17-letter words containing y, r
- university degree — an award conferred by a college or university signifying that the recipient has satisfactorily completed a course of study
- unproportionately — proportioned; being in due proportion; proportional.
- upper yukon river — Lewes River.
- urogenital system — the urinary tract and reproductive organs
- variable-geometry — denoting an aircraft in which the wings are hinged to give the variable aspect ratio colloquially known as a swing-wing
- varix lymphaticus — a similar condition affecting an artery or lymphatic vessel
- vascular cylinder — stele (sense 3)
- verkhoyansk range — a mountain range in the Sakha Republic, in E Siberia, Russia. About 600 miles (970 km) long.
- vertical analysis — the conversion of an organization's profits and losses into overall percentages
- vertical mobility — movement from one social level to a higher one (upward mobility) or a lower one (downward mobility) as by changing jobs or marrying.
- very large memory — (architecture) (VLM) A processor and operating system that can use more than 4GB of RAM, which is the limit for systems using 32-bit addresses. VLM architectures allow application programs and Very Large Databases with more than 4GB of data to be placed entirely in physical memory, with large performance enhancements. Some recent processors like the DEC Alpha can process 64 bits of data at a time and use addresses wider than 32 bits. (Solaris http://sun.com/solaris/64bit.html). (SGI http://sgi.com/Technology/standard/faq.html). (Unix 98 http://UNIX-systems.org/version2/whatsnew/login_64bit.html).
- vestibular system — the sensory mechanism in the inner ear that detects movement of the head and helps to control balance
- video disk player — a device that reads the information on a video disc
- visitors' gallery — a balcony in a building such as a parliament or court where members of the public can sit
- visually impaired — (of a person) having reduced vision so severe as to constitute a handicap.
- voice synthesizer — a computer system that is used to artificially produce the human voice
- volleyball player — sportsperson: plays volleyball
- walleye surfperch — a common black and silvery surfperch (Hyperprosopon argenteum) found off the coast of California
- 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.
- westminster abbey — a Gothic church in London, England.
- whiskey rebellion — a revolt of settlers in western Pennsylvania in 1794 against a federal excise tax on whiskey: suppressed by militia called out by President George Washington to establish the authority of the federal government.
- williams syndrome — an abnormality in the genes involved in calcium metabolism, resulting in learning difficulties
- 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)
- woolly rhinoceros — an extinct rhinoceros; Coelodonta antiquitatis
- worth every penny — If you say that something or someone is worth every penny, you mean that they are worth all the money that is spent on them.
- x-ray diffraction — diffraction of x-rays by the regularly spaced atoms of a crystal, useful for determining the arrangement of the atoms.
- x-ray examination — an examination of part of the body, using an X-ray machine
- year in, year out — a period of 365 or 366 days, in the Gregorian calendar, divided into 12 calendar months, now reckoned as beginning Jan. 1 and ending Dec. 31 (calendar year or civil year) Compare common year, leap year.
- year of confusion — (in ancient Rome) the year of 445 days preceding the introduction, in 46 b.c., of the Julian calendar: lengthened to compensate for the cumulative errors of the Roman calendar.
- yellow copper ore — chalcopyrite.
- yellow journalism — a color like that of egg yolk, ripe lemons, etc.; the primary color between green and orange in the visible spectrum, an effect of light with a wavelength between 570 and 590 nm.
- yellow water lily — any of several water lilies, as the spatterdock, Nuphar luteum, having yellow flowers.
- yellowstone river — river flowing from NW Wyo. through Mont. into the Missouri River: 671 mi (1,080 km)
- yesterday evening — during the evening of the day preceding today
- yesterday morning — during the morning of the day preceding today
- yield to maturity — The yield to maturity of a bond is the rate of return on the bond if it is held to its maturity date.
- yorkshire pudding — a pudding made of an unsweetened batter of flour, salt, eggs, and milk, baked under meat as it roasts to catch the drippings or baked separately with a small amount of meat drippings.
- yorkshire terrier — one of an English breed of toy terriers having a long, silky, straight coat that is dark steel blue from the back of the skull to the tail and tan on the head, chest, and legs.
- you're telling me — I know, I'm well aware
- your day in court — Your day in court is your chance to give your side of an argument or other matter.
- youth programming — the creation and scheduling of television programmes specifically aimed at young people
- youthful offender — a young delinquent, especially a first offender, usually from 14 to 21 years old, whom the court tries to correct and guide rather than to punish as a criminal.
- zero-point energy — energy in a substance at the temperature of absolute zero.
- zoogeographically — In a zoogeographical way.
- zygomatic process — any of several bony processes that articulate with the cheekbone.