20-letter words containing t, r, i, f
- ringing off the hook — If your phone is ringing off the hook, so many people are trying to telephone you that it is ringing constantly.
- rotary-wing aircraft — an aircraft, esp a helicopter, that is lifted or propelled by rotating airfoils
- royal air force list — an official list of all serving commissioned officers of the RAF and reserve officers liable for recall
- saint anthony's fire — any of certain skin conditions that are of an inflammatory or gangrenous nature, as erysipelas, hospital gangrene, or ergotism.
- sarcastic fringehead — any fish of the genus Neoclinus, characterized by a row of fleshy processes on the head, as N. blanchardi (sarcastic fringehead) of California coastal waters.
- sb's future lies swh — If you say that someone's future lies in a particular place or activity, you think they will be most successful or happy in that place or doing that activity.
- self-differentiating — to form or mark differently from other such things; distinguish.
- senior aircraftwoman — a rank in the Royal Air Force comparable to that of a private in the army, though not the lowest rank in the Royal Air Force
- separation of powers — the principle or system of vesting in separate branches the executive, legislative, and judicial powers of a government.
- sergeant first class — a noncommissioned officer ranking next above a staff sergeant and below a first or master sergeant.
- shear transformation — a map of a coordinate space in which one coordinate is held fixed and the other coordinate or coordinates are shifted.
- sinfonia concertante — a type of concerto for two or more solo instruments accompanied by an orchestra
- small craft advisory — a U.S. National Weather Service advisory of sustained winds, over coastal and inland waters, with speeds of 20–33 knots (23–38 mph, 10–17 m/sec). Regional NWS offices have discretion over the choice of the lower limit.
- snowflake generation — the generation of people who became adults in the 2010s, viewed as being less resilient and more prone to taking offence than previous generations
- sodium fluoroacetate — a white, amorphous, water-soluble, poisonous powder, C 2 H 2 FO 2 Na, used as a rodenticide.
- software engineering — the process of writing computer programs
- solitary confinement — the confinement of a prisoner in a cell or other place in which he or she is completely isolated from others.
- spanish west african — of or relating to the former Spanish overseas territory of Spanish West Africa (now the overseas provinces of Ifni and Spanish Sahara) or its inhabitants
- spirit of enterprise — the motivation to set up and succeed in business or commerce
- spirits of hartshorn — a colorless, pungent, suffocating, aqueous solution of about 28.5 percent ammonia gas: used chiefly as a detergent, for removing stains and extracting certain vegetable coloring agents, and in the manufacture of ammonium salts.
- split the difference — the state or relation of being different; dissimilarity: There is a great difference between the two.
- square of opposition — a diagrammatic representation of the opposition of categorical propositions.
- squirrel's-foot fern — ball fern.
- stare sb in the face — If a situation or the answer to a problem is staring you in the face, it is very obvious, although you may not be immediately aware of it.
- strike off the rolls — to expel from membership
- surface-active agent — any substance that when dissolved in water or an aqueous solution reduces its surface tension or the interfacial tension between it and another liquid.
- symmetric difference — the union of the relative complements of two sets.
- tax-deferred annuity — an annuity that enables one to purchase an insurance product that will earn interest, with the tax obligation deferred until withdrawals begin, usually at retirement. Abbreviation: TDA.
- the founding fathers — any of the men who were members of the U.S. Constituional Convention of 1787
- the gnomes of zurich — Swiss bankers and financiers
- the legal profession — the profession of law
- the price of someone — what someone deserves, esp a fitting punishment
- theory of everything — a theory intended to show that the electroweak, strong, and gravitational forces are components of a single quantized force.
- theory of relativity — relativity (def 2).
- there is no call for — If you say that there is no call for someone to behave in a particular way, you are criticizing their behaviour, usually because you think it is rude.
- 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.
- 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.
- thorn in one's flesh — a sharp excrescence on a plant, especially a sharp-pointed aborted branch; spine; prickle.
- to burst into flames — If something bursts into flames or bursts into flame, it suddenly starts burning strongly.
- 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.
- too much information — I don't want to hear any more
- toxemia of pregnancy — an abnormal condition of pregnancy characterized by hypertension, fluid retention, edema, and the presence of protein in the urine.
- 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.
- transformation range — the temperature range within which austenite forms when a ferrous metal is heated, or within which it disappears when the metal is cooled.
- treasury certificate — an obligation of the U.S. government represented by certificates in denominations ranging from $1000 to $1,000,000, maturing in one year or less with interest periodically payable by the redemption of coupons.
- treaty of versailles — the treaty of 1919 imposed upon Germany by the Allies (except for the US and the Soviet Union): the most important of the five peace treaties that concluded World War I
- uncertificated share — a share of a mutual fund credited to the account of a shareholder without the physical issuance of a certificate evidencing ownership.
- unemployment figures — statistics relating to the number of people who are out of work