16-letter words containing v, a, n
- south vietnamese — of or relating to the former South Vietnam (now part of Vietnam) or its inhabitants
- sparking voltage — the minimum voltage required to produce a spark across a given spark gap.
- splanchnic nerve — Anatomy. any of several nerves to the viscera and blood vessels of the chest and pelvic areas.
- standing ovation — rising to applaud
- state university — a university maintained by the government of a state.
- state's evidence — evidence given by an accomplice in a crime who becomes a voluntary witness against the other defendants: The defendants' case was lost when one of them turned state's evidence.
- substantive rank — a permanent rank in the armed services obtained by length of service, selection, etc
- surveyor's chain — a series of objects connected one after the other, usually in the form of a series of metal rings passing through one another, used either for various purposes requiring a flexible tie with high tensile strength, as for hauling, supporting, or confining, or in various ornamental and decorative forms.
- swedish vallhund — a small sturdy dog of a Swedish breed with a long body and pricked pointed ears
- take one's leave — to go away; depart
- tarragon vinegar — a white vinegar flavoured with the herb tarragon, used in cooking, esp in salad dressings
- texas revolution — a revolutionary movement, 1832–36, in which U.S. settlers asserted their independence from Mexico and established the republic of Texas.
- thaddeus stevens — Alfred, 1817–75, English painter and sculptor.
- thanksgiving day — a national holiday celebrated as a day of feasting and giving thanks for divine favors or goodness, observed on the fourth Thursday of November in the U.S. and in Canada on the second Monday of October.
- the heavens open — If the heavens open, it suddenly starts raining very heavily.
- the moving party — a person who applies to a court or judge with the aim of obtaining a ruling in their favour
- the noes have it — there is a majority of votes in the negative
- the unobservable — something that cannot be observed
- the vienna union — an international conference of socialists who came together in Vienna in 1921 in an attempt to reconstruct a united International by offering an alternative to the right-wing remnant of the Second International and to the Comintern: merged into the Labour and Socialist International in 1923
- thermionic valve — vacuum tube.
- tinnevelly senna — any plant, shrub, or tree belonging to the genus Cassia, of the legume family, having pinnate leaves and large clusters of flowers.
- to overabound in — to have or contain too large a quantity or number of something
- to pay dividends — If something pays dividends, it brings advantages at a later date.
- to rant and rave — If you say that someone rants and raves, you mean that they talk loudly and angrily in an uncontrolled way.
- torvill and dean — two British ice dancers, Jayne Torvill, born 1957, and Christopher Dean, born 1958. They won the world championships in 1981–84, the European championships in 1981–82, 1984, and 1994, and the gold medal in the 1984 Olympic Games
- transverse colon — the middle portion of the colon, lying across the upper abdominal cavity between the ascending colon on the right and the descending colon on the left.
- transverse flute — the normal orchestral flute, as opposed to the recorder (or fipple flute)
- travel insurance — insurance which covers losses that may be incurred while travelling, such as medical expenses, flight cancellations, lost luggage, etc
- travelling clock — a small clock taken by someone who is travelling
- treaty of verdun — an agreement reached in 843 ad by three grandsons of Charlemagne, dividing his empire into an E kingdom (later Germany), a W kingdom (later France), and a middle kingdom (containing what became the Low Countries, Lorraine, Burgundy, and N Italy)
- trigeminal nerve — of or relating to the trigeminal nerve.
- twelvepenny nail — a nail that is 3 1/4 inches (8.25 cm) long.
- unattractiveness — the condition of not appealing to the senses or mind through beauty, form, character, etc
- unconventionally — not conventional; not bound by or conforming to convention, rule, or precedent; free from conventionality: an unconventional artist; an unconventional use of material.
- unconversational — of, relating to, or characteristic of conversation: a conversational tone of voice.
- underpitch vault — a construction having a central vault intersected by vaults of lower pitch.
- ungava peninsula — a peninsula in NW Ungava region, in N Quebec, in E Canada.
- unimproved value — the valuation of land for rating purposes, disregarding the value of buildings or other development
- universalization — to make universal.
- unrepresentative — a person or thing that represents another or others.
- valence electron — an electron of an atom, located in the outermost shell (valence shell) of the atom, that can be transferred to or shared with another atom.
- valency electron — an electron in the outer shell of an atom, responsible for forming chemical bonds
- valles marineris — a canyon on Mars, 3100 miles (5000 km) in length, named after the Mariner spacecraft.
- vancouver island — an island of SW Canada, off the SW coast of British Columbia: separated from the Canadian mainland by the Strait of Georgia and Queen Charlotte Sound, and from the US mainland by Juan de Fuca Strait; the largest island off the W coast of North America. Chief town: Victoria. Pop: 706 243 (2001). Area: 32 137 sq km (12 408 sq miles)
- vapor channeling — Vapor channeling exists when vapor flow is distributed in an unequal way in a distillation vessel or stage.
- vapor combustion — Vapor combustion is a closed burn system used for treating liquid waste which contains volatile organic compounds.
- variable annuity — an annuity in which the premiums are invested chiefly in common stocks or other securities, the annuitant receiving payments based on the yield of the investments instead of in fixed amounts.
- vasoconstriction — constriction of the blood vessels, as by the action of a nerve.
- vasoconstrictive — causing vasoconstriction.
- vaughan williams — Ralph, 1872–1958, English composer.