21-letter words containing s, h, o, r
- sympathetic vibration — a vibration induced by resonance.
- synchronized shifting — gear shifting in which the gears to be meshed are made to rotate at the same speed.
- synchronized swimming — a sport growing out of water ballet in which swimmers, in solo, duet, and team efforts, complete various required figures by performing motions in relatively stationary positions, along with a freestyle competition, with the contestants synchronizing movements to music and being judged for body position, control, and the degree of difficulty of the moves.
- synchronous converter — a synchronous machine for converting alternating current to direct current, or vice versa, in which the armature winding is connected to collector rings and to a commutator.
- synchrotron radiation — electromagnetic radiation emitted by charged particles as they pass through magnetic fields.
- take sb at their word — If you take someone at their word, you believe what they say, when they did not really mean it or when they meant something slightly different.
- take sb/sth seriously — If you take someone or something seriously, you believe that they are important and deserve attention.
- tartarian honeysuckle — an Asian honeysuckle, Lonicera tatarica, having fragrant, white to pink flowers.
- the (norman) conquest — the conquering of England by the Normans under William the Conqueror in 1066
- the acting profession — actors considered as a group
- the barber of seville — Italian Il barbiere di Siviglia. a comic opera (1816) by Gioacchino Rossini based on a comedy (1775) by Beaumarchais.
- the central provinces — the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec
- the comrades marathon — an annual long-distance race run every year on the 16th of June from Durban to Pietermaritzburg, a distance of approximately 90 kilometres (56 miles)
- the corncracker state — a nickname for the state of Kentucky
- the end of one's rope — the end of one's endurance, resources, etc.
- the fall of the cards — the chance distribution of cards in a given deal
- the fast track to sth — the quickest or most direct route or system
- the household cavalry — a group of British soldiers on horseback who have the job of protecting the king or queen and their family
- the jury is still out — it has not yet been decided or agreed on
- the lower vertebrates — relatively simple and primitive vertebrates
- the microsoft network — (networking) (MSN) Microsoft's ISP and online content service, launched in October 1996. Not to be confused with Microsoft Networking. MSN was originally based on custom software and protocols, however Microsoft saw the error of their ways and adopted Internet standards. MSN now provides standard WWW and email facilities, albeit with Microsoft's Internet Explorer web-browser and the Outlook Express email software. The service also provides "Community Services" including newsgroups, forums, and chat.
- the oldest profession — prostitution
- the origin of species — (On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life) a treatise (1859) by Charles Darwin setting forth his theory of evolution.
- the press association — the national news agency for the United Kingdom and Ireland
- the probation service — a criminal justice service that is mainly responsible for dealing with offenders by placing them under the supervision of a probation officer
- the royal scots greys — (formerly) a British cavalry regiment, the Second Dragoons
- the shipping forecast — a radio broadcast made by the BBC of weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the British Isles
- the sooner the better — You say the sooner the better when you think something should be done as soon as possible.
- the stationery office — (in the UK) the company that supplies the civil service with all its office supplies, machinery, printing and binding, etc
- the throwaway society — a society full of excessive consumption and waste of food, products, etc
- the women's land army — a unit of women recruited to do agricultural work in the United Kingdom during World War I and World War II
- theater of operations — the part of the theater of war, including a combat zone and a communications zone, that is engaged in military operations and their support.
- theater of the absurd — theater in which standard or naturalistic conventions of plot, characterization, and thematic structure are ignored or distorted in order to convey the irrational or fictive nature of reality and the essential isolation of humanity in a meaningless world.
- theatre of the absurd — drama in which normal conventions and dramatic structure are ignored or modified in order to present life as irrational or meaningless
- theoretical physicist — a scientist who studies theoretical physics
- there's nothing to it — If you say 'There's nothing to it', 'There's not much to it', or 'That's all there is to it', you are emphasizing how simple you think something is.
- thermal decomposition — Thermal decomposition is the process in which a chemical species breaks down when its temperature is increased.
- thermal power station — a power station in which heat is converted into electricity
- thermophosphorescence — thermoluminescence.
- threshold wage policy — a policy whereby wages are increased in accordance with inflation
- throw one's hat at it — to give up all hope of getting or achieving something
- throw sb a curve ball — If someone throws you a curve or throws you a curve ball, they surprise you by doing something that you do not expect.
- throw someone a curve — a continuously bending line, without angles.
- to be hard luck on sb — to be unfortunate or unlucky for someone
- to feather one's nest — If you say that someone is feathering their nest, you mean that they are getting a lot of money out of something, so that they can lead a comfortable life.
- to have green fingers — If someone has green fingers, they are very good at gardening and their plants grow well.
- to lay something bare — If you lay something bare, you uncover it completely so that it can then be seen.
- to mix your metaphors — If you mix your metaphors, you use two conflicting metaphors. People do this accidentally, or sometimes deliberately as a joke.
- to rear its ugly head — If something unpleasant rears its head or rears its ugly head, it becomes visible or noticeable.
- to rub shoulders with — If you rub shoulders with famous people, you meet them and talk to them. You can also say that you rub elbows with someone, especially in American English.