16-letter words containing r, d, a
- oxidation number — the state of an element or ion in a compound with regard to the electrons gained or lost by the element or ion in the reaction that formed the compound, expressed as a positive or negative number indicating the ionic charge of the element or ion.
- padded shoulders — (on a garment) shoulders lined, stuffed, or filled out with soft material, esp in order to give them a higher or wider shape
- paediatric nurse — a nurse who specializes in the care of children
- painted trillium — a North American trillium, Trillium undulatum, having white flowers streaked with pink or purple.
- para-phenetidine — a colorless organic liquid, C 8 H 1 1 NO, used chiefly in its para form (para-phenetidine) in the synthesis of phenacetin, dyes, and other compounds.
- paradigmatically — of or relating to a paradigm.
- paraformaldehyde — a white, crystalline polymer of formaldehyde, (HCOH) n , from which it is obtained by evaporation of the aqueous solution: used chiefly as an antiseptic.
- parallelepipedon — a prism with six faces, all parallelograms.
- partial ordering — a relation defined on a set, having the properties that each element is in relation to itself, the relation is transitive, and if two elements are in relation to each other, the two elements are equal.
- parts of lindsey — an area in E England constituting a former administrative division of Lincolnshire
- pass-band filter — band-pass filter
- patched-together — makeshift; roughly made from disparate elements
- pays de la loire — a region of W France, on the Bay of Biscay: generally low-lying, drained by the River Loire and its tributaries; agricultural
- pearls of wisdom — good advice, wise words
- peegee hydrangea — a widely cultivated hydrangea, Hydrangea paniculata grandiflora, having pyramidal clusters of persistent flowers that are white on opening and turn pinkish as they mature.
- pencil and paper — An archaic information storage and transmission device that works by depositing smears of graphite on bleached wood pulp. More recent developments in paper-based technology include improved "write-once" update devices which use tiny rolling heads similar to mouse balls to deposit coloured pigment. All these devices require an operator skilled at so-called "handwriting" technique. These technologies are ubiquitous outside hackerdom, but nearly forgotten inside it. Most hackers had terrible handwriting to begin with, and years of keyboarding tend to have encouraged it to degrade further. Perhaps for this reason, hackers deprecate pencil-and-paper technology and often resist using it in any but the most trivial contexts.
- perez de cuellar — Javier [hah-vyer] /hɑˈvyɛr/ (Show IPA), born 1920, Peruvian diplomat: secretary-general of the United Nations 1982–91; prime minister of Peru 2000–2001.
- perforated ulcer — an ulcer that bursts through the stomach wall and leaks food and gastric juices into the abdominal cavity
- performance bond — contract bond.
- periodic decimal — repeating decimal.
- periodic tenancy — the letting of a dwelling for a repeated short term, as by the week, month, or quarter, with no end date
- permanganic acid — an acid, HMnO 4 , known only in solution.
- perpendicularity — vertical; straight up and down; upright.
- personal details — details about a person such as their name and address
- persulfuric acid — Also called Caro's acid, permonosulfuric acid, peroxymonosulfuric acid, peroxysulfuric acid. a white, crystalline solid, H 2 SO 5 , used as an oxidizing agent for certain organic compounds.
- pharmacodynamics — the branch of pharmacology dealing with the course of action, effect, and breakdown of drugs within the body.
- phase difference — the difference between two sinusoidally varying quantities that have the same frequency, measured either as an angle or a time
- phonocardiograph — an instrument for graphically recording the sound of the heartbeat.
- phosphorous acid — a colorless, crystalline, water-soluble acid of phosphorus, H 3 PO 3 , from which phosphites are derived.
- physical address — (memory management) The address presented to a computer's main memory in a virtual memory system, in contrast to the virtual address which is the address generated by the CPU. A memory management unit translates virtual addresses into physical addresses.
- phytoremediation — a process of decontaminating soil or water by using plants and trees to absorb or break down pollutants.
- picture postcard — postcard (def 1).
- pierce's disease — a disease of grapes caused by a rickettsialike organism, characterized by dwarfing of vines, mottling of woody tissues, and plant death.
- pinot chardonnay — Chardonnay.
- pithecanthropoid — of, relating to, or resembling the former genus Pithecanthropus or one of its members.
- platinum-iridium — (standard) A standard, against which all others of the same category are measured. Usage: silly. The notion is that one of whatever it is has actually been cast in platinum-iridium alloy and placed in the vault beside the Standard Kilogram at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures near Paris, as the bar defining the standard metre once was. "This garbage collection algorithm has been tested against the platinum-iridium cons cell in Paris." Compare golden.
- play one's cards — to carry out one's plans; take action (esp in the phrase play one's cards right)
- pocket billiards — pool2 (def 1).
- polar coordinate — Usually, polar coordinates. one of two coordinates used to locate a point in a plane by the length of its radius vector and the angle this vector makes with the polar axis (polar angle)
- polyacrylic acid — a polymer of acrylic acid used as a sizing agent in the manufacture of nylon and other synthetic textiles.
- polyhedral angle — a configuration consisting of the lateral faces of a polyhedron around one of its vertices. The portion of a pyramid including one of its points is such a configuration.
- ponderosa (pine) — a yellow pine (Pinus ponderosa) of W North America, valued for its timber
- portmanteau word — a case or bag to carry clothing in while traveling, especially a leather trunk or suitcase that opens into two halves.
- portuguese india — a former Portuguese overseas territory on the W coast of India, consisting of the districts of Gôa, Daman, and Diu: annexed by India December 1961. Capital: Gôa.
- posigrade rocket — an auxiliary rocket used to separate the sections of a multistage rocket, fired in the direction of flight.
- praetorian guard — the bodyguard of a military commander, especially the imperial guard stationed in Rome.
- predetermination — to settle or decide in advance: He had predetermined his answer to the offer.
- predispositional — the fact or condition of being predisposed: a predisposition to think optimistically.
- prescription pad — a pad of prescriptions used by doctors, etc
- pressure-treated — (of wood) treated with a chemical or chemicals applied under pressure to reduce such problems as insect infestation, decay, and rotting.