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18-letter words containing s, o, r, d

  • crested dog's-tail — a common wiry perennial grass, Cynosurus cristatus, of meadows and pasture
  • crocodile-infested — full of crocodiles
  • crookes dark space — the dark space between the cathode glow and the negative glow in a vacuum tube, occurring when the pressure is low.
  • crookes radiometer — a type of radiometer consisting of an evacuated glass bulb containing a set of lightweight vanes, each blackened on one side. The vanes are mounted on a vertical axis and revolve when light, or other radiant energy, falls on them
  • cross-disciplinary — linking two or more fields of study
  • crude oil desalter — A crude oil desalter is equipment which removes inorganic salts from crude oil, using chemical or electrostatic separation.
  • cultural diffusion — act of diffusing; state of being diffused.
  • cursor dipped in x — (jargon)   The metaphorical source of the electronic equivalent of a poisoned-pen letter. Derived from English metaphors of the form "pen dipped in X" (where X = e.g. "acid", "bile", "vitriol"). These map over neatly to this hackish usage (the cursor being what moves, leaving letters behind, when one is composing on-line). "Talk about a nastygram! He must've had his cursor dipped in acid when he wrote that one!"
  • cushing's syndrome — a medical condition characterized by obesity, hypertension, excessive hair growth, etc., caused by an overactive adrenal gland or large doses of corticosteroids
  • dangerous offender — an offender who is deemed by a court of law to be likely to engage in further violent conduct, and who thus becomes eligible for an indefinite prison sentence
  • dead as a doornail — completely dead
  • deanthropomorphism — the ridding of philosophy or religion of anthropomorphic beliefs and doctrines.
  • dechristianization — The act of dechristianizing; the systematic removal of Christianity or Christian elements.
  • decision procedure — a procedure, as an algorithm, for determining in a finite number of steps the validity of any of a certain class of propositions.
  • defense calculator — IBM 701
  • degrees of freedom — the number of independent variables entering into a statistical measure or frequency distribution
  • deliver oneself of — to speak with deliberation or at length
  • demorgan's theorem — (logic)   A logical theorem which states that the complement of a conjunction is the disjunction of the complements or vice versa. In symbols: not (x and y) = (not x) or (not y) not (x or y) = (not x) and (not y) E.g. if it is not the case that I am tall and thin then I am either short or fat (or both). The theorem can be extended to combinations of more than two terms in the obvious way. The same laws also apply to sets, replacing logical complement with set complement, conjunction ("and") with set intersection, and disjunction ("or") with set union. A (C) programmer might use this to re-write if (!foo && !bar) ... as if (!(foo || bar)) ... thus saving one operator application (though an optimising compiler should do the same, leaving the programmer free to use whichever form seemed clearest).
  • dendrochronologist — One who carries out dendrochronology.
  • departmental store — a department store.
  • depository library — a library designated by law to receive without charge all or a selection of the official publications of a government.
  • derestriction sign — a circular white sign with a black diagonal band signifying the lifting of any other speed restriction
  • dia de los muertos — Day of the Dead.
  • diaminofluorescein — (organic compound) A fluorescein into which two amino groups have been substituted.
  • diastereoisomerism — (chemistry) Any form of stereoisomerism other than enantiomerism.
  • diatomaceous earth — an unconsolidated form of diatomite
  • diethylstilbestrol — a nonsteroidal synthetic estrogen, C 18 H 20 O 2 , used in medicine chiefly in the treatment of menopausal symptoms and in animal feeds for chemical caponization: formerly used during pregnancy for the prevention of miscarriage but discontinued owing to its association with an increased risk of vaginal and cervical cancers in women having had fetal exposure. Abbreviation: DES.
  • digital switchover — the process of changing the method of transmitting television from analogue to digital format
  • dihydrotachysterol — a white, crystalline, water-insoluble sterol, C 28 H 46 O, derived from ergosterol: used chiefly in the treatment of hypoparathyroidism.
  • diphosphoglycerate — an ester of phosphoric acid and glyceric acid that occurs in the blood and that promotes the release of hemoglobin-bound oxygen.
  • diplomatic service — diplomatic corps
  • directional signal — any of four signal lights on the front left, front right, rear left, and rear right of an automotive vehicle that, when actuated by the driver, flash in pairs on the side toward which a turn is to be made.
  • discourse analysis — the study of the rules or patterns characterizing units of connected speech or writing longer than a sentence.
  • disorderly conduct — any of various petty misdemeanors, generally including nuisances, breaches of the peace, offensive or immoral conduct in public, etc.
  • display postscript — An extended form of PostScript permitting its interactive use with bitmap displays.
  • disproportionality — not in proportion; disproportionate.
  • disproportionately — not proportionate; out of proportion, as in size or number.
  • disproportionation — the simultaneous oxidation and reduction of a substance reacting with itself, thereby forming two dissimilar molecules, as 2C 2 H 4 →C 2 H 6 +C 2 H 2 .
  • distributed memory — (architecture)   The kind of memory in a parallel processor where each processor has fast access to its own local memory and where to access another processor's memory it must send a message via the inter-processor network. Opposite: shared memory.
  • distribution class — form class
  • distribution curve — the curve or line of a graph in which cumulative frequencies are plotted as ordinates and values of the variate as abscissas.
  • distribution ratio — the ratio of concentrations of a solute distributed between two immiscible solvents in contact with each other, as iodine in water and chloroform
  • divine inspiration — insight provided by higher power
  • division algorithm — the theorem that an integer can be written as the sum of the product of two integers, one a given positive integer, added to a positive integer smaller than the given positive integer. Compare Euclidean algorithm.
  • division of labour — a system of organizing the manufacture of an article in a series of separate specialized operations, each of which is carried out by a different worker or group of workers
  • domain name server — (spelling)   Domain Name System.
  • donor insemination — a process which involves using sperm which has been voluntarily given for use in the insemination of another person
  • double-edged sword — sth that can be both positive and negative
  • double-page spread — two pages treated as one in a publication, with images or text extending across the binding
  • drainpipe trousers — trousers with very narrow legs
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