16-letter words containing p, e, t, i, o
- phylogenetically — the development or evolution of a particular group of organisms.
- phytoremediation — a process of decontaminating soil or water by using plants and trees to absorb or break down pollutants.
- pick up stompies — to come late to a conversation and so misunderstand what is being discussed
- pico de sao tome — an island in the Gulf of Guinea, off the W coast of Gabon, just N of the equator: the larger component of the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe. 318 sq. mi. (824 sq. km).
- picture moulding — the edge around a framed picture
- picture postcard — postcard (def 1).
- piezoelectricity — electricity, or electric polarity, produced by the piezoelectric effect.
- pigeon guillemot — a black or brown-speckled seabird of the genus Cepphus, of northern seas, having a sharply pointed black bill, red legs, and white wing patches, as C. grylle (black guillemot) of the North Atlantic and the similar C. columba (pigeon guillemot) of the North Pacific.
- pincers movement — a military maneuver in which both flanks of an enemy force are attacked with the aim of attaining complete encirclement.
- pitch inspection — in inclement weather, a pre-match inspection of the playing surface in order to determine whether it is in good enough condition for the match to go ahead
- pitch-cone angle — (in a bevel gear) the apex angle of the truncated cone (pitch cone) which forms the reference surface on which the teeth of a bevel gear are cut
- pithecanthropine — of, belonging to, or resembling a former genus (Pithecanthropus, now classified as Homo erectus) of extinct early humans, who lived in Java, China, Europe, and Africa
- pithecanthropoid — of, relating to, or resembling the former genus Pithecanthropus or one of its members.
- placement office — an office in a university that offers students careers advice and help to find employment
- plainclothes man — a detective or police officer who wears civilian clothes while on duty
- plaster of paris — calcined gypsum in white, powdery form, used as a base for gypsum plasters, as an additive of lime plasters, and as a material for making fine and ornamental casts: characterized by its ability to set rapidly when mixed with water.
- pneumatic trough — a trough filled with liquid, especially water, for collecting gases in bell jars or the like by displacement.
- pocket billiards — pool2 (def 1).
- point de hongrie — flame stitch.
- point estimation — the process of determining a single estimated value (point estimate) of a parameter of a given population.
- poitou-charentes — a region of W central France, on the Bay of Biscay: mainly low-lying
- polar coordinate — Usually, polar coordinates. one of two coordinates used to locate a point in a plane by the length of its radius vector and the angle this vector makes with the polar axis (polar angle)
- police constable — police officer
- police inspector — rank of police officer in the UK
- policy committee — a group of people who provide ideas or plans that are used by an organization or government as a basis for making decisions
- policy statement — a declaration of the plans and intentions of an organization or government
- political system — a coordinated set of principles, laws, ideas, and procedures relating to a particular form of government, or the form of government itself: Democracy is a political system in which citizens govern themselves.
- polycondensation — formation of a polymer by chemical condensation with the elimination of a small molecule, such as water.
- polyvinyl acetal — any of the class of thermoplastic resins derived by the condensation of an aldehyde with polyvinyl alcohol.
- poor white trash — white trash.
- pop the question — to make a short, quick, explosive sound: The cork popped.
- port authorities — the body with overall responsibility for a port
- portable airtime — (communications, wireless) A wireless, digital communications system enabling user-to-user voice communication, "quicknotes", and alphanumeric messaging.
- portfolio worker — a person in portfolio employment
- portrait gallery — a gallery where pictures are displayed
- portrait painter — artist: paints likenesses
- portuguese india — a former Portuguese overseas territory on the W coast of India, consisting of the districts of Gôa, Daman, and Diu: annexed by India December 1961. Capital: Gôa.
- portuguese timor — former (1914-75) Portuguese territory in the Malay Archipelago
- posigrade rocket — an auxiliary rocket used to separate the sections of a multistage rocket, fired in the direction of flight.
- positive vetting — the checking of a person's background, political affiliation, etc, to assess his suitability for a position that may involve national security
- post-elizabethan — of or relating to the reign of Elizabeth I, queen of England, or to her times: Elizabethan diplomacy; Elizabethan music.
- post-pleistocene — noting or pertaining to the epoch forming the earlier half of the Quaternary Period, beginning about two million years ago and ending 10,000 years ago, characterized by widespread glacial ice and the advent of modern humans.
- post-reformation — the act of reforming; state of being reformed.
- post-renaissance — the activity, spirit, or time of the great revival of art, literature, and learning in Europe beginning in the 14th century and extending to the 17th century, marking the transition from the medieval to the modern world.
- postencephalitic — inflammation of the substance of the brain.
- postindependence — Also, independency. the state or quality of being independent.
- postremogeniture — a system of inheritance under which the estate of a deceased person goes to his youngest son. Also called ultimogeniture. Compare primogeniture (def 2).
- potassium iodide — a white, crystalline, water-soluble powder, KI, having a bitter saline taste: used chiefly in the manufacture of photographic emulsions, as a laboratory reagent, in the preparation of Gram's solution for biological staining, and in medicine as an expectorant and to treat thyroid conditions.
- potemkin village — a pretentiously showy or imposing façade intended to mask or divert attention from an embarrassing or shabby fact or condition.
- potential energy — the energy of a body or a system with respect to the position of the body or the arrangement of the particles of the system.