0%

15-letter words containing s, e, r, p, a, i

  • simple majority — less than half of the total votes cast but more than the minimum required to win, as when there are more than two candidates or choices.
  • singapore sling — a cocktail of gin, cherry brandy, sugar, and water.
  • sinorespiratory — of, relating to, or affecting the paranasal sinuses and the respiratory tract.
  • slab plastering — coarse plastering, as between the studs in a half-timbered wall.
  • snafu principle — /sna'foo prin'si-pl/ [WWII Army acronym for "Situation Normal: All Fucked Up"] "True communication is possible only between equals, because inferiors are more consistently rewarded for telling their superiors pleasant lies than for telling the truth." - a central tenet of Discordianism, often invoked by hackers to explain why authoritarian hierarchies screw up so reliably and systematically. The effect of the SNAFU principle is a progressive disconnection of decision-makers from reality. This lightly adapted version of a fable dating back to the early 1960s illustrates the phenomenon perfectly: In the beginning was the plan, and then the specification; And the plan was without form, and the specification was void. And darkness was on the faces of the implementors thereof; And they spake unto their leader, saying: "It is a crock of shit, and smells as of a sewer." And the leader took pity on them, and spoke to the project leader: "It is a crock of excrement, and none may abide the odor thereof." And the project leader spake unto his section head, saying: "It is a container of excrement, and it is very strong, such that none may abide it." The section head then hurried to his department manager, and informed him thus: "It is a vessel of fertilizer, and none may abide its strength." The department manager carried these words to his general manager, and spoke unto him saying: "It containeth that which aideth the growth of plants, and it is very strong." And so it was that the general manager rejoiced and delivered the good news unto the Vice President. "It promoteth growth, and it is very powerful." The Vice President rushed to the President's side, and joyously exclaimed: "This powerful new software product will promote the growth of the company!" And the President looked upon the product, and saw that it was very good. After the subsequent disaster, the suits protect themselves by saying "I was misinformed!", and the implementors are demoted or fired.
  • snapping turtle — either of two large, edible, freshwater turtles of the family Chelydridae, of North and Central America, having a large head and powerful hooked jaws, especially the common snapping turtle, Chelydra serpentina.
  • somatic therapy — any of a group of treatments presumed to act on biological factors leading to mental illness.
  • southern paiute — See under Paiute (def 2).
  • spaghetti strap — a thin, often rounded strip of fabric used in women's clothing, as to form a shoulder strap on a bare-shouldered garment.
  • spanish america — the Spanish-speaking countries south of the U.S.: Mexico, Central America (with the exception of Belize), South America (with the exceptions of Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, and Suriname), and most of the West Indies.
  • spanish trefoil — alfalfa.
  • sparkling water — soda water (def 1).
  • special feature — an article differing from the normal format and focusing on a particular topic
  • special library — a library maintained by an organization, as a business, association, or government agency, to collect materials and provide information of special relevance to the work of the organization.
  • special partner — a partner whose liability for the firm's debts is limited to the amount that partner has invested in the firm.
  • specific charge — the ratio of the charge on a particle to the mass of the particle.
  • spectral series — a series of lines in the spectrum of light emitted by excited atoms of an element, each line being related to the others in the series by a simple numerical equation and identified with a particular energy level of an atom of the element.
  • spectrochemical — of, relating to, or utilizing the techniques of spectrochemistry.
  • speech training — training designed to improve spoken skills, such as voice projection
  • speed indicator — an instrument for counting the number of revolutions of a gasoline engine.
  • spermatoblastic — relating to a spermatoblast
  • spermatogenesis — the origin and development of spermatozoa.
  • sphaerosiderite — a type of siderite
  • spherical angle — an angle formed by arcs of great circles of a sphere.
  • spheroidization — the conversion of grains into spheroids
  • spiral notebook — a notebook held together by a coil of wire passed through small holes punched at the back edge of the covers and individual pages
  • spirochaetaemia — the presence of spirochaetes in the blood
  • sporting chance — an even or fair opportunity for a favorable outcome in an enterprise, as winning in a game of chance or in any kind of contest: They gave the less experienced players a sporting chance by handicapping the experts.
  • spread sampling — the selection of a corpus for statistical analysis by selecting a number of short passages at random throughout the work and considering their aggregation
  • spread-eagleism — boastfulness or bombast, especially in the display of patriotic or nationalistic pride in the U.S.; flag-waving.
  • spring mattress — a mattress containing an arrangement of spiral springs
  • spring-cleaning — a complete cleaning of a place, as a home, done traditionally in the spring of the year.
  • sprinkler dance — a celebratory dance in which participants extend one arm and shake it to imitate the action of a rotating water sprinkler
  • static pressure — the pressure exerted by a fluid that is not moving or flowing.
  • steak au poivre — pepper steak (def 2).
  • stereotypically — in a stereotypical manner
  • stirrup leather — the strap that holds the stirrup of a saddle.
  • straining piece — (in a queen-post roof) a horizontal beam uniting the tops of the two queen posts, and resisting the thrust of the roof.
  • strephosymbolia — a condition of perceiving objects as their mirror image and, specifically, having difficulty in distinguishing letters in words
  • streptobacillus — any of various bacilli that form in chains.
  • stretch a point — a sharp or tapering end, as of a dagger.
  • strike pay dirt — to achieve one's objective
  • subperiosteally — the normal investment of bone, consisting of a dense, fibrous outer layer, to which muscles attach, and a more delicate, inner layer capable of forming bone.
  • subprofessional — being below professional standards: subprofessional health care.
  • sulphinpyrazone — a uricosuric drug with molecular formula C23H20N2O3S, used in the treatment of chronic gout
  • super-sexuality — sexual character; possession of the structural and functional traits of sex.
  • superexaltation — extreme or supreme exaltation; the act of superexalting; the process or condition of being superexalted
  • superexcitation — the act of exciting.
  • superficialness — being at, on, or near the surface: a superficial wound.
  • supergiant star — Astronomy. an exceptionally luminous star whose diameter is more than 100 times that of the sun, as Betelgeuse or Antares.
Was this page helpful?
Yes No
Thank you for your feedback! Tell your friends about this page
Tell us why?