17-letter words containing p, o, t, i, e
- the upper regions — the sky; heavens
- the-metamorphosis — a short story (1915) by Franz Kafka.
- thematic approach — teaching organized by theme rather than by school subject
- therapeutic touch — the laying on of hands by a healer
- thermal expansion — expansion caused by heat
- thermal pollution — a rise in the temperature of rivers or lakes that is injurious to water-dwelling life and is caused by the disposal of heated industrial waste water or water from the cooling towers of nuclear power plants.
- thermoperiodicity — the effect on an organism of rhythmic fluctuations in temperature.
- thiopental sodium — a barbiturate, C 11 H 18 N 2 NaO 2 S, used as an anesthetic in surgery and, in psychiatry, for narcoanalysis and to stimulate recall of past events.
- throat microphone — a microphone worn around the throat and actuated by vibrations of the larynx, used when background noise would obscure the sound of speech, as in an airplane cockpit.
- to eat humble pie — If you eat humble pie, you speak or behave in a way which tells people that you admit you were wrong about something.
- to little purpose — with little (or no) result or effect; pointlessly
- to lose your grip — If you lose your grip, you become less efficient and less confident, and less able to deal with things.
- to open your mind — If something opens your mind to new ideas or experiences, it makes you more willing to accept them or try them.
- to play it by ear — If you play it by ear, you decide what to say or do in a situation by responding to events rather than by following a plan which you have decided on in advance.
- to play the field — If someone plays the field, they have a number of different romantic or sexual relationships.
- to play with fire — If you say that someone is playing with fire, you mean that they are doing something dangerous that may result in great harm for them and cause many problems.
- to prime the pump — To prime the pump means to do something to encourage the success or growth of something, especially the economy.
- top-security wing — a wing of a prison, mental hospital, etc that has a very high level of precautions against escape
- topological space — a set with a collection of subsets or open sets satisfying the properties that the union of open sets is an open set, the intersection of two open sets is an open set, and the given set and the empty set are open sets.
- traffic policeman — a policeman controlling traffic, esp while stationed at an intersection, or enforcing traffic regulations
- travelling people — Gypsies or other itinerant people: a term used esp by such people of themselves
- triskaidekaphobia — fear or a phobia concerning the number 13.
- tropical maritime — a type of warm, wet air mass originating at low latitudes over ocean areas
- tropical medicine — the branch of medicine dealing with the study and treatment of diseases occurring in the tropics.
- ultrametamorphism — metamorphism during which the temperature of a rock exceeds its melting point.
- uncompassionately — having or showing compassion: a compassionate person; a compassionate letter.
- uncooperativeness — working or acting together willingly for a common purpose or benefit.
- undercompensation — to compensate or pay less than is fair, customary, or expected.
- unemployment line — When people talk about the unemployment line, they are talking about the state of being unemployed, especially when saying how many people are unemployed.
- unproportionately — proportioned; being in due proportion; proportional.
- upper paleolithic — See under Paleolithic.
- urban exploration — a recreational activity in which people explore derelict urban structures such as abandoned sewers or underground railways or attempt to access areas which are closed to the public such as the roofs of skyscrapers
- vacant possession — ownership of an unoccupied house or property, any previous owner or tenant having departed
- vitamin b complex — an important group of water-soluble vitamins containing vitamin B 1 , vitamin B 2 , etc.
- vittore carpaccio — Vittore [veet-taw-re] /vitˈtɔ rɛ/ (Show IPA), c1450–1525, Venetian painter.
- warehouse receipt — a receipt for goods placed in a warehouse.
- weapons inspector — a person who inspects a country's weapons
- wedding reception — party after a marriage
- well-proportioned — adjusted to proper proportion or relation.
- wild sweet potato — man-of-the-earth.
- winter heliotrope — a creeping perennial, Petasites fragrans, related to the butterbur, having lilac to heliotrope-coloured flowers smelling of vanilla: found chiefly on road verges
- wireless operator — a radio operator
- without exception — all included
- without prejudice — fairly
- wood preservative — a coating applied to timber as a protection against decay, insects, weather, etc
- xerox corporation — (company) A US company, founded in 1906, specialising in document related technology and services including photocopiers, printers and office software. Xerox's acquisition of Affiliated Computer Services added business process and document management to their product range. In 2013 they have 140,000 employees. Their research centre, XEROX PARC, prototyped several revolutionary advances in computing, which the company failed to exploit, including the WIMP desktop metaphor and XEROX Network Services.
- yield the palm to — to acknowledge the superiority of; admit to defeat by
- zero-point energy — energy in a substance at the temperature of absolute zero.
- zygomatic process — any of several bony processes that articulate with the cheekbone.