17-letter words containing p, i, a, c, u
- newspaper cutting — clipping from a news publication
- olympic mountains — a mountain range in NW Washington: part of the Coast Range. Highest peak: Mount Olympus, 2427 m (7965 ft)
- olympic peninsula — a large peninsula of W Washington
- opportunistically — adhering to a policy of opportunism; practicing opportunism.
- optical computing — (hardware) (Or "Optical Signal Processing") Operating on data represented using electromagnetic radiation, e.g. visible light, instead of the electrical signals used in a conventional electronic digital computer. Electronic digital computers are built from transistors. These form components that store data and logic gates that perform the low-level Boolean operations such as AND, OR and NOT that are the basis of all digital computation. The optical equivalent requires material with a non-linear refractive index such that light beams can interact with each other to perform the same Boolean operations. Though the photons that carry optical signals offer some theoretical advantages over the electrons that carry electronic signals, there are many practical problems that would have to be overcome before optical computing could compete in terms of cost, power and speed.
- organ-pipe cactus — a treelike or columnar cactus, Lemaireocereus marginatus, of Mexico, having a central, erect spine surrounded by spreading spines in clusters of five to eight, and funnel-shaped, brownish-purple flowers.
- palace revolution — a challenge to or overthrow of a sovereign or other leader by members of the ruling family or group.
- papanicolaou test — Pap test.
- paratungstic acid — an oxyacid acid of tungsten. Formula: H10W12O14
- particularization — to make particular.
- per procurationem — by one acting as an agent; by proxy.
- pernicious anemia — Pernicious anemia is a very severe blood disease.
- perpetual spinach — a variety of spinach that keeps producing edible leaves
- perspicaciousness — having keen mental perception and understanding; discerning: to exhibit perspicacious judgment.
- phonological rule — an operation in generative phonology that substitutes one sound or class of sounds for another in a phonological derivation.
- phototherapeutics — the branch of therapeutics that deals with the curative use of light rays.
- physical pendulum — any apparatus consisting of a body of possibly irregular shape allowed to rotate freely about a horizontal axis on which it is pivoted (distinguished from simple pendulum).
- piccadilly circus — a traffic circle and open square in W London, England: theater and amusement center.
- picture messaging — Picture messaging is the sending of photographs or pictures from one mobile phone to another.
- pincushion cactus — any of various low-growing, spiny cacti of the genus Mammillaria.
- pinpoint accuracy — extreme accuracy
- pitot-static tube — a device combining a Pitot tube with a static tube: used to measure airspeed.
- pituitary extract — a preparation of the pituitary gland, used in medicine for the therapeutic effects of its hormones
- plastics industry — the industry that makes plastics
- pluvius insurance — insurance against rain
- point of purchase — designating or in use at a retail outlet where an item can be purchased; point-of-sale: point-of-purchase displays to entice the buyer.
- point-of-purchase — designating or in use at a retail outlet where an item can be purchased; point-of-sale: point-of-purchase displays to entice the buyer.
- police procedural — a mystery novel, film, or television drama that deals realistically with police work.
- political refugee — a person who has fled from a homeland because of political persecution.
- poststructuralism — a variation of structuralism, often seen as a critique, emphasizing plurality of meaning and instability of concepts that structuralism uses to define society, language, etc.
- potassium acetate — a white, crystalline, deliquescent, water-soluble powder, KC 2 H 3 O 2 , used chiefly as a reagent in analytical chemistry.
- potassium cyanide — a white, granular, water-soluble, poisonous powder, KCN, having a faint almondlike odor, used chiefly in metallurgy and photography.
- pre-communication — the act or process of communicating; fact of being communicated.
- pre-configuration — the relative disposition or arrangement of the parts or elements of a thing.
- pre-qualification — a quality, accomplishment, etc., that fits a person for some function, office, or the like.
- prerogative court — a former ecclesiastical court in England and Ireland for the trial of certain testamentary cases.
- pressurized cabin — the cabin of an aircraft in which the air has been pressurized
- primary education — junior, elementary schooling
- primary structure — Biochemistry. the basic sequence of amino acids in a polypeptide or protein.
- private education — education provided by a private individual or organization, rather than by the state or a public body
- probability curve — a curve that describes the distribution of probability over the values of a random variable.
- procurator fiscal — In the Scottish legal system, the procurator fiscal is a public official who puts people on trial.
- product liability — the responsibility of a manufacturer for injury or loss caused by its product.
- production values — the quality of a media production (such as a film) in regards to elements such as colours, quality, style, etc
- prostatic utricle — a small pouch near the prostate gland that opens into the urethra.
- pseudepigraphical — certain writings (other than the canonical books and the Apocrypha) professing to be Biblical in character.
- pseudo-biological — pertaining to biology.
- pseudo-democratic — pertaining to or of the nature of democracy or a democracy.
- pseudo-historical — of, pertaining to, treating, or characteristic of history or past events: historical records; historical research.
- pseudo-humanistic — a person having a strong interest in or concern for human welfare, values, and dignity.