18-letter words containing w, e, i, l
- schwarz inequality — Also called Cauchy's inequality. the theorem that the inner product of two vectors is less than or equal to the product of the magnitudes of the vectors.
- self-tapping screw — a screw designed to tap its corresponding female thread as it is driven.
- short-tailed shrew — a grayish-black shrew, Blarina brevicauda, common in eastern North America, that has a tail less than half the length of the body.
- silvery spleenwort — a fern, Diplazium pycnocarpon, of eastern North America, having fronds from 20 to 30 inches (50.8 to 76.2 cm) long on yellowish-green stalks.
- slow-motion replay — a showing again in slow motion of a sequence of action, esp of part of a sporting contest immediately after it happens
- st. lawrence river — a river in SE Canada, flowing NE from Lake Ontario, forming part of the boundary between New York and Ontario, and emptying into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 760 miles (1225 km) long.
- stand/wait in line — When people stand in line or wait in line, they stand one behind the other in a line, waiting their turn for something.
- sunflower seed oil — the oil extracted from sunflower seeds, used as a salad oil, in the manufacture of margarine, etc
- super middleweight — a boxer weighing up to 168 pounds (75.6 kg), between middleweight and light heavyweight.
- swarm intelligence — the collective behaviour of a group of animals, esp social insects such as ants, bees, and termites, that are each following very basic rules
- tale of two cities — a historical novel (1859) by Dickens.
- talk between ships — TBS (def 1).
- telford and wrekin — a unitary authority in W Central England, in Shropshire. Pop: 160 300 (2003 est). Area: 289 sq km (112 sq miles)
- territorial waters — law: nation's boundaries
- the bird has flown — the person in question has fled or escaped
- think the world of — the earth or globe, considered as a planet.
- throw in the towel — an absorbent cloth or paper for wiping and drying something wet, as one for the hands, face, or body after washing or bathing.
- throw oneself into — to propel or cast in any way, especially to project or propel from the hand by a sudden forward motion or straightening of the arm and wrist: to throw a ball.
- to let it be known — If you let it be known that something is the case, or you let something be known, you make sure that people know it or can find out about it.
- traditional weapon — a weapon having ceremonial tribal significance, such as an assegai or knobkerrie
- ultrasonic welding — the use of high-energy vibration of ultrasonic frequency to produce a weld between two components which are held in close contact
- vicar of wakefield — a novel (1766) by Goldsmith.
- wandering minstrel — travelling performer
- watson-crick model — a widely accepted model for the three-dimensional structure of DNA, featuring a double-helix configuration for the molecule's two hydrogen-bonded complementary polynucleotide strands.
- wedge-tailed eagle — a large brown Australian eagle, Aquila audax, having a wedge-shaped tail and a wingspan of 3 m
- welland ship canal — a ship canal in S Canada, in Ontario, connecting Lakes Erie and Ontario: 8 locks. 25 miles (40 km) long.
- welwyn garden city — a town in SE England, in Hertfordshire: established (1920) as a planned industrial and residential community. Pop: 43 512 (2001)
- wesleyan methodist — a member of any of the churches founded on the evangelical principles of John Wesley.
- western alienation — a feeling of resentment by some inhabitants of western Canada against perceived favouritism by the national government towards the eastern provinces
- western isles pony — a breed of large pony, typically grey, with a dense waterproof coat. The only surviving variety is the Eriskay pony
- wheelchair housing — housing designed or adapted for a chairbound person
- whispering gallery — a space or gallery beneath a dome or broad arch in which low sounds produced at any of certain points are clearly audible at certain other distant points.
- white trumpet lily — a lily, Lilium longiflorum, of Japan, having fragrant, pure white, trumpet-shaped flowers nearly 7 inches (18 cm) in length.
- white-collar crime — any of various crimes, as embezzlement, fraud, or stealing office equipment, committed by business or professional people while working at their occupations.
- white-spotted hyla — a type of tree frog (H. leucophyllata) of tropical America
- widemouth blindcat — any of several catfishes, as Satan eurystomus (widemouth blindcat) of Texas, that inhabit underground streams and have undeveloped eyes and unpigmented skin.
- wild passionflower — the maypop, Passiflora incarnata.
- wild sweet william — blue phlox.
- wildlife programme — (esp on television) a documentary whose subject is wild animals in their natural habitat or undomesticated fauna and flora generally
- wildlife sanctuary — an area where wild animals and plants are protected
- wilson's phalarope — a phalarope, Phalaropus tricolor, that breeds in the prairie regions of North America and winters in Argentina and Chile.
- winged everlasting — a bushy composite plant, Ammobium alatum, of Australia, having winged branches, javelin-shaped leaves, and white flowers.
- wireless telephone — Now Rare. radiotelephony.
- wireless telephony — Now Rare. radiotelephony.
- witch hazel family — the plant family Hamamelidaceae, characterized by trees and shrubs having alternate, simple leaves, flowers in clusters or heads, and fruit in the form of a double-beaked woody capsule, and including the sweet gum, witch alder, and witch hazel.
- women's liberation — a movement to combat sexual discrimination and to gain full legal, economic, vocational, educational, and social rights and opportunities for women, equal to those of men.
- working men's club — A working men's club is a place where working people, especially men, can go to relax, drink alcoholic drinks, and sometimes watch live entertainment.
- wrangell mountains — a mountain range in SE Alaska, extending into the Yukon, Canada. Highest peak: Mount Blackburn, 5037 m (16 523 ft)
- yelloweye rockfish — a red rockfish, Sebastes ruberrimus, of waters along the Pacific coast of North America, having eyes that are yellow and possessed of strong, sawlike bony ridges on the head.