17-letter words containing t, w, o, h
- great vowel shift — a series of changes in the quality of the long vowels between Middle and Modern English as a result of which all were raised, while the high vowels (ē) and (o̅o̅), already at the upper limit, underwent breaking to become the diphthongs (ī) and (ou).
- great white heron — a large white heron, Ardea occidentalis, of Florida and the Florida Keys.
- great willow herb — either of two tall, large-flowered willow herbs, Epilobium angustifolium or E. hirsutum.
- hardware platform — a group of compatible computers that can run the same software.
- have it both ways — to try to get the best of a situation, argument, etc, by chopping and changing between alternatives or opposites
- hawking radiation — the emission of particles by a black hole. Pairs of virtual particles in the intense gravitational field around a black hole may live long enough for one to move outward when the other is pulled into the black hole, making it appear that the black hole is emitting radiation
- horst wessel song — the official song of the Nazi party in Germany from 1933 to 1945.
- how the land lies — the prevailing conditions or state of affairs
- how's-your-father — sexual intercourse
- in/with regard to — You can use with regard to or in regard to to indicate the subject that is being talked or written about.
- jehovah's witness — A Jehovah's Witness is a member of a religious organization which accepts some Christian ideas and believes that the world is going to end very soon.
- john wilkes booth — Ballington [bal-ing-tuh n] /ˈbæl ɪŋ tən/ (Show IPA), 1859–1940, founder of the Volunteers of America 1896 (son of William Booth).
- know when to stop — If you say that someone does not know when to stop, you mean that they do not control their own behaviour very well and so they often annoy or upset other people.
- lake of the woods — Eldrick [el-drik] /ˈɛl drɪk/ (Show IPA), ("Tiger") born 1975, U.S. professional golfer.
- law of the jungle — a system or mode of action in which the strongest survive, presumably as animals in nature or as human beings whose activity is not regulated by the laws or ethics of civilization.
- law of trichotomy — the property that for natural numbers a and b , either a is less than b , a equals b , or a is greater than b .
- light dawns on sb — If light dawns on you, you begin to understand something after a period of not being able to understand it.
- low-hanging fruit — the fruit that grows low on a tree and is therefore easy to reach
- lower forty-eight — the forty-eight conterminous states of the United States
- lower paleolithic — See under Paleolithic.
- make the worst of — to be pessimistic about
- metabolic pathway — biochemistry: sequence of reactions within a cell or organism
- minion of the law — a policeman.
- mother spleenwort — a fern, Asplenium bulbiferum, of tropical Africa and Australasia, the fronds often bearing bulbils that sprout into new plants while still attached, grown as an ornamental.
- mount fairweather — a mountain in W North America, on the border between Alaska and British Columbia. Height: 4663 m (15 300 ft)
- neck of the woods — the part of the body of an animal or human being that connects the head and the trunk.
- north-wall hammer — a type of ice axe that has a hammer as part of its head
- northcountrywoman — a female native or inhabitant of the North of England
- northern bobwhite — any of several American quail of the genus Colinus, especially C. virginianus (northern bobwhite) having mottled reddish-brown, black, and white plumage.
- northwest by west — a point on the compass, 11°15′ west of northwest. Abbreviation: NWbW.
- northwest passage — a ship route along the Arctic coast of Canada and Alaska, joining the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
- not worth a whoop — worthless
- number three wood — spoon (def 5).
- on the wrong foot — in an inauspicious manner
- on the wrong tack — a short, sharp-pointed nail, usually with a flat, broad head.
- out at the elbows — the bend or joint of the human arm between upper arm and forearm.
- out of harm's way — If someone or something is out of harm's way, they are in a safe place away from danger or from the possibility of being damaged.
- out of the window — dispensed with; disregarded
- out of this world — the earth or globe, considered as a planet.
- pacific northwest — the region of North America lying north of the Columbia River and west of the Rockies
- pebbleweave cloth — an irregularly textured material made from twisted yarn
- play along (with) — to join in or cooperate (with)
- play with oneself — a dramatic composition or piece; drama.
- private ownership — the fact of being owned by a private individual or organization, rather than by the state or a public body
- pull one's weight — the amount or quantity of heaviness or mass; amount a thing weighs.
- put the screws on — a metal fastener having a tapered shank with a helical thread, and topped with a slotted head, driven into wood or the like by rotating, especially by means of a screwdriver.
- quick on the draw — having fast reflexes
- right-to-work law — a state law making it illegal to refuse employment to a person for the sole reason that he or she is not a union member.
- roll with a punch — to move in the same direction as a punch thrown at one so as to lessen its force
- roof of the world — Tibet, Plateau of.