16-letter words containing s, e, a, w
- most wanted list — an actual or supposed listing of the names of persons who are urgently being sought for a specific reason, as apprehension for an alleged crime.
- muddy the waters — If someone or something muddies the waters, they cause a situation or issue to seem less clear and less easy to understand.
- narrowmindedness — Alternative spelling of narrow-mindedness.
- network analysis — a mathematical method of analyzing complex problems, as in transportation or project scheduling, by representing the problem as a network of lines and nodes.
- network database — (database) A kind of database management system in which each record type can have multiple owners, e.g. orders are owned by both customers and products. This contrasts with a hierarchical database (one owner) or relational database (no explicit owner).
- new frontiersman — an advocate or follower of the New Frontier, especially one in public service.
- new jack (swing) — a style of rhythm-and-blues music blending rap, disco, funk, soul, etc. and characterized by aggressive, boastful, romantic lyrics
- new orleans jazz — the jazz originating in New Orleans from about 1914; traditional jazz
- new smyrna beach — a town in NE Florida.
- new year's (day) — Jan. 1, the first day of a calendar year, usually celebrated as a legal holiday
- newspaper office — an office where the editorial and production staff of a newspaper work
- newspaper report — a report published in a newspaper
- nine-days wonder — something that arouses great interest, but only for a short period
- observation ward — a ward in a hospital where patients are monitored
- offensive weapon — an instrument designed to be used in attack, or an object which may be used in attack
- okefenokee swamp — a large wooded swamp area in SE Georgia.
- on a world scale — in a way that involves the whole world
- optical tweezers — a laser device used to study, manipulate, or trap a microscopic object, as a microorganism or cell, with nanometer precision.
- packet switching — a method of efficient data transmission whereby the initial message is broken into relatively small units, or packets, that are routed independently and subsequently reassembled.
- packet-switching — a method of efficient data transmission whereby the initial message is broken into relatively small units, or packets, that are routed independently and subsequently reassembled.
- pearls of wisdom — good advice, wise words
- phillis wheatley — Phillis [fil-is] /ˈfɪl ɪs/ (Show IPA), 1753?–84, American poet, born in Africa; probably Senegal.
- place of worship — religious house: church, temple
- poiseuille's law — the law that the velocity of a liquid flowing through a capillary is directly proportional to the pressure of the liquid and the fourth power of the radius of the capillary and is inversely proportional to the viscosity of the liquid and the length of the capillary.
- poor boy sweater — a snug-fitting, pullover sweater with ribbing on both the body and sleeves, worn by girls and women.
- poor white trash — white trash.
- purchasing power — Also called buying power. the ability to purchase goods and services.
- queen anne's war — the war (1702–13) in which England and its American colonies opposed France and its Indian allies. It constituted the American phase of the War of the Spanish Succession.
- rainbow seaperch — an embiotocid fish, Hypsurus caryi, living off the Pacific coast of North America, having red, orange, and blue stripes on the body.
- raise an eyebrow — If something causes you to raise an eyebrow or to raise your eyebrows, it causes you to feel surprised or disapproving.
- raspberry sawfly — a black sawfly, Monophadnoides geniculatus, the larvae of which feed on the leaves of the raspberry and blackberry.
- rattlesnake weed — a hawkweed, Hieracium venosum, of eastern North America, whose leaves and root are thought to possess medicinal properties.
- seaside knotweed — See under knotweed.
- second world war — World War II.
- secondary growth — an increase in the thickness of the shoots and roots of a vascular plant as a result of the formation of new cells in the cambium.
- seven weeks' war — the war (1866) in which Prussia, Italy, and some minor German states opposed Austria, Saxony, Hanover, and the states of southern Germany.
- seven years' war — the war (1756–63) in which England and Prussia defeated France, Austria, Russia, Sweden, and Saxony.
- seward peninsula — a peninsula in W Alaska, on Bering Strait.
- shaft horsepower — the horsepower delivered to the driving shaft of an engine, as measured by a torsion meter. Abbreviation: shp, SHP.
- shakedown cruise — extortion, as by blackmail or threats of violence.
- shared ownership — (in Britain) a form of house purchase whereby the purchaser buys a proportion of the dwelling, usually from a local authority or housing association, and rents the rest
- sheet-web weaver — any of numerous spiders of the family Linyphiidae, characterized by a closely woven, sheetlike web.
- shorthand writer — a person trained to write in shorthand
- show cause order — a court order issued to a party in a lawsuit, directing that party to appear to give reasons why a certain action should not be put into effect by the court.
- show-me attitude — a sceptical frame of mind
- showcase project — a project designed to attract attention and show off the abilities of the people involved in it
- showy crab apple — a large Japanese bush or tree, Malus floribunda, of the rose family, having red fruit and rose-colored flowers that fade to white.
- sir isaac newton — Sir Isaac, 1642–1727, English philosopher and mathematician: formulator of the law of gravitation.
- sleep-wake cycle — Physiology. the species-specific biological pattern of alternating sleep and wakefulness, in humans roughly 8 hours of nocturnal sleep and 16 hours of daytime activity.
- slow metabolizer — A slow metabolizer is someone whose body is slow to break down, absorb, or use a particular substance.