium, and the S Netherlands: consisted of two main divisions, one part S of the Alps (Cisalpine Gaul) and another part N of the Alps (Transalpine Gaul)
- transport police — the national police force for railways in Britain, which protects rail operators, staff and passengers
- trapezoidal rule — a numerical method for evaluating the area between a curve and an axis by approximating the area with the areas of trapezoids.
- trial separation — an experimental period of living apart
- triphenylmethane — a colorless, crystalline, solid compound containing three benzene rings, C 19 H 16 , from which many dyes are derived.
- triple-expansion — noting a power source, especially a steam engine, using the same fluid at three successive stages of expansion to do work in three or more cylinders.
- tropical cyclone — a cyclone that originates over a tropical ocean area and can develop into the destructive storm known in the U.S. as a hurricane, in the western Pacific region as a typhoon, and elsewhere by other names. Compare extratropical cyclone, hurricane (def 1), willy-willy.
- twelvepenny nail — a nail that is 3 1/4 inches (8.25 cm) long.
- two-percent milk — Two-percent milk is milk from which some of the cream has been removed.
- two-tailed pasha — a distinctive vanessid butterfly of S Europe, Charaxes jasius, having mottled brown wings with a yellow-orange margin and frilled hind edges
- ultracrepidarian — noting or pertaining to a person who criticizes, judges, or gives advice outside the area of his or her expertise: The play provides a classic, simplistic portrayal of an ultracrepidarian mother-in-law.
- unapologetically — containing an apology or excuse for a fault, failure, insult, injury, etc.: An apologetic letter to his creditors explained the delay.
- undercapitalized — having insufficient capital for the efficient operation of a commercial enterprise
- underpitch vault — a construction having a central vault intersected by vaults of lower pitch.
- unissued capital — authorized capital that has not yet been issued as shares
- unparticularized — to make particular.
- unpredictability — not predictable; not to be foreseen or foretold: an unpredictable occurrence.
- up with the lark — up early in the morning
- upper palatinate — See under Palatinate (def 1).
- upsilon particle — the 20th letter of the Greek alphabet (Υ, υ).
- ventriculography — radiography of the ventricles of the heart after injection of a contrast medium
- virtual particle — an elementary particle of transitory existence that does not appear as a free particle in a particular situation but that can transmit a force from one particle to another.
- visible spectrum — the range of wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation that is normally visible, from 380 to 760 nm.
- walk a tightrope — be in a precarious position
- water lily tulip — a showy tulip, Tulipa kaufmanniana, of Turkestan, having spreading, white or pale-yellow flowers with yellow centers streaked with red.
- well-appreciated — to be grateful or thankful for: They appreciated his thoughtfulness.
- west springfield — a city in SW Massachusetts, near Springfield.
- whited sepulcher — an evil person who feigns goodness; hypocrite. Matt. 23:27.
- whited sepulchre — hypocrite
- will-o'-the-wisp — ignis fatuus (def 1).
- world exposition — world's fair.
- zenith telescope — a telescope mounted to point only at the zenith, used at some observatories for measuring time by the stars.