16-letter words containing u, l, p, a
- pineal apparatus — a median outgrowth of the roof of the diencephalon in vertebrates that in some develops into the pineal eye and in others into the pineal gland.
- place in the sun — (often initial capital letter) the star that is the central body of the solar system, around which the planets revolve and from which they receive light and heat: its mean distance from the earth is about 93 million miles (150 million km), its diameter about 864,000 miles (1.4 million km), and its mass about 330,000 times that of the earth; its period of surface rotation is about 26 days at its equator but longer at higher latitudes.
- planetary nebula — an expanding shell of thin ionized gas that is ejected from and surrounds a hot, dying star of about the same mass as the sun; the gas absorbs ultraviolet radiation from the central star and reemits it as visible light by the process of fluorescence.
- platinum-iridium — (standard) A standard, against which all others of the same category are measured. Usage: silly. The notion is that one of whatever it is has actually been cast in platinum-iridium alloy and placed in the vault beside the Standard Kilogram at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures near Paris, as the bar defining the standard metre once was. "This garbage collection algorithm has been tested against the platinum-iridium cons cell in Paris." Compare golden.
- pleased as punch — the chief male character in a Punch-and-Judy show.
- pleasure steamer — a boat powered by steam, used for recreational purposes
- pleasure-seeking — always looking for pleasure
- plutarch's lives — (Parallel Lives) a collection (a.d. 105–15) by Plutarch of short biographies of the leading political figures of ancient Greece and Rome.
- plymouth company — a company, formed in England in 1606 to establish colonies in America and that founded a colony in Maine in 1607.
- pneumonic plague — a form of plague characterized by lung involvement.
- poiseuille's law — the law that the velocity of a liquid flowing through a capillary is directly proportional to the pressure of the liquid and the fourth power of the radius of the capillary and is inversely proportional to the viscosity of the liquid and the length of the capillary.
- political asylum — asylum provided by one nation to refugees, especially political refugees, from another nation.
- prerevolutionary — of, pertaining to, characterized by, or of the nature of a revolution, or a sudden, complete, or marked change: a revolutionary junta.
- pressure flaking — a method of manufacturing a flint tool by pressing flakes from a stone core with a pointed implement, usually of wood tipped with antler or copper.
- principal clause — the main clause.
- print journalism — journalism as practiced in newspapers and magazines.
- private language — a language that is not merely secret or accidentally limited to one user, but that cannot in principle be communicated to another
- propylthiouracil — a white crystalline compound, C 7 H 1 0 N 2 OS, that interferes with the synthesis of thyroid hormone by the thyroid gland: used in the treatment of hyperthyroidism.
- proto-algonquian — the unattested parent language from which the Algonquian languages are descended.
- pseudo-political — of, relating to, or concerned with politics: political writers.
- pseudo-realistic — interested in, concerned with, or based on what is real or practical: a realistic estimate of costs; a realistic planner.
- pseudo-spiritual — of, relating to, or consisting of spirit; incorporeal.
- pseudocopulation — pollination of plants, esp orchids, by male insects while attempting to mate with flowers that resemble the female insect
- pseudohemophilia — a clotting disorder caused by abnormal factor VIII activity, and characterized by a prolonged bleeding time but without the delayed coagulation time of hemophilia.
- pseudohistorical — of, pertaining to, treating, or characteristic of history or past events: historical records; historical research.
- pseudoperipteral — having a freestanding colonnade at each end, with engaged columns at the sides.
- public relations — (used with a plural verb) the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc.
- public transport — fare-paying travel
- publication date — the date on which a book or periodical is or is planned to be published.
- publicity agency — an advertising agency; a firm that gets publicity for people or products
- puddling-furnace — the act of a person or thing that puddles.
- pull a long face — to look sad, glum, disapproving, etc.
- pullorum disease — a highly contagious, frequently fatal disease of young poultry caused by the bacterium Salmonella gallinarum (pullorum), transmitted by the infected hen during egg production, and characterized by weakness, loss of appetite, and diarrhea.
- pulmonary artery — an artery conveying venous blood from the right ventricle of the heart to the lungs.
- pulse modulation — a type of modulation in which a train of pulses is used as the carrier wave, one or more of its parameters, such as amplitude, being modulated or modified in order to carry information
- punctuationalism — punctuated equilibrium.
- pure watercolour — water-soluble pigment, applied in transparent washes and without the admixture of white pigment in the lighter tones
- purple gallinule — a purple, blue, green, and white gallinule, Porphyrula martinica, inhabiting warmer areas of the New World, having a bright red, yellow, and blue bill, and lemon-yellow legs and feet.
- purple sandpiper — a sandpiper, Calidris maritima, of arctic regions of the New and Old World, having in winter a slate-gray back with purplish reflections.
- put in mothballs — to postpone work on (a project, activity, etc)
- pyruvic aldehyde — a yellow, liquid compound, C 3 H 4 O 2 , containing both an aldehyde and a ketone group, usually obtained in a polymeric form: used chiefly in organic synthesis.
- quasi-compulsory — required; mandatory; obligatory: compulsory education.
- quasi-diplomatic — of, relating to, or engaged in diplomacy: diplomatic officials.
- query by example — (database, language) (QBE) A user-friendly query language developed by Moshé Zloof of IBM in 1975.
- reconceptualized — to form into a concept; make a concept of.
- redemption value — the price at which the issuing company may choose to repurchase a security before its maturity date
- reinsurance pool — the grouping of insurers that provide partial or complete insurance coverage to other insurers for (a risk on which a policy has already been issued)
- relative pronoun — one of the pronouns who, whom, which, what, their compounds with -ever or -soever, or that used as the subordinating word to introduce a subordinate clause, especially such a pronoun referring to an antecedent.
- reporting clause — A reporting clause is a clause which indicates that you are talking about what someone said or thought. For example, in 'She said that she was hungry', 'She said' is a reporting clause.
- republican party — one of the two major political parties in the U.S.: originated 1854–56.