17-letter words containing t, w, i, r
- twelve patriarchs — any of the sons of Jacob ((the twelve patriarchs),) from whom the tribes of Israel were descended.
- verticillium wilt — a disease affecting many temperate-climate plants in hot weather, caused by soil-inhabiting fungi of the genus Verticillium and characterized by wilt, dulling or yellowing of leaf color, and withering near the base.
- wage differential — the difference in wages between workers with different skills in the same industry or between those with comparable skills in different industries or localities
- waist measurement — a measure of the circumference of the narrowest part of a person's waist
- waitangi tribunal — (in New Zealand) a government tribunal empowered to examine and make recommendations on Māori claims under the Treaty of Waitangi
- waiting for godot — a play (1952) by Samuel Beckett.
- walk-in apartment — a ground-floor apartment having a private entrance directly from the street, rather than through a hallway of the building.
- wang laboratories — (body) Computer manufacturer, known for their office automation products and the Wang PC. Quarterly sales $208M, profits $3M (Aug 1994).
- war establishment — the full wartime complement of men, equipment, and vehicles of a military unit
- wardrobe mistress — a woman in charge of keeping theatrical costumes cleaned, pressed, and in wearable condition.
- warehouse receipt — a receipt for goods placed in a warehouse.
- warehousing costs — the costs involved in storing goods in a warehouse
- warsaw convention — a multilateral treaty on aviation set up chiefly to limit air carriers' liability to passengers and shippers on international flights in the event of an accident.
- washington square — a short novel (1881) by Henry James.
- water lily family — the plant family Nymphaeaceae, characterized by aquatic herbaceous plants having usually broad leaves, solitary, often showy flowers, and fruit in a variety of forms, and including the lotus (genus Nelumbo), spatterdock, water lily, and water shield.
- water tube boiler — a boiler for generating steam by passing water in tubes (water tubes) through flames and hot gases.
- water-tube boiler — a boiler for generating steam by passing water in tubes (water tubes) through flames and hot gases.
- weapons inspector — a person who inspects a country's weapons
- weather satellite — meteorological satellite.
- weather-resistant — resisting the effects of severe weather, as rain or cold: weather-resistant cloth for topcoats.
- wedding breakfast — meal served at wedding reception
- wedding reception — party after a marriage
- well-proportioned — adjusted to proper proportion or relation.
- west three rivers — a town in S Quebec, in E Canada.
- western australia — a state in W Australia. 975,920 sq. mi. (2,527,635 sq. km). Capital: Perth.
- westminster abbey — a Gothic church in London, England.
- wheatstone bridge — a circuit for measuring an unknown resistance by comparing it with known resistances.
- whistler's mother — (formal name, Arrangement in Gray and Black No. 1: Portrait of the Artist's Mother) a painting (1871) by James McNeill Whistler.
- white book cd-rom — (hardware, standard) A more open CD-ROM standard than Green Book CD-ROM. All films mastered on CD-ROM after March 1994 use White Book. Like Green Book, it is ISO 9660 compliant, uses mode 2 form 2 addressing and can only be played on a CD-ROM drive which is XA (Extended Architecture) compatible. White book CDs are labelled "Video CD".
- white-tailed deer — a common North American deer, Odocoileus virginianus, having a tail with a white underside.
- whiter than white — extremely clean and white
- wide area network — a computer network that spans a relatively large geographical area.
- wide-area network — a computer network that spans a relatively large geographical area.
- wild service tree — either of two European trees, Sorbus domestica, bearing a small, acid fruit that is edible when overripe, or S. torminalis (wild service tree) bearing a similar fruit.
- willow flycatcher — a North American flycatcher, Empidonax alnorum, of alder thickets and other moist areas, that has greenish-brown upper parts and whitish underparts and is almost indistinguishable except by voice from E. traillii (willow flycatcher)
- wimshurst machine — a device for the production of electric charge by electrostatic induction, consisting of two oppositely rotating glass or mica disks carrying metal strips upon which charges are induced and subsequently removed by contact with metallic combs.
- winchester bushel — a unit of dry measure containing 4 pecks, equivalent in the U.S. (and formerly in England) to 2150.42 cubic inches or 35.24 liters (Winchester bushel) and in Great Britain to 2219.36 cubic inches or 36.38 liters (Imperial bushel) Abbreviation: bu., bush.
- wind chill factor — A wind chill factor is a measure of the cooling effect of the wind on the temperature of the air.
- wind-chill factor — the apparent temperature felt on the exposed human body owing to the combination of temperature and wind speed.
- winding staircase — long set of spiral stairs
- winter heliotrope — a creeping perennial, Petasites fragrans, related to the butterbur, having lilac to heliotrope-coloured flowers smelling of vanilla: found chiefly on road verges
- wire entanglement — a barbed-wire obstacle, usually mounted on posts and zigzagged back and forth along a front, designed to channel, delay, or halt an advance by enemy foot soldiers.
- wireless internet — access to the internet without a cable
- wireless operator — a radio operator
- with a difference — If you describe a job or holiday, for example, as a job with a difference or a holiday with a difference, you mean that the job or holiday is very interesting and unusual.
- with bated breath — to moderate or restrain: unable to bate our enthusiasm.
- with half a heart — halfheartedly
- withdrawal method — a method of contraception in which the man withdraws his penis from the woman's vagina before ejaculation
- without prejudice — fairly
- without regard to — with no concern for