22-letter words containing s, h, e, a

start the ball rolling — to open or initiate (an action, discussion, movement, etc)
straining at the leash — eagerly impatient to begin something
suffice it to say that — let us say no more than that; I shall just say that
surface effect vehicle — ACV (def 2).
sweet william catchfly — a southern European plant, Silene armeria, of the pink family, having a flat-topped cluster of pink flowers.
sympathetic ophthalmia — inflammation of one eye due to injury or disease of the other eye.
take a fancy to sb/sth — If you take a fancy to someone or something, you start liking them, usually for no understandable reason.
take cognizance of sth — If you take cognizance of something, you take notice of it or acknowledge it.
take one's breath away — the air inhaled and exhaled in respiration.
take something as read — to take something for granted as a fact; understand or presume
talk through one's hat — a shaped covering for the head, usually with a crown and brim, especially for wear outdoors.
tell it to the marines — of or relating to the sea; existing in or produced by the sea: marine vegetation.
the (great) depression — the period of economic depression which began in 1929 and lasted through most of the 1930s
the atlantic provinces — certain of the Canadian provinces with coasts facing the Gulf of St Lawrence or the Atlantic: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador
the authorized version — an English translation of the Bible published in 1611 under James I
the brothers karamazov — a novel (1880) by Dostoevsky.
the caring professions — professions such as nursing and social work that are involved with looking after people who are ill or who need help in coping with their lives
the chattering classes — the educated sections of society, considered as enjoying discussion of political, social, and cultural issues
the continental system — Napoleon's plan in 1806 to blockade Britain by excluding her ships from ports on the mainland of Europe
the edinburgh festival — an arts festival held in Edinburgh in August
the fat is in the fire — an irrevocable action has been taken, esp one from which dire consequences are expected
the grand remonstrance — the document prepared by the Long Parliament in 1640 listing the evils of the king's government, the abuses already rectified, and the reforms Parliament advocated
the houston ship canal — a canal linking Houston to the Gulf of Mexico and the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway
the maritime provinces — another name for the Atlantic Provinces of Canada, but often excluding Newfoundland and Labrador
the medical profession — the occupation of working as a doctor of medicine
the nature conservancy — a US charitable environmental organization, founded in 1951, that works to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive
the ouachita mountains — a mountain range in the United States, located in W Arkansas, S E Oklahoma, and N E Texas
the pennsylvania dutch — a group of German-speaking people in E Pennsylvania, descended from 18th-century settlers from SW Germany and Switzerland
the same/the very same — You say 'the same' or 'the very same' in reply to someone's question when you are saying that they have identified a person or thing correctly.
the sb/sth before last — You use expressions such as the night before last, the election before last and the leader before last to refer to the period of time, event, or person that came immediately before the most recent one in a series.
the straits of florida — a sea passage between the Florida Keys and Cuba, linking the Atlantic with the Gulf of Mexico
the-leaning-tower-pisa — a round, marble campanile in Pisa, Italy, begun in 1174 and now 17 feet (5.2 meters) out of the perpendicular in its height of 179 feet (54 meters).
there is no comparison — If you say there is no comparison between one thing and another, you mean that you think the first thing is much better than the second, or very different from it.
thermal imaging system — equipment providing images of a target, or of a person or thing under examination
threespine stickleback — a widely distributed stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus, occurring in marine, brackish, or fresh waters throughout the northern hemisphere.
throw on the scrapheap — to discard or get rid of as useless
thus spake zarathustra — German Also sprach Zarathustra. a philosophical work in poetic form (1883) by Friedrich Nietzsche.
time-lapse photography — the photographing on motion-picture film of a slow and continuous process, as the growth of a plant, at regular intervals, especially by exposing a single frame at a time, for projection at a higher speed.
tip the scales/balance — If something tips the scales or tips the balance, it gives someone a slight advantage.
to awaken to something — to become aware of something
to be on the safe side — If you say you are doing something to be on the safe side, you mean that you are doing it in case something undesirable happens, even though this may be unnecessary.
to beat about the bush — If you tell someone not to beat about the bush, you mean that you want them to tell you something immediately and quickly, rather than in a complicated, indirect way.
to fall by the wayside — If a person or plan falls by the wayside, they fail or stop before they complete what they set out to do.
to hate someone's guts — If you hate someone's guts, you dislike them very much indeed.
to have the last laugh — If you say that you have the last laugh, you mean that you become successful at something so that people who criticize or oppose you look foolish.
to open the floodgates — If events open the floodgates to something, they make it possible for that thing to happen much more often or much more seriously than before.
to overplay one's hand — If someone overplays their hand, they act more confidently than they should because they believe that they are in a stronger position than they actually are.
to play happy families — to spend time with your family or partner and to outwardly give the impression of being happy (although this may not be the case)
to sell like hot cakes — If things are selling like hot cakes, a lot of people are buying them.
to upset the applecart — If you upset the applecart, you do something which causes a plan, system, or arrangement to go wrong.

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