15-letter words containing p, t, e, r
- brake parachute — a parachute attached to the rear of a vehicle and opened to assist braking
- break-out group — a group of people who detach themselves from a larger group or meeting in order to hold separate discussions
- breakeven point — a point at which the total revenue and total cost are equal
- breathing space — A breathing space is a short period of time between two activities in which you can recover from the first activity and prepare for the second one.
- brocken specter — an optical phenomenon sometimes occurring at high altitudes when the image of an observer placed between the sun and a cloud is projected on the cloud as a greatly magnified shadow.
- broken pediment — a pediment, as over a doorway or window, having its raking cornice interrupted at the crown or apex.
- brussels carpet — a worsted carpet with a heavy pile formed by uncut loops of wool on a linen warp
- brussels sprout — Brussels sprouts are vegetables that look like tiny cabbages.
- building permit — a permit for construction work
- buryat republic — a constituent republic of SE central Russia, on Lake Baikal: mountainous, with forests covering over half the total area. Capital: Ulan-Ude. Pop: 981 000 (2002). Area: 351 300 sq km (135 608 sq miles)
- butler's pantry — a pantry in a large house where crockery, glassware, cutlery, etc is kept
- butter spreader — a small knife with a wide, flat blade, as for spreading butter on bread or rolls.
- cabinet picture — a small easel painting, usually under 3 feet (0.9 meters) in width and formerly exhibited in a cabinet or special room.
- cabinet scraper — a scraper used in preparing a wood surface for sanding.
- calf diphtheria — a disease of the throat in young calves caused by Fusobacterium necrophorum, resulting in breathing difficulty and a painful cough
- calliper splint — a splint consisting of two metal rods with straps attached, for supporting or exerting tension on the leg
- camera operator — a person who operates a film or television camera
- camphorated oil — a liniment consisting of camphor and peanut oil, used as a counterirritant
- cape finisterre — a headland in NW Spain: the westernmost point of the Spanish mainland
- capital gearing — the ratio of a company's debt capital to its equity capital
- capital letters — a letter of the alphabet that usually differs from its corresponding lowercase letter in form and height, as A, B, Q, and R as distinguished from a, b, q, and r : used as the initial letter of a proper name, the first word of a sentence, etc.
- car transporter — a vehicle for carrying automobiles
- caribbean plate — a major tectonic division of the earth's crust, encompassing the Central American portion of North America, the Caribbean Sea, and the islands of Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico, as well as the Leeward and Windward Islands; bordered north and south by the North and South American Plates and west by the Cocos Plate.
- carpentersville — a city in NE Illinois, near Chicago.
- carpometacarpal — Anatomy. of or relating to the carpus and the metacarpus.
- carpometacarpus — a bone in the wing of a bird that consists of the metacarpal bones and some of the carpal bones fused together
- cartesian plane — Usually, Cartesian coordinates. a member of a system of coordinates for locating a point on a plane (Cartesian plane) by its distance from each of two intersecting lines, or in space by its distance from each of three planes intersecting at a point.
- cartesian space — ordinary two- or three-dimensional space.
- cartridge paper — an uncoated type of drawing or printing paper, usually made from bleached sulphate wood pulp with an addition of esparto grass
- cassette player — A cassette player is a machine that is used for playing cassettes and sometimes also recording them.
- cast aspersions — If you cast aspersions on someone or something, you suggest that they are not very good in some way.
- castanospermine — a substance obtained from the Australian chestnut or black bean tree
- casters-up mode — [IBM, probably from slang belly up] Yet another synonym for "broken" or "down". Usually connotes a major failure. A system (hardware or software) which is "down" may be already being restarted before the failure is noticed, whereas one which is "casters up" is usually a good excuse to take the rest of the day off (as long as you're not responsible for fixing it).
- castner process — a process for extracting sodium from sodium hydroxide, devised by Hamilton Young Castner (1858–98)
- cell disruption — Cell disruption is when a biological material becomes smaller to release proteins and enzymes.
- centipede grass — a slow-growing grass, Eremochloa ophiuroides, introduced into the U.S. from China and used for lawns in warm areas.
- cephalochordate — any chordate animal of the subphylum Cephalochordata, having a fishlike body and no vertebral column; lancelet
- cephalothoracic — the anterior part of the body in certain arachnids and crustaceans, consisting of the coalesced head and thorax.
- cephalothoraxes — Plural form of cephalothorax.
- ceteris paribus — other things being equal
- character piece — a short, simple piece, usually for piano, of a type developed chiefly during the 19th century, often of a descriptive or seemingly improvisatory character.
- character space — a space in a computer file into which a character can be fitted or which can be left blank
- charleston peak — a mountain in SE Nevada: highest peak in the Spring Mountains. 11,919 feet (3635 meters).
- check protector — checkwriter.
- chemoautotrophs — Plural form of chemoautotroph.
- chemoautotrophy — the process of deriving energy through oxidizing inorganic chemical compounds, as opposed to photosynthesis
- chemolithotroph — Chemoautotroph.
- chemoprevention — the prevention of disease, esp cancer, by means of chemical agents
- chemopsychiatry — the study and application of chemical substances in psychiatry
- chest protector — a protective pad worn over the chest by a catcher or umpire to shield the body from foul tips.