12-letter words containing s, t, e, l
- lantern fish — any of several small, deep-sea fishes of the family Myctophidae, having rows of luminous organs along each side, certain species of which migrate to the surface at night.
- laparotomies — Plural form of laparotomy.
- larval stage — Describes a period of monomaniacal concentration on coding apparently passed through by all fledgling hackers. Common symptoms include the perpetration of more than one 36-hour hacking run in a given week; neglect of all other activities including usual basics like food, sleep, and personal hygiene; and a chronic case of advanced bleary-eye. Can last from 6 months to 2 years, the apparent median being around 18 months. A few so afflicted never resume a more "normal" life, but the ordeal seems to be necessary to produce really wizardly (as opposed to merely competent) programmers. See also wannabee. A less protracted and intense version of larval stage (typically lasting about a month) may recur when one is learning a new OS or programming language.
- laser tuning — a technique for adjusting a laser's output frequency to within a specific range, especially in semiconductors.
- last but one — next to last
- last quarter — the instant, approximately one week after a full moon, when half of the moon's disk is illuminated by the sun.
- lateral lisp — a speech defect consisting in pronouncing s and z like or nearly like the th- sounds of thin and this, respectively.
- lateral pass — a short pass thrown or tossed parallel to the line of scrimmage or slightly backward from the position of the passer.
- laticiferous — bearing or containing latex.
- latin square — a square array of numbers, letters, etc., in which each item appears exactly once in each row and column: used in statistical analysis.
- latus rectum — the chord perpendicular to the principal axis and passing through a focus of an ellipse, parabola, or hyperbola.
- launderettes — Plural form of launderette.
- laureateship — a person who has been honored for achieving distinction in a particular field or with a particular award: a Nobel laureate.
- laxativeness — the condition or quality of being laxative
- lay siege to — attack
- lay sth bare — If you lay bare something or someone, you reveal or expose them.
- lay store by — to value or reckon as important
- lead crystal — cut glass containing lead oxide
- leaf mustard — a pungent powder or paste prepared from the seed of the mustard plant, used as a food seasoning or condiment, and medicinally in plasters, poultices, etc.
- lean towards — If you lean towards or lean toward a particular idea, belief, or type of behaviour, you have a tendency to think or act in a particular way.
- least of all — You can use least of all after a negative statement to emphasize that it applies especially to the person or thing mentioned.
- least weasel — a weasel, Mustela nivalis, of northern regions, that grows to a length of about 6 inches (15 cm).
- leather star — a starfish, Dermasterias imbricata, of the western coast of North America, having the body covered by a thick, leathery skin.
- leatherbacks — Plural form of leatherback.
- leathernecks — Plural form of leatherneck.
- leatherwoods — Plural form of leatherwood.
- lecithinases — Plural form of lecithinase.
- lectionaries — Plural form of lectionary.
- lectureships — Plural form of lectureship.
- ledger strip — a piece attached to the face of a beam at the bottom as a support for the ends of joists.
- leeds castle — a castle near Maidstone in Kent: the home of several medieval queens of England
- left-justify — If printed text is left-justified, each line begins at the same distance from the left-hand edge of the page or column.
- legal system — judicial structures and processes: law
- legalisation — Alternative spelling of legalization.
- legislations — the act of making or enacting laws.
- legislatures — a deliberative body of persons, usually elective, who are empowered to make, change, or repeal the laws of a country or state; the branch of government having the power to make laws, as distinguished from the executive and judicial branches of government.
- legitimising — Present participle of legitimise.
- legitimistic — inclined towards, or relating to, the opinions of legitimists
- leiotrichous — Having smooth hair.
- leisure suit — a man's casual suit, consisting of trousers and a matching jacket styled like a shirt, often made in pastel colors.
- leisure time — free time
- lenticularis — (meteorology) a cloud species which consists of rounded lens shaped of cloud, often forming near mountains. Associated with cirrocumulus, and altocumulus, and sometimes stratocumulus genera.
- lentiviruses — Plural form of lentivirus.
- leon trotsky — Leon (Lev or Leib, Davidovich Bronstein) 1879–1940, Russian revolutionary and writer: minister of war 1918–25.
- leptosomatic — a person of asthenic build.
- leptospermum — any of various shrubs or trees of the genus Leptospermum, of the myrtle family, native to Australia and adjacent areas and often cultivated as ornamentals in milder climates.
- lese majesty — Law. a crime, especially high treason, committed against the sovereign power. an offense that violates the dignity of a ruler.
- lèse-majesté — a crime against the sovereign; offense against a ruler's dignity as head of the state; treason
- lese-majesty — Law. a crime, especially high treason, committed against the sovereign power. an offense that violates the dignity of a ruler.
- let sth rest — If someone refuses to let a subject rest, they refuse to stop talking about it, especially after they have been talking about it for a long time.