16-letter words containing s, p, o, r, u
- subsistence crop — a food plant which is grown by a farmer for consumption by himself and his family, leaving little or nothing to be marketed
- subtropical high — one of several highs, as the Azores and Pacific highs, that prevail over the oceans at latitudes of about 30 degrees N and S. Also called subtropical anticyclone. Compare high (def 37).
- sugar plantation — a large area of land where sugar is grown
- sulfanilyl group — the para form of the group C 6 H 6 NO 2 S–, derived from sulfanilic acid.
- sulphur trioxide — a white corrosive substance existing in three crystalline forms of which the stable (alpha-) form is usually obtained as silky needles. It is produced by the oxidation of sulphur dioxide, and is used in the sulphonation of organic compounds. Formula: SO3
- sulu archipelago — an island group in the SW Philippines, separating the Sulawesi Sea from the Sulu Sea. 1086 sq. mi. (2813 sq. km). Capital: Jolo.
- summer complaint — an acute condition of diarrhea, occurring during the hot summer months chiefly in infants and children, caused by bacterial contamination of food and associated with poor hygiene.
- sun in splendour — a representation of the sun with rays and a human face
- super-injunction — an instruction or order issued by a court imposing restrictions on reporting, including any reference to the restriction itself
- super-patriotism — a person who is patriotic to an extreme.
- superciliousness — haughtily disdainful or contemptuous, as a person or a facial expression.
- superfecundation — the fertilization of two or more ova discharged at the same ovulation by successive acts of sexual intercourse.
- superior general — the superior of an order or congregation.
- supernationalism — an extreme or fanatical loyalty or devotion to a nation.
- superunification — a theory intended to describe the electromagnetic force, the strong force, the weak force, and gravity as a single, unified force.
- supporting actor — performer: not lead
- supranationalism — outside or beyond the authority of one national government, as a project or policy that is planned and controlled by a group of nations.
- tandem computers — (company) A US computer manufacturer. Quarterly sales $544M, profits $49M (Aug 1994).
- temperature spot — a sensory area in the skin that selectively responds to increased or decreased temperature; a warm spot or a cold spot.
- the first couple — the US president and their spouse
- the gospel truth — the unquestionable truth
- the preconscious — preconscious mental activity
- through-composed — having different music for each verse: a through-composed song. Compare strophic (def 2).
- to dip your toes — If you dip your toes into something or dip your toes into the waters of something, you start doing that thing slowly and carefully, because you are not sure whether it will be successful or whether you will like it.
- to put sth right — If you put something right, you correct something that was wrong or that was causing problems.
- tongue depressor — a broad, thin piece of wood used by doctors to hold down the patient's tongue during an examination of the mouth and throat.
- torsion pendulum — a pendulum the weight of which is rotated alternately in opposite directions through a horizontal plane by the torsion of the suspending rod or spring: used for clocks intended to run a long time between windings.
- transport number — that fraction of the total electric current that anions and cations carry in passing through an electrolytic solution.
- turn upside down — invert
- twofold purchase — a purchase using a double standing block and a double running block so as to give a mechanical advantage of four or five, neglecting friction, depending on whether the hauling is on the standing block or the running block.
- ultramicroscopic — an instrument that uses scattering phenomena to detect the position of objects too small to be seen by an ordinary microscope.
- uncinate process — a curved, bony process on certain ribs of birds that projects backward and overlaps the succeeding rib, serving to strengthen the thorax.
- uncomprehensible — capable of being comprehended or understood; intelligible.
- uncompromisingly — not admitting of compromise or adjustment of differences; making no concessions; inaccessible to flexible bargaining; unyielding: an uncompromising attitude.
- under bare poles — (of a sailing vessel) with no sails set
- undercompensated — to compensate or pay less than is fair, customary, or expected.
- underconsumption — the act of consuming, as by use, decay, or destruction.
- unimpressionable — easily impressed or influenced; susceptible: an impressionable youngster.
- union membership — members of a trade union
- united provinces — (used with a singular or plural verb) former name of Uttar Pradesh.
- unpublished work — a literary work that has not been reproduced for sale or publicly distributed.
- unresponsiveness — responding especially readily and sympathetically to appeals, efforts, influences, etc.: a responsive government.
- unscrupulousness — not scrupulous; unrestrained by scruples; conscienceless; unprincipled.
- up to one's ears — the organ of hearing and equilibrium in vertebrates, in humans consisting of an external ear that gathers sound vibrations, a middle ear in which the vibrations resonate against the tympanic membrane, and a fluid-filled internal ear that maintains balance and that conducts the tympanic vibrations to the auditory nerve, which transmits them as impulses to the brain.
- upper atmosphere — the portion of the atmosphere above the troposphere.
- upsilon particle — the 20th letter of the Greek alphabet (Υ, υ).
- vapor combustion — Vapor combustion is a closed burn system used for treating liquid waste which contains volatile organic compounds.
- verneuil process — a process for making synthetic rubies, sapphires, spinels, etc., by the fusion at high temperatures of powdered compounds.
- vitruvius pollio — Marcus, flourished 1st century b.c, Roman architect, engineer, and author.
- well-upholstered — (of a person) fat