10-letter words containing p, l, a, i
- patrilocal — virilocal.
- patrocliny — inheritance in which the traits of the offspring are derived primarily from the paternal parent (opposed to matrocliny).
- patrolling — (of a police officer, soldier, etc.) to pass along a road, beat, etc., or around or through a specified area in order to maintain order and security.
- payability — to be paid; due: a loan payable in 30 days.
- pea weevil — a seed beetle, Bruchus pisorum, the larvae of which live in and feed on the seeds of the pea plant.
- peanut oil — a yellow to greenish oil expressed or extracted from peanuts, used in cookery, as a vehicle for medicines, and in the manufacture of margarine and soap.
- pearl city — a city on S Oahu, in central Hawaii.
- pearlstein — Philip, born 1924, U.S. painter.
- peccadillo — a very minor or slight sin or offense; a trifling fault.
- pectoralis — either of two muscles on each side of the upper and anterior part of the thorax, the action of the larger (pectoralis major) assisting in drawing the shoulder forward and rotating the arm inward, and the action of the smaller (pectoralis minor) assisting in drawing the shoulder downward and forward.
- peculiarly — strange; queer; odd: peculiar happenings.
- pedantical — ostentatious in one's learning.
- pediculate — of or related to the Pediculati, a group of teleost fishes, characterized by the elongated base of their pectoral fins, simulating an arm or peduncle.
- pedipalpus — the second paired appendage in Arachnida
- pedophilia — sexual desire in an adult for a child.
- pelagius i — died a.d. 561, pope 556–561.
- pelargonic — of or derived from a pelargonium or pelargonic acid.
- penetralia — the innermost parts of a building
- peninsular — an area of land almost completely surrounded by water except for an isthmus connecting it with the mainland.
- pentaploid — having a chromosome number that is five times the haploid number.
- pentapolis — a group or federation of five cities; esp in reference to various ancient (Biblical and Classical) federations of five cities or towns
- perfoliate — having the stem apparently passing through the leaf, owing to congenital union of the basal edges of the leaf round the stem.
- periapical — encompassing or surrounding the tip of the root of a tooth.
- periclinal — of or relating to a pericline
- peridental — periodontal.
- perigonial — of or pertaining to a perigon
- perihelial — the point in the orbit of a planet or comet at which it is nearest to the sun.
- perikaryal — of or pertaining to the perikaryon of a nerve; involving or occurring within a perikaryon
- perimetral — the border or outer boundary of a two-dimensional figure.
- perineural — located around a nerve or bunch of nerves; surrounding a nerve
- periodical — a magazine or other journal that is issued at regularly recurring intervals.
- peripheral — pertaining to, situated in, or constituting the periphery: peripheral resistance on the outskirts of the battle area.
- peripteral — (of a classical temple or other structure) surrounded by a single row of columns.
- perishable — subject to decay, ruin, or destruction: perishable fruits and vegetables.
- peritoneal — the serous membrane lining the abdominal cavity and investing its viscera.
- permillage — a rate or proportion per thousand. Compare percentage (def 1).
- persiflage — light, bantering talk or writing.
- personalia — the accoutrements, concerns, or intimations that are personal to one
- pestalozzi — Johann Heinrich [German yoh-hahn hahyn-rikh] /German ˈyoʊ hɑn ˈhaɪn rɪx/ (Show IPA), 1746–1827, Swiss educational reformer.
- phaelonion — an item of religious clothing, worn in the Eastern Church, and taking the form of a garment without sleeves for the upper body, rather like a chasuble
- phalangist — a member of a Lebanese Christian paramilitary organization founded in 1936 and originally based on similar ideas to the fascist Falange in Spain
- phallicism — worship of the phallus, especially as symbolic of power or of the generative principle of nature.
- phalloidin — a peptide toxin, responsible for the toxicity of the death cap mushroom, Amanita phalloides
- phatically — in a phatic manner
- phialiform — having a form like that of a saucer
- philatelic — the collecting of stamps and other postal matter as a hobby or an investment.
- philippian — a ruined city in NE Greece, in Macedonia: Octavian and Mark Antony defeated Brutus and Cassius here, 42 b.c.; the site of one of the first Christian churches in Europe, founded by St. Paul.
- philippina — a German custom in which nuts containing two kernels are saved and one of these double kernels (called a philippina) is given to a person of the opposite sex. The next time the two people meet, the first one who calls 'philippina' must be bought a present (also called a philippina) by the other
- philistian — an ancient country on the E coast of the Mediterranean.
- philomathy — an enjoyment of and passion for learning new facts and acquiring new knowledge