23-letter words containing s, e, t, h, p, a
- quote chapter and verse — [by analogy with the mainstream phrase] To cite a relevant excerpt from an appropriate bible. "I don't care if "rn" gets it wrong; "Followup-To: poster" is explicitly permitted by RFC 1036. I'll quote chapter and verse if you don't believe me." See also legalese, language lawyer, RTFS (sense 2).
- reverse polish notation — postfix notation
- rub sb up the wrong way — If you rub someone up the wrong way in British English, or rub someone the wrong way in American English, you offend or annoy them without intending to.
- saint christopher-nevis — St. Kitts-Nevis.
- schematic type variable — generic type variable
- schizotypal personality — a personality disorder characterized by a group of symptoms similar to but less severe than schizophrenia, as odd behavior, peculiar thinking, and social isolation.
- slip between the cracks — to break without complete separation of parts; become fissured: The plate cracked when I dropped it, but it was still usable.
- sodium tripolyphosphate — a white powder, Na 5 P 3 O 1 0 , used as a water softener, sequestering agent, and food additive.
- speak the same language — to communicate with understanding because of common background, values, etc
- staggered directorships — a defence against unwelcome takeover bids in which a company resolves that its directors should serve staggered terms of office and that no director can be removed from office without just cause, thus preventing a bidder from controlling the board for some years
- suprasegmental phonemes — phonemes or features of speech, as pitch, stress, and juncture, that may extend over and modify series of segmental phonemes
- talk/speak of the devil — People say speak of the devil, or in British English talk of the devil, if someone they have just been talking about appears unexpectedly.
- the chamber of deputies — the lower legislative assembly in some parliaments
- the department of state — the United States federal department concerned with foreign policy
- the scottish parliament — the devolved national legislature of Scotland, located in Edinburgh
- the teaching profession — the profession of a teacher
- thompson submachine gun — a portable, .45-caliber, automatic weapon designed to be fired from the shoulder or hip.
- to keep a straight face — If you manage to keep a straight face, you manage to look serious, although you want to laugh.
- to pass the time of day — If you pass the time of day with someone, you have a short friendly conversation with them.
- to pay through the nose — If you say that you paid through the nose for something, you are emphasizing that you had to pay what you consider too high a price for it.
- to play for high stakes — to gamble on something very important
- to wipe the slate clean — If you wipe the slate clean, you decide to forget previous mistakes, failures, or debts and to start again.
- trans-new guinea phylum — the largest grouping of the non-Austronesian languages of Papua and New Guinea and the surrounding regions
- when the chips are down — a small, slender piece, as of wood, separated by chopping, cutting, or breaking.
- whet someone's appetite — If someone or something whets your appetite for a particular thing, they increase your desire to have it or know about it, especially by giving you an idea of what it is like.
- white-coat hypertension — the phenomenon of having elevated blood pressure only during a medical consultation