16-letter words containing s, h, e, f
- flashbulb memory — the clear recollections that a person may have of the circumstances associated with a dramatic event
- flathead catfish — a yellow and brown catfish, Pylodictus olivaris, common in the central U.S., having a flattened head and a projecting lower jaw.
- floridean starch — the storage polysaccharide of red algae.
- follicular phase — a stage of the menstrual cycle, from onset of menstruation to ovulation.
- forbid the banns — to raise an objection to a marriage announced in this way
- forbush decrease — the sudden decrease in the intensity of cosmic rays after an increase in solar activity.
- force one's hand — the terminal, prehensile part of the upper limb in humans and other primates, consisting of the wrist, metacarpal area, fingers, and thumb.
- forefathers' day — the anniversary of the day (December 21, 1620, in Old Style December 11) on which the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, Mass. Owing to an error in changing the date from the Old Style to the New, it is generally observed on December 22.
- founders' shares — shares awarded to the founders of a company and often granting special privileges
- fourth dimension — Physics, Mathematics. a dimension in addition to length, width, and depth, used so as to be able to employ geometrical language in discussing phenomena that depend on four variables: Time is considered a fourth dimension for locating points in space-time.
- franchise clause — a clause stipulating that the insured will be responsible for any loss not in excess of a stated amount, and the insurance company will be liable for full payment of the loss equaling or exceeding the amount up to the insured amount.
- francis joseph i — 1830–1916, emperor of Austria 1848–1916; king of Hungary 1867–1916.
- fraternity house — a house occupied by a college or university fraternity.
- fraunhofer lines — a set of dark lines appearing in the continuous emission spectrum of the sun. It is caused by the absorption of light of certain wavelengths coming from the hotter region of the sun by elements in the cooler outer atmosphere
- french cameroons — Cameroun (def 2).
- french polynesia — a French overseas territory in the S Pacific, including the Society Islands, Marquesas Islands, and other scattered island groups. 1544 sq. mi. (4000 sq. km). Capital: Papeete.
- freshly squeezed — You can describe juice that has been recently pressed out of fruit as freshly squeezed.
- freshwater pearl — any of the small pearls produced especially by freshwater mussels.
- friedrich engels — Friedrich [free-drikh] /ˈfri drɪx/ (Show IPA), 1820–95, German socialist in England: collaborated with Karl Marx in systematizing Marxism.
- from one's heart — very sincerely or deeply
- ft share indexes — any of a number of share indexes published by the Financial Times to reflect various aspects of stock exchange prices
- full speed ahead — train: at top speed
- full steam ahead — If something such as a plan or a project goes full steam ahead, it progresses quickly.
- furniture polish — product: shines wood
- garfield heights — a city in NE Ohio, near Cleveland.
- glory-of-the-sun — a bulbous, Chilean plant, Leucocoryne ixioides, of the amaryllis family, having fragrant, white or blue flowers.
- go off the rails — If someone goes off the rails, they start to behave in a way that other people think is unacceptable or very strange, for example they start taking drugs or breaking the law.
- golden handcuffs — payments deferred over a number of years that induce a person to stay with a particular company or in a particular job
- guy fawkes night — In Britain, Guy Fawkes Night is the evening of 5th November, when many people have parties with bonfires and fireworks. It began as a way of remembering the attempt by Guy Fawkes to blow up the Houses of Parliament in 1605. Guy Fawkes Night is often referred to as 'Bonfire Night'.
- hare's-foot fern — a fern, Polypodium aureum, of tropical America, having a brown, scaly rootstock and green or deep bluish-green fronds.
- harvest festival — religious celebration of crops gathered
- harvey firestone — Harvey Samuel, 1868–1938, U.S. industrialist and rubber manufacturer.
- hay-scented fern — a fern, Dennstaedtia punctilobula, of eastern North America, having brittle, yellow-green fronds.
- head post office — the main post office in a town
- health food shop — a shop which sells health foods
- heat of solution — the heat evolved or absorbed when one mole of a substance dissolves completely in a large volume of solvent
- hen of the woods — a large, grayish-brown, edible fungus, Polyporus frondosus, forming a mass of overlapping caps at the base of trees and somewhat resembling a hen.
- high-pass filter — a filter that allows high-frequency electromagnetic signals to pass while rejecting or attenuating others below a specific value.
- homme d'affaires — a businessman.
- horsehair fungus — an edible white, striated, umbrella-capped mushroom, Marasmius rotula, commonly found in eastern North America.
- hourglass figure — the shape of a woman who is well-proportioned and has a small waist
- house of commons — the elective, lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, and various other countries in the Commonwealth of Nations.
- house of worship — house of God.
- hydrogen sulfide — a colorless, flammable, water-soluble, cumulatively poisonous gas, H 2 S, having the odor of rotten eggs: used chiefly in the manufacture of chemicals, in metallurgy, and as a reagent in laboratory analysis.
- in at the finish — being present or taking part at the conclusion, as of a contest
- in the course of — If something happens in the course of a particular period of time, it happens during that period of time.
- in the shadow of — very close to; verging upon
- in the throes of — If you are in the throes of doing or experiencing something, especially something difficult, you are busy doing it or are deeply involved in it.
- irish free state — former name of the Republic of Ireland.
- josephson effect — a high-speed switch, used in experimental computers, that operates on the basis of a radiative phenomenon (Jo·sephson effect) exhibited by a pair of superconductors separated by a thin insulator.