20-letter words containing s, o, r

theresa of avila, st — Saint. Also, Teresa. Also called Theresa of Avila [ah-vee-lah] /ˈɑ viˌlɑ/ (Show IPA), 1515–82, Spanish Carmelite nun, mystic, and writer.
thermodynamic system — a system whose states of equilibrium can be specified by a few macroscopic properties.
third-party software — software created by programmers or publishers independent of the manufacturer of the hardware for which it is intended.
this time, for sure! — (exclamation) Ritual affirmation frequently uttered during protracted debugging sessions involving numerous small obstacles (e.g. attempts to bring up a UUCP connection). For the proper effect, this must be uttered in a fruity imitation of Bullwinkle J. Moose. Also heard: "Hey, Rocky! Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat!" The canonical response is, of course, "But that trick *never* works!" See hacker humour.
thomas of erceldoune — Thomas of, Thomas of Erceldoune.
thorn in one's flesh — a sharp excrescence on a plant, especially a sharp-pointed aborted branch; spine; prickle.
thought transference — transference of thought by extrasensory means from the mind of one individual to another; telepathy.
three-dimensionality — having, or seeming to have, the dimension of depth as well as width and height.
three-quarter nelson — a hold in which a wrestler, from a kneeling position behind a prone opponent, applies a half nelson with one arm, passes the other arm under the opponent's body on the near side, and locks the arms at the fingers or wrist on the back of the opponent's neck.
throw up one's hands — the terminal, prehensile part of the upper limb in humans and other primates, consisting of the wrist, metacarpal area, fingers, and thumb.
to be a warning shot — to be a warning
to be at loggerheads — to be in conflict
to beat one's breast — If you say that someone beats their breast, you are emphasizing that they are very angry or upset about something, or that they are pretending to be very angry or upset about it.
to burst into flames — If something bursts into flames or bursts into flame, it suddenly starts burning strongly.
to cost someone dear — If something that someone does costs them dear, they suffer a lot as a result of it.
to cross the rubicon — If you say that someone has crossed the Rubicon, you mean that they have reached a point where they cannot change a decision or course of action.
to cry your eyes out — If you cry your eyes out, you cry very hard.
to disturb the peace — If someone is accused of disturbing the peace, they are accused of behaving in a noisy and offensive way in public.
to do your damnedest — If you say that you will do your damnedest to achieve something, you mean that you will try as hard as you can to do it, even though you think that it will take a lot of effort.
to fall on deaf ears — If a request falls on deaf ears or if the person to whom the request is made turns a deaf ear to it, they take no notice of it.
to flex your muscles — If a group, organization, or country flexes its muscles, it does something to impress or frighten people, in order to show them that it has power and is considering using it.
to flog a dead horse — If you say that someone is flogging a dead horse, you mean that they are trying to achieve something impossible.
to get your bearings — to find out where one is or to find out what one should do next
to give sb their due — You can say 'to give him his due', or 'giving him his due' when you are admitting that there are some good things about someone, even though there are things that you do not like about them.
to have it in for sb — If someone has it in for you, they do not like you and they want to make life difficult for you.
to hope for the best — If you are in a difficult situation and do something and hope for the best, you hope that everything will happen in the way you want, although you know that it may not.
to line your pockets — If you say that someone is lining their own or someone else's pockets, you disapprove of them because they are making money dishonestly or unfairly.
to overstep the mark — If someone oversteps the mark, they behave in a way that is considered unacceptable.
to pull your punches — If you say that someone does not pull their punches when they are criticizing a person or thing, you mean that they say exactly what they think, even though this might upset or offend people.
to put sth to rights — to make something consistent with justice, correctness, or orderly arrangement
to reach new heights — to become higher than ever before
to reserve the right — If you say that you reserve the right to do something, you mean that you will do it if you feel that it is necessary.
to scrape the barrel — If you say that someone is scraping the barrel, or scraping the bottom of the barrel, you disapprove of the fact that they are using or doing something of extremely poor quality.
to show sb the ropes — to show someone how to do a particular job or task
to spread your wings — If you spread your wings, you do something new and rather difficult or move to a new place, because you feel more confident in your abilities than you used to and you want to gain wider experience.
to stand your ground — If you stand your ground or hold your ground, you continue to support a particular argument or to have a particular opinion when other people are opposing you or trying to make you change your mind.
to stick in the craw — to be unacceptable or displeasing to someone
to take years off sb — if you say that something such as an experience or a way of dressing has taken years off someone, you mean that it has made them look or feel much younger
to waste your breath — If someone says you are wasting your breath, they mean that the person you are talking to will not take any notice and so there is no point saying anything to them.
to wear the trousers — If one person in a couple, especially the woman, wears the pants, or in British English wears the trousers, they are the one who makes all the decisions.
to weather the storm — If someone weathers the storm, they succeed in reaching the end of a very difficult period without much harm or damage.
to work your way swh — If you work your way somewhere, you move or progress there slowly, and with a lot of effort or work.
tobacco mosaic virus — a retrovirus causing mosaic disease in members of the nightshade family. Abbreviation: TMV.
toothbrush moustache — a short narrow moustache, resembling the filaments of a toothbrush
tortoiseshell turtle — hawksbill turtle.
townsend's solitaire — a brownish, slender-billed songbird, Myadestes townsendi, of western North America.
toxic shock syndrome — a rapidly developing, sometimes fatal infection characterized by sudden onset of fever, gastrointestinal upsets, a sunburnlike rash, and a drop in blood pressure: caused by a Staphylococcus aureus toxin and occurring especially in menstruating women using high-absorbency tampons. Abbreviation: TSS.
transcendental logic — (in Kantian epistemology) the study of the mind with reference to its perceptions of external objects and to the objective truth of such perceptions.
transfer of training — transfer (def 19).
transformation point — a temperature at which the transformation of one microconstituent to another begins or ends during heating or cooling.

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