20-letter words containing p, o, r, t, l, y
- marginal probability — (in a multivariate distribution) the probability of one variable taking a specific value irrespective of the values of the others
- methyl propyl ketone — a colorless, slightly water-soluble liquid, C 5 H 1 0 O, used chiefly as a solvent, especially in lacquers.
- military superiority — the power, strength, or numbers of armed forces of a country viewed as an advantage over another country
- missionary apostolic — an honorary title conferred by the pope on certain missionaries.
- multipart stationery — continuous stationery comprising two or more sheets, either carbonless or with carbon paper between the sheets
- multiple personality — a rare disorder in which an individual displays several functionally dissociated personalities, each of a complexity comparable to that of a normal individual.
- multistep hydroplane — a motorship having a flat bottom built as a series of planes inclined forward, the ship planing on each from stem to stern as its speed increases.
- multistorey car park — a car park consisting of several levels
- neuropsychiatrically — In terms of neuropsychiatry.
- occupational therapy — a form of therapy in which patients are encouraged to engage in vocational tasks or expressive activities, as art or dance, usually in a social setting.
- operational strategy — a plan or set of plans for successfully running a business, etc
- ophthalmodynamometer — a device for determining the nearest point of ocular convergence.
- peremptory challenge — a formal objection to the service of a juror by a party to a criminal prosecution or a civil action that requires no showing of cause.
- peroxyacetyl nitrate — an unstable nitrogen compound, found in certain types of smog, that is an irritant, esp. to the eyes and to plants
- personality disorder — any of a group of mental disorders characterized by deeply ingrained maladaptive patterns of behavior and personality style, which are usually recognizable as early as adolescence and are often lifelong in duration.
- phenylpropyl acetate — a colorless, water-insoluble liquid, C 1 0 H 1 2 O 2 , used chiefly in perfumery.
- photophosphorylation — phosphorylation that utilizes light as a source of energy, as in the formation of ATP from ADP and phosphorus during photosynthesis.
- phthalocyanine green — a pigment used in painting, derived from chlorinated copper phthalocyanine and characterized chiefly by its intense green color and permanence.
- physical double star — two stars that appear as one if not viewed through a telescope with adequate magnification, such as two stars that are separated by a great distance but are nearly in line with each other and an observer (optical double star) or those that are relatively close together and comprise a single physical system (physical double star)
- physical meteorology — the branch of meteorology dealing with the study of optical, electrical, acoustical, and thermodynamic phenomena in the atmosphere, including the physics of clouds and precipitation.
- planetary precession — the small component of the precession of the equinoxes contributed by the motion of the ecliptic, the change in orientation of the plane of the earth's orbit being produced by the gravitational attraction of the planets.
- polyanthus narcissus — a Eurasian amaryllidaceous plant, Narcissus tazetta, having clusters of small yellow or white fragrant flowers
- polyconic projection — a conic projection in which the parallels are arcs of circles that are not concentric but are equally spaced along the central straight meridian, all other meridians being curves equally spaced along the parallels.
- polymorphic function — a function in a computer program that can deal with a number of different types of data
- portal-to-portal pay — payment, as to a miner or factory worker, that includes compensation for time spent on the employer's premises in preparation for a work shift, in travel from the entrance to the assigned work area and back, etc.: Because workers must change their clothes and pick up tools prior to the work shift, they are demanding portal-to-portal pay.
- portfolio employment — the practice of working for several employers simultaneously rather than working full-time for a single employer
- positive electricity — the electricity present in a body or substance that has a deficiency of electrons, as the electricity developed on glass when rubbed with silk.
- postal delivery zone — zone (def 10).
- primary optical area — a point in or toward the upper left-hand corner of a printed page, advertisement, or the like, looked at first in reading. Abbreviation: POA.
- primitive polynomial — a polynomial that has content equal to 1. Compare content1 (def 11a).
- probability function — the function the values of which are probabilities of the distinct outcomes of a discrete random variable
- property development — the business of buying land and buildings and then making improvements to them so that their selling price exceeds the price paid for them
- property speculation — the buying or selling of property in the hope of deriving capital gains
- propylphenyl acetate — phenylpropyl acetate.
- prothonotary warbler — a wood warbler, Protonotaria citrea, of the eastern U.S., having an orange-yellow head and underparts, and bluish-gray wings and tail.
- psychiatric hospital — institution treating mental disorders
- psychomotor epilepsy — temporal-lobe epilepsy.
- recreational therapy — therapy by means of recreational activities engaged in by the patient
- relative probability — a measure or estimate of the degree of confidence one may have in the occurrence of an event, defined as the limit of the proportion observed in a sample as the sample size tends to infinity
- royal leamington spa — a city in Warwickshire, central England: health resort.
- schizoid personality — sb with identity disorder
- spanish oyster plant — a composite plant, Scolymus hispanicus, of southern Europe, having spiny, thistlelike leaf margins, small yellow flowers, and an edible root.
- state highway patrol — a state's road traffic police
- subscription library — a commercial lending library
- synoptic meteorology — a branch of meteorology analyzing data collected simultaneously over a wide region, for the purpose of weather forecasting.
- teletype corporation — (company) The company which made Teletype teletypewriters. Address: Skokie, Illinois, USA.
- to clean up your act — If someone who has been behaving badly cleans up their act, they start to behave in a more acceptable or responsible way.
- to keep your balance — If you keep your balance, for example, when standing in a moving vehicle, you remain steady and do not fall over. If you lose your balance, you become unsteady and fall over.
- to line your pockets — If you say that someone is lining their own or someone else's pockets, you disapprove of them because they are making money dishonestly or unfairly.
- to pull your punches — If you say that someone does not pull their punches when they are criticizing a person or thing, you mean that they say exactly what they think, even though this might upset or offend people.