17-letter words containing w, e, l, a, t, i
- tell its own tale — to be self-evident
- the final whistle — a blast on a referee's whistle to indicate that a game is over
- the lower animals — relatively simple or primitive animals and not mammals or vertebrates
- the unwritten law — the tradition that a person may avenge any insult to family integrity, as used to justify criminal acts of vengeance
- three-strikes law — a law that mandates a life sentence to a felon convicted for the third time.
- tiger swallowtail — a yellow swallowtail butterfly, Papilio glaucus, of eastern North America, having the forewings striped with black.
- to play with fire — If you say that someone is playing with fire, you mean that they are doing something dangerous that may result in great harm for them and cause many problems.
- twelve patriarchs — any of the sons of Jacob ((the twelve patriarchs),) from whom the tribes of Israel were descended.
- wade-giles system — a system of Romanization of Chinese, devised by Sir Thomas Francis Wade (1818–95) and adapted by Herbert Allen Giles (1845–1935), widely used in representing Chinese words and names in English, especially before the adoption of pinyin.
- wage differential — the difference in wages between workers with different skills in the same industry or between those with comparable skills in different industries or localities
- walk-in apartment — a ground-floor apartment having a private entrance directly from the street, rather than through a hallway of the building.
- wang laboratories — (body) Computer manufacturer, known for their office automation products and the Wang PC. Quarterly sales $208M, profits $3M (Aug 1994).
- war establishment — the full wartime complement of men, equipment, and vehicles of a military unit
- water lily family — the plant family Nymphaeaceae, characterized by aquatic herbaceous plants having usually broad leaves, solitary, often showy flowers, and fruit in a variety of forms, and including the lotus (genus Nelumbo), spatterdock, water lily, and water shield.
- water tube boiler — a boiler for generating steam by passing water in tubes (water tubes) through flames and hot gases.
- water-tube boiler — a boiler for generating steam by passing water in tubes (water tubes) through flames and hot gases.
- weather satellite — meteorological satellite.
- well-investigated — to examine, study, or inquire into systematically; search or examine into the particulars of; examine in detail.
- welsh nationalism — the political belief that Wales should be independent
- welsh nationalist — a person who believes that Wales should be independent
- western australia — a state in W Australia. 975,920 sq. mi. (2,527,635 sq. km). Capital: Perth.
- white-nationalism — white supremacy.
- white-tailed deer — a common North American deer, Odocoileus virginianus, having a tail with a white underside.
- white-tailed kite — an American kite, Elanus leucurus, having gray plumage with a white head, breast, and tail.
- wild sweet potato — man-of-the-earth.
- willow flycatcher — a North American flycatcher, Empidonax alnorum, of alder thickets and other moist areas, that has greenish-brown upper parts and whitish underparts and is almost indistinguishable except by voice from E. traillii (willow flycatcher)
- wire entanglement — a barbed-wire obstacle, usually mounted on posts and zigzagged back and forth along a front, designed to channel, delay, or halt an advance by enemy foot soldiers.
- wireless operator — a radio operator
- with half a heart — halfheartedly
- withdrawal method — a method of contraception in which the man withdraws his penis from the woman's vagina before ejaculation
- wrangell-mountain — Mount, an active volcano in SE Alaska, in the Wrangell Mountains. 14,006 feet (4269 meters).
- yellow water lily — any of several water lilies, as the spatterdock, Nuphar luteum, having yellow flowers.
- zebra swallowtail — a swallowtail butterfly, Papilio marcellus, having black and greenish-white stripes on the wings.