17-letter words containing r, i, d
- angiocardiography — the making of X-ray pictures of the heart and its blood vessels after injecting a radiopaque substance
- angra do heroismo — a port in the Azores, on Terceira Island. Pop: 35 581 (2001)
- angry fruit salad — (abuse) A bad visual-interface design that uses too many colours. (This term derives, of course, from the bizarre day-glo colours found in canned fruit salad). Too often one sees similar effects from interface designers using colour window systems such as X; there is a tendency to create displays that are flashy and attention-getting but uncomfortable for long-term use.
- anionic detergent — any of a class of synthetic compounds whose anions are alkali salts, as soap, or whose ions are ammonium salts.
- anthraquinone dye — any of the class of dyes derived from anthraquinone, used for dyeing textiles, especially cotton, rayon, and silk.
- anthropomorphized — Simple past tense and past participle of anthropomorphize.
- antidazzle mirror — a rear-view mirror for road vehicles that only partially reflects headlights behind
- antifederal party — the party that, before 1789, opposed the adoption of the proposed Constitution and after that favored its strict construction.
- antiprostaglandin — A prostaglandin inhibitor.
- appointed actuary — An appointed actuary is an actuary appointed by a life insurance company, whose main role is to carry out a regular valuation of the reserves held to pay future policy benefits.
- archimedes' screw — an ancient type of water-lifting device making use of a spiral passage in an inclined cylinder. The water is raised when the spiral is rotated
- aromatic compound — an organic compound that contains one or more benzene or equivalent heterocyclic rings: many such compounds have an agreeable odor.
- arranged marriage — In an arranged marriage, the parents choose the person who their son or daughter will marry.
- arsenic disulfide — an orange-red, water-insoluble, poisonous powder, As 4 S 4 , As 2 S 2 , or AsS, used chiefly in the manufacture of fireworks.
- articulated joint — Anatomy. a flexible joint.
- articulated lorry — a lorry made in two separate sections, a tractor and a trailer, connected by a pivoted bar
- artificial kidney — a mechanical apparatus for performing haemodialysis
- artistic director — a person in charge of the artistic direction of a theatre company
- ascertained goods — specific goods
- assembly district — one of a fixed number of districts into which a state is divided, each district electing one member to the lower house of the state legislature.
- assistant driller — An assistant driller is someone whose job is to help a driller, and work at the drilling controls on the rig floor.
- at swords' points — ready to quarrel or fight
- audience research — research into the make-up and habits of the audience of a particular television or radio programme or network
- audio description — a facility provided for visually impaired people in which a film, television programme, or play is described through audio technology
- augmented reality — an artificial environment created through the combination of real-world and computer-generated data
- aurea mediocritas — the golden mean.
- average deviation — a measure of dispersion, computed by taking the arithmetic mean of the absolute values of the deviations of the functional values from some central value, usually the mean or median.
- aviation industry — a collective term for the companies involved in air transport
- avoirdupois pound — a pound weighing 16 ounces
- axis of ordinates — y-axis (def 1).
- axis-of-ordinates — y-axis (def 1).
- backward analysis — (theory) An analysis to determine properties of the inputs of a program from properties or context of the outputs. E.g. if the output of this function is needed then this argument is needed. Compare forward analysis.
- backward chaining — (algorithm) An algorithm for proving a goal by recursively breaking it down into sub-goals and trying to prove these until facts are reached. Facts are goals with no sub-goals which are therefore always true. Backward training is the program execution mechanism used by most logic programming language like Prolog. Opposite: forward chaining.
- bacteriorhodopsin — a purple protein containing retinal and found in the plasma membrane of certain bacteria (genus Halobacterium): it directly supplies electrochemical energy from sunlight
- balanced literacy — a method of teaching reading in which phonics and whole language approaches are both used to maximize student learning.
- bar-tailed godwit — a large wader, Limosa lapponica, of the family Scolopacidae which, in migrating from Alaska to New Zealand, makes the longest journey without stopping for food taken by any animal
- barbed wire fence — a fence constructed from strong wire that has sharply pointed barbs at close intervals along its length
- barbed-wire grass — an aromatic grass, Cymbopogon refractus, with groups of seed heads resembling barbed wire
- bari delle puglie — Italian name of Bari.
- barmecide (feast) — a pretended feast with no food
- barrel distortion — distortion of an image produced by an optical system that causes straight lines at image margins to bulge outwards
- bartholin's gland — either of two small glands near the vaginal opening: during sexual excitement they secrete a mucous lubricating substance
- base lending rate — a minimum interest rate on which financial institutions base the rates they use for lending
- baseboard heating — a heating system by pipes, through which steam or hot water circulates, near the base of the walls of rooms
- be a box of birds — to be very well indeed
- be running scared — If you say that a person or group is running scared, you mean that they are frightened of what someone might do to them or what might happen.
- be well rid of sb — If you say that someone is well rid of someone, you think it is good that the person has gone because you did not like them or you think they caused a lot of problems.
- beardmore glacier — one of the largest glaciers, in central Antarctica. About 125 miles (200 km) long.
- beer and skittles — enjoyment or pleasure
- belted kingfisher — a grayish-blue, North American kingfisher, Ceryle alcyon, having a white breast marked with a grayish-blue band.