13-letter words containing s, w, a, r
- machine screw — a threaded fastener, either used with a nut or driven into a tapped hole, usually having a diameter of about 1/4 inch (6.4 mm) or less and a slotted head for tightening by a screwdriver.
- mark my words — If you say 'mark my words' to someone, you are emphasizing that something you have just warned them about is very likely to happen, especially when you think they should change their attitude or behaviour to prevent it.
- marriage vows — promises made as part of wedding ceremony
- marrow squash — any of several squashes having a smooth surface, an oblong shape, and a hard rind.
- master switch — a switch that can be used to turn on or off the supply of electricity to a building or to certain equipment
- matthew paris — Matthew, Matthew of Paris.
- measuringworm — the larva of any geometrid moth, which progresses by bringing the rear end of the body forward and then advancing the front end.
- milne-edwards — Henri [ahn-ree] /ɑ̃ˈri/ (Show IPA), 1800–85, French zoologist.
- mineral wells — a city in N central Texas.
- narrow squeak — an escape only just managed
- narrow-fisted — tight-fisted.
- narrowcasting — Present participle of narrowcast.
- neo-darwinism — the theory of evolution as expounded by later students of Charles Darwin, especially Weismann, holding that natural selection accounts for evolution and denying the inheritance of acquired characters.
- new amsterdam — a Dutch colony in North America (1613–64), comprising the area along the Hudson River and the lower Delaware River. By 1669 all of the land comprising this colony was taken over by England. Capital: New Amsterdam.
- new australia — the colony on socialist principles founded by William Lane in Paraguay in 1893
- new braunfels — a city in S Texas, near San Antonio.
- new hampshire — a state in the NE United States. 9304 sq. mi. (24,100 sq. km). Capital: Concord. Abbreviation: NH (for use with zip code), N.H.
- new jerusalem — heaven regarded as the prototype of the earthly Jerusalem; the heavenly city
- newgroup wars — /n[y]oo'groop worz/ [Usenet] The salvos of dueling "newgroup" and "rmgroup" messages sometimes exchanged by persons on opposite sides of a dispute over whether a newsgroup should be created net-wide, or (even more frequently) whether an obsolete one should be removed. These usually settle out within a week or two as it becomes clear whether the group has a natural constituency (usually, it doesn't). At times, especially in the completely anarchic alt hierarchy, the names of newsgroups themselves become a form of comment or humour; e.g. the spinoff of alt.swedish.chef.bork.bork.bork from alt.tv.muppets in early 1990, or any number of specialised abuse groups named after particularly notorious flamers, e.g. alt.weemba.
- newsgathering — of or relating to the process of collecting and reporting the news.
- nightcrawlers — Plural form of nightcrawler.
- niklaus wirth — (person) The designer of the Modula-2, Modula-3, and, in around 1970, Pascal programming languages.
- no-score draw — A no-score draw is the result of a football match in which neither team scores any goals.
- northeastward — the northeast.
- northwestward — the northwest.
- norwalk virus — a norovirus.
- norway spruce — a European spruce, Picea abies, having shiny, dark-green needles, grown as an ornamental.
- norwegian sea — part of the Arctic Ocean, N and E of Iceland and between Greenland and Norway.
- nuclear waste — the radioactive by-products from the operation of a nuclear reactor or from the reprocessing of depleted nuclear fuel.
- of many words — talkative
- organ whistle — a steam or air whistle in which the jet is forced up against the thin edge of a pipe closed at the top.
- outdoorswoman — a woman devoted to outdoor sports and recreational activities.
- outlaw strike — wildcat strike.
- parker bowles — Camilla (née Shand). born 1947, became the second wife of Prince Charles in 2005; created Duchess of Cornwall and Duchess of Rothesay
- pass the word — If you pass the word, you tell someone something that another person has told you.
- passager hawk — young hawk or falcon caught while on migration
- passionflower — any chiefly American climbing vine or shrub of the genus Passiflora, having showy flowers and a pulpy berry or fruit that in some species is edible.
- pearly whites — white and lustrous as a pearl.
- peninsula war — a war (1808–14) in Spain and Portugal, with British, Spanish, and Portuguese troops opposing the French.
- piers plowman — (The Vision Concerning Piers Plowman) an alliterative poem written in three versions (1360–99), ascribed to William Langland.
- play on words — a pun or the act of punning.
- power station — a generating station.
- power-sharing — Power-sharing is a political arrangement in which different or opposing groups all take part in government together.
- prison warder — an officer in charge of prisoners in a jail
- queen's award — either of two awards instituted by royal warrant (1976) for a sustained increase in export earnings by a British firm (Queen's Award for Export Achievement) or for an advance in technology (Queen's Award for Technological Achievement)
- rainbow snake — a burrowing snake, Farancia erytrogramma, of the southeastern U.S., having red and black stripes along the body, a red and yellow underside, and a sharp-tipped tail used in maneuvering prey.
- raw materials — Raw materials are materials that are in their natural state, before they are processed or used in manufacturing.
- real soon now — (jargon, humour) (RSN) A phrase used ironically when you believe an event will take a long or unknown time to occur. The term originated in SF's fanzine community, popularised by Jerry Pournelle's column in BYTE. The phrase can be used, for example, when a manager asks how long it will take you to debug some software and you have no idea. "I'll have it working Real Soon Now."
- research work — work concerning research into or investigation into a subject, topic, etc, particularly in the sciences
- sachet-powder — a small bag, case, or pad containing perfuming powder or the like, placed among handkerchiefs, lingerie, etc., to impart a pleasant scent.