19-letter words containing s, p, o, t, e
- optical double star — two stars that appear as one if not viewed through a telescope with adequate magnification, such as two stars that are separated by a great distance but are nearly in line with each other and an observer (optical double star) or those that are relatively close together and comprise a single physical system (physical double star)
- optimising compiler — (programming, tool) compiler which attempts to analyse the code it produces and to produce more efficient code by performing program transformation such as branch elimination, partial evaluation, or peep-hole optimisation. Contrast pessimising compiler.
- orthopaedic surgeon — a surgeon specializing in the branch of surgery concerned with disorders of the spine and joints and the repair of deformities of these parts
- orthopaedic surgery — surgery concerned with disorders of the spine and joints and the repair of deformities of these parts
- palaeoethnobotanist — someone who studies fossil seeds and grains to further archaeological knowledge, esp of the domestication of cereals
- paleoanthropologist — the study of the origins and predecessors of the present human species, using fossils and other remains.
- palomar observatory — an astronomical observatory situated on Palomar Mountain in S California, having a 200-inch (508-cm) reflecting telescope and a 48-inch (122-cm) Schmidt telescope.
- pancreatic fibrosis — cystic fibrosis.
- parasympathomimetic — having an effect similar to that produced when the parasympathetic nervous system is stimulated
- particle dispersoid — A particle dispersoid is a suspension of solid particles in a gas.
- particle separation — a rule that moves the particle of a phrasal verb, thus deriving a sentence like He looked the answer up from a structure that also underlies He looked up the answer
- parting of the ways — When there is a parting of the ways, two or more people or groups of people stop working together or travelling together.
- pastoral counseling — the use of psychotherapeutic techniques by trained members of the clergy to assist parishioners who seek help for personal or emotional problems.
- pedestrian crossing — place to cross road
- penecontemporaneous — formed during or shortly after the formation of the containing rock stratum: penecontemporaneous minerals.
- perfect progressive — a verb form including the auxiliary have followed by been and a present participle, noting the continuation of an activity or event, its incompleteness or interruption, and its connection to the temporal point of reference, as in I've been waiting for over an hour, They had been talking about her before she came into the room, or In July, he will have been living here for two years.
- performance targets — the expected or predicted success level of an individual, company or organization
- periodontal disease — any of various mixed bacterial infections that affect the soft tissues and bones supporting the teeth.
- peritoneal dialysis — a form of dialysis in which the peritoneum is used as an autogenous semipermeable membrane
- persecution complex — an acute irrational fear that other people are plotting one's downfall and that they are responsible for one's failures
- persistent offender — a person who repeatedly breaks the law
- personal stationery — headed notepaper
- personal watercraft — a jet-propelled boat ridden like a motorcycle.
- phacoemulsification — the removal of a cataract by first liquefying the affected lens with ultrasonic vibrations and then extracting it by suction.
- phakoemulsification — the removal of a cataract by first liquefying the affected lens with ultrasonic vibrations and then extracting it by suction.
- philosopher's stone — a substance sought by alchemists that would be capable of transmuting baser metals into gold or silver and of prolonging life.
- philosophers' stone — a substance sought by alchemists that would be capable of transmuting baser metals into gold or silver and of prolonging life.
- photodisintegration — the disintegration of a nucleus, induced by its absorption of a photon.
- photoreconnaissance — reconnaissance using aerial photography.
- pirates of penzance — an operetta (1879) by Sir William S. Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan.
- pistachio ice cream — ice cream flavoured with pistachios
- pistol-handle knife — a table knife, especially of the 18th century, having a slightly curved handle resembling the grip of a flintlock pistol.
- plastic deformation — In plastic deformation a material changes shape when a stress is applied to it and does not go back to its original state when the stress is removed.
- play fast and loose — a dramatic composition or piece; drama.
- play footsie (with) — to touch feet or rub knees (with) in a caressing way, as under the table
- pleased to meet you — greeting
- pneumogastric nerve — the vagus nerve.
- pointe-aux-trembles — a city in S Quebec, in E Canada, N of Montreal, on the St. Lawrence.
- police headquarters — building where police are stationed
- political scientist — A political scientist is someone who studies, writes, or lectures about political science.
- political-scientist — a social science dealing with political institutions and with the principles and conduct of government.
- polytene chromosome — a giant, cross-banded chromosome that results from multiple replication of its genetic material with the duplicated chromatin strands remaining closely associated.
- popular sovereignty — the doctrine that sovereign power is vested in the people and that those chosen to govern, as trustees of such power, must exercise it in conformity with the general will.
- population genetics — the branch of genetics concerned with the hereditary makeup of populations.
- population pressure — the force exerted by a growing population upon its environment, resulting in dispersal or reduction of the population.
- portobello mushroom — a dark mushroom, strong in flavor, having a broad, flat cap that is often grilled and eaten
- portuguese-speaking — being a speaker of Portuguese; having Portuguese as the national language
- post office problem — (algorithm) Given a set of points (in N dimensions), find another point which minimises the sum of the distances from that point to each of the others.
- post-and-rail fence — a fence constructed of upright wooden posts with horizontal timber slotted through it
- post-polio syndrome — Pathology. muscle weakness occurring several decades after recovery from a polio infection, caused by fatiguing of collateral nerve axons developed during physical rehabilitation.