12-letter words containing w, a, t, p
- postcardware — Shareware that borders on freeware, in that the author requests only that satisfied users send a postcard of their home town or something. (This practice, silly as it might seem, serves to remind users that they are otherwise getting something for nothing, and may also be psychologically related to real estate "sales" in which $1 changes hands just to keep the transaction from being a gift.)
- pot-walloper — (in some boroughs before the Reform Bill of 1832) a man who qualified as a householder, and therefore a voter, by virtue of ownership of his own fireplace at which to boil pots.
- power assist — a procedure for supplementing or replacing the manual effort needed to operate a device or system, often by hydraulic, electrical, or mechanical means.
- power factor — (in an electrical circuit) the ratio of the power dissipated to the product of the input volts times amps
- power-stream — to stream and watch (multiple videos, episodes of a TV show, etc.) in one sitting or over a short period of time.
- powerboating — a boat propelled by mechanical power.
- praiseworthy — deserving of praise; laudable: a praiseworthy motive.
- private view — a preview, esp of an art exhibition, for specially invited guests
- property law — the branch of law dealing with issues relating to land and houses
- punxsutawney — a town in central Pennsylvania: Groundhog Day celebration.
- saw palmetto — a shrublike palmetto, Serenoa repens, of the palm family, native to the southern U.S., having green or blue leafstalks set with spiny teeth.
- sepak takraw — a game originating in South Asia in which two teams kick a ball back and forth over a net
- sharp-witted — having or showing mental acuity; intellectually discerning; acute.
- shop steward — commerce: union rep
- space writer — a journalist or copywriter paid according to a space rate. Also called space man. Compare stringer (def 6).
- spring water — water from natural underground source
- swamp locust — water locust.
- swamp rabbit — any of several southern cottontails, especially Sylvilagus aquaticus, of swamps and lowlands.
- swap trading — a contract in which the parties to it exchange liabilities on outstanding debts in trading
- sweet potato — a plant, Ipomoea batatas, of the morning glory family, grown for its sweet, edible, tuberous roots.
- switch plate — a plate, usually of metal, ceramic, or plastic, covering a switch so that the knob or toggle protrudes.
- take up with — to get into one's hold or possession by voluntary action: to take a cigarette out of a box; to take a pen and begin to write.
- tapioca snow — snow pellets.
- team up with — join forces with
- tree sparrow — a Eurasian bird, Passer montanus, related to but smaller than the house sparrow.
- twin paradox — a phenomenon predicted by relativity. One of a pair of identical twins is supposed to live normally in an inertial system whilst the other is accelerated to a high speed in a spaceship, travels for a long time, and finally returns to rest beside his twin. The travelled twin will be found to be younger than his brother
- twisted pair — A twisted pair is a pair of wires that are twisted together to reduce interference.
- twitterpated — excited or overcome by romantic feelings; smitten.
- up the wazoo — the anus.
- walk-on part — acting role with no spoken lines
- walk-up rate — The walk-up rate at a hotel is the price charged to a customer who arrives without a reservation.
- walter pater — Walter Horatio, 1839–94, English critic, essayist, and novelist.
- warp-knitted — designating a fabric made by warp knitting.
- watch pocket — a small pocket in a garment, as in a vest or trousers, for holding a pocket watch, change, etc. Compare fob1 (def 1).
- water pepper — a widely distributed annual plant, Polygonum hydropiper, of marshes and bogs, characterized by acrid, peppery-tasting leaves.
- water pistol — a toy gun that shoots a stream of liquid.
- water pocket — a cavity at the foot of a cliff formed by the falling action of an intermittent stream.
- water spider — a Eurasian spider, Argyroneta aquatica, that spins a web in the form of an air-filled chamber in which it lives submerged in streams and ponds
- water splash — a place where a stream runs over a road
- water sports — a sport played or practiced on or in water, as swimming, water polo, or surfing.
- water sprite — a sprite or spirit inhabiting the water, as an undine.
- water sprout — a nonflowering shoot arising from a branch or axil of a tree or shrub.
- water supply — the supply of purified water available to a community.
- water vapour — steam
- watering pot — a container for water, typically of metal or plastic and having a spout with a perforated nozzle, for watering or sprinkling plants, flowers, etc.
- watermanship — the skill, duties, business, etc., of a waterman.
- waterproofed — Having been made waterproof.
- waterproofer — One who, or that which, makes waterproof.
- weather ship — a ship equipped for meteorological observation.
- weatherproof — able to withstand exposure to all kinds of weather.