18-letter words containing p, i, l
- bipolar transistor — (electronics) A transistor made from a sandwich of n- and p-type semiconductor material: either npn or pnp. The middle section is known as the "base" and the other two as the "collector" and "emitter". When used as an amplifying element, the base to emitter junction is in a "forward-biased" (conducting) condition, and the base to collector junction is "reverse-biased" or non-conducting. Small changes in the base to emitter current (the input signal) cause either holes (for pnp devices) or free electrons (for npn) to enter the base from the emitter. The attracting voltage of the collector causes the majority of these charges to cross into and be collected by the collector, resulting in amplification. Contrast field effect transistor.
- birth control pill — an oral contraceptive for women, containing the hormones estrogen and progesterone or progesterone alone, that inhibits ovulation, fertilization, or implantation of a fertilized ovum, causing temporary infertility.
- birth-control pill — an oral contraceptive for women, containing the hormones estrogen and progesterone or progesterone alone, that inhibits ovulation, fertilization, or implantation of a fertilized ovum, causing temporary infertility.
- bitwise complement — The bitwise complement of a bit field is a bit field of the same length but with each zero changed to a one and vice versa. This is the same as the ones complement of a binary integer.
- blocking capacitor — a capacitor that blocks the passage of direct current but allows alternating current to pass
- blue-plate special — an inexpensive restaurant meal served at a fixed price on a large plate, originally blue
- bomb disposal unit — a unit of the police or armed services specializing in bomb disposal
- bottlenose dolphin — any dolphin of the genus Tursiops, esp T. truncatus, some of which have been kept in captivity and trained to perform tricks
- brazilian sapphire — a blue variety of tourmaline used as a gem: not a true sapphire.
- bubble-jet printer — an ink-jet printer that heats the ink before printing
- burkitt's lymphoma — a cancer characterized by tumors containing lymphoid cells, occurring esp. in children, in the jaw, eyes, and internal organs: it is associated with the Epstein-Barr virus
- byte-code compiler — (programming, tool) A compiler which outputs a program in some kind of byte-code. Compare: byte-code interpreter.
- calcium propionate — a white, water-soluble powder, CaC 6 H 10 O 4 , used in bakery products to inhibit the growth of fungi.
- calliper compasses — an instrument for measuring internal or external dimensions, consisting of two steel legs hinged together
- cape breton island — an island off SE Canada, in NE Nova Scotia, separated from the mainland by the Strait of Canso: its easternmost point is Cape Breton. Pop: 132 298 (2006). Area: 10 280 sq km (3970 sq miles)
- capital allowances — the money spent by a company on fixed assets which can be taken off the profits of the company before tax is imposed
- capital investment — the money that is invested in something
- capital punishment — Capital punishment is punishment which involves the legal killing of a person who has committed a serious crime such as murder.
- castration complex — an unconscious fear of having one's genitals removed, as a punishment for wishing to have sex with a parent
- catapult launching — the fact of launching aircraft into the air by a device installed in warships
- caterpillar hunter — any of various carabid beetles of the genus Calosoma, of Europe and North America, which prey on the larvae of moths and butterflies
- central projection — a projection of one plane onto a second plane such that a point on the first plane and its image on the second plane lie on a straight line through a fixed point not on either plane.
- cepheid (variable) — any of a class of pulsating, yellow, supergiant stars whose brightness varies in regular periods: from the period-luminosity relation, the distance of such a star can be determined
- chagos archipelago — group of islands in the Indian Ocean 1,180 mi (1,899 km) northeast of Mauritius, comprising the British Indian Ocean Territory: chief island, Diego Garcia
- checkpoint charlie — a crossing between East and West Berlin during the Cold War
- chemical potential — a thermodynamic function of a substance in a system that is the partial differential of the Gibbs function of the system with respect to the number of moles of the substance
- chemical pregnancy — a pregnancy that is confirmed by a pregnancy test but not by clinical signs and terminates before clinical signs can be observed.
- child psychologist — a psychologist who specializes in treating children
- christopher sholes — Christopher Latham [ley-thuh m,, -th uh m] /ˈleɪ θəm,, -ðəm/ (Show IPA), 1819–90, U.S. inventor of the typewriter.
- chromolithographer — One engaged in chromolithography.
- chromolithographic — Pertaining to, or made by, chromolithography.
- claustrophobically — In a claustrophobic way.
- clinical pathology — the branch of pathology dealing with the study of disease and disease processes by means of chemical, microscopic, and serologic examinations.
- closed corporation — a corporation the stock of which is owned by a small number of persons and is rarely traded on the open market
- closed scholarship — a scholarship for which only certain people, such as those from a particular school or with a particular surname, are eligible
- cobalt violet deep — a medium to strong purple color.
- cock-a-leekie soup — a soup made from a fowl boiled with leeks
- community hospital — (in the US) a local hospital
- community policing — Community policing is a system in which policemen work only in one particular area of the community, so that everyone knows them.
- companion planting — the cultivation of different types of plants in close proximity so as to benefit each other, as planting a deer-repellent plant in a flower garden.
- compartmentalizing — Present participle of compartmentalize.
- compassionlessness — The quality, state, or condition of being compassionless; uncompassion.
- complementarianism — The doctrine that genders in a society should have complementary roles.
- complexity measure — (algorithm) A quantity describing the complexity of a computation.
- compliance officer — a specialist, usually a lawyer, employed by a financial group operating in a variety of fields and for multiple clients to ensure that no conflict of interest arises and that all obligations and regulations are complied with
- comprehensibleness — The quality of being comprehensible; comprehensibility.
- conceptual realism — the doctrine that universals have real and independent existence.
- conceptualisations — Plural form of conceptualisation.
- conceptualizations — Plural form of conceptualization.
- control experiment — an experiment designed to check or correct the results of another experiment by removing the variable or variables operating in that other experiment. The comparison obtained is an indication or measurement of the effect of the variables concerned