16-letter words containing w, o, y

law of parsimony — a principle according to which an explanation of a thing or event is made with the fewest possible assumptions.
lay down the law — the principles and regulations established in a community by some authority and applicable to its people, whether in the form of legislation or of custom and policies recognized and enforced by judicial decision.
mauchly, john w. — John Mauchly
measured daywork — a system of wage payment, usually determined by work-study techniques, whereby the wage of an employee is fixed on the understanding that a specific level of work performance will be maintained
monkey's wedding — a combination of sunshine and light rain
monkey-faced owl — barn owl.
network analysis — a mathematical method of analyzing complex problems, as in transportation or project scheduling, by representing the problem as a network of lines and nodes.
network topology — (networking) The "shape" of a network, how the nodes are connected to each other. Common topologies are bus network, star network and ring network.
new haven colony — a settlement founded in 1638 by John Davenport and Theophilus Eaton at Quinnipiac (now New Haven, Conn.).
new world monkey — any of various arboreal anthropoid primates of the group or superfamily Platyrrhini, inhabiting forests from Mexico to Argentina and typically having a hairy face, widely separated nostrils, long arms, and a long, prehensile tail, and including the capuchin, douroucouli, howler monkey, marmoset, saki, spider monkey, squirrel monkey, titi, uakari, and woolly monkey.
newry and mourne — a district of SE Northern Ireland, in Co Down. Pop: 89 644 (2003 est). Area: 909 sq km (351 sq miles)
nine-days wonder — something that arouses great interest, but only for a short period
off off broadway — experimental or avant-garde drama produced in New York City, in small theaters, halls, churches, etc.
off-off-broadway — experimental or avant-garde drama produced in New York City, in small theaters, halls, churches, etc.
old world monkey — any of various anthropoid primates of the family Cercopithecidae, of Africa, the Arabian peninsula, and Asia, typically having a hairless face, forward- or downward-directed nostrils, relatively short arms, flat nails, and either having a rudimentary tail or using the tail for balance rather than grasping, and including the baboon, colobus monkey, guenon, langur, macaque, mandrill, mangabey, patas, proboscis, and talapoin.
one-way function — (cryptography, mathematics) A function which is easy to compute but whose inverse is very difficult to compute. Such functions have important applications in cryptography, specifically in public-key cryptography. See also: trapdoor function.
overhead railway — elevated railroad.
part way through — mid-way; before the end
pay-as-you-throw — denoting a system for waste collection in which households are charged according to the amount of refuse they leave
poor boy sweater — a snug-fitting, pullover sweater with ribbing on both the body and sleeves, worn by girls and women.
powerfully built — (of a person, esp a man) big and physically strong, with large muscles
raise an eyebrow — If something causes you to raise an eyebrow or to raise your eyebrows, it causes you to feel surprised or disapproving.
rotary lawnmower — a lawn mower with a single blade attached in the middle that rotates as the mower is moved
royal water lily — a water lily, Victoria amazonica (or V. regia), of the Amazon River and British Guiana, having floating leaves from three to six feet (0.9 to 1.8 meters) wide, the upturned margins from two to four inches (5 to 10 cm) high, and dull crimson flowers.
secondary growth — an increase in the thickness of the shoots and roots of a vascular plant as a result of the formation of new cells in the cambium.
showy crab apple — a large Japanese bush or tree, Malus floribunda, of the rose family, having red fruit and rose-colored flowers that fade to white.
software library — a collection of programs that are used to develop software
sooty shearwater — any of several long-winged seabirds, often used as food, especially Puffinus tenuirostris (short-tailed shearwater) of Australia and Puffinus griseus (sooty shearwater) which breeds in the Southern Hemisphere and winters in the Northern Hemisphere.
starry grasswort — a weedy plant, Cerastium arvense, of the pink family, native to the North Temperate Zone, having narrow leaves and white flowers.
strawberry blond — reddish blond.
systems software — Computers. a collection of system programs for use with a particular computer system.
the easy way out — least demanding solution
the west country — the southwest of England, esp Cornwall, Devon, and Somerset
the yellow press — (formerly) popular newspapers publishing sensational stories
to blow your top — If someone blows their top, they become very angry about something.
to cut both ways — If you say that something cuts both ways, you mean that it can have two opposite effects, or can have both good and bad effects.
to go a long way — If you say that something goes a long way towards doing a particular thing, you mean that it is an important factor in achieving that thing.
to hold your own — If you hold your own, you are able to resist someone who is attacking or opposing you.
to sow your oats — (of a young person) to behave in a rather uncontrolled way, esp by having a lot of sexual relationships
tokugawa iyeyasu — Tokugawa [taw-koo-gah-wah] /ˈtɔ kuˈgɑ wɑ/ (Show IPA), 1542–1616, Japanese general and public servant.
twenty questions — an oral game in which one player selects a word or object whose identity the other players attempt to guess by asking up to twenty questions that can be answered with a yes or a no.
twenty-four-hour — lasting for twenty-four hours
two-body problem — the problem of calculating the motions of two bodies in space moving solely under the influence of their mutual gravitational attraction.
two-family house — a house designed for occupation by two families in contiguous apartments, as on separate floors.
two-party system — a political system consisting chiefly of two major parties, more or less equal in strength.
two-stroke cycle — See under two-cycle.
unknown quantity — mathematics: amount not known
utility software — system software that manages and optimizes the performance of hardware
voluntary worker — a person who serves or acts in a specified function of their own accord and without compulsion or promise of remuneration
way of all flesh — a novel (1903) by Samuel Butler.

Was this page helpful?

Yes No

Thank you for your feedback! Tell your friends about this page

Tell us why?