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18-letter words starting with p

  • phantom withdrawal — the unauthorized removal of funds from a bank account using an automated teller machine
  • phase-shift keying — (communications)   (PSK) A digital modulation scheme that conveys data by changing the phase of a carrier wave. The data can either determine the absolute phase relative to the unmodulated carrier or reference signal ("coherent phase-shift keying", CPSK) or the change in phase ("differential phase-shift keying", DPSK). The number of different phases used determines the amount of data that can be transmitted in each cycle. Each cycle can be considered to constitute one "symbol", e.g. with two possible phases, each cycle carries one bit. The more phases that are used, the less tollerant to noise the transmissions becomes. Alternatives to PSK are amplitude-shift keying (ASK) and frequency-shift keying (FSK).
  • phenol coefficient — the number indicating the effectiveness of a disinfectant as a germicide relative to phenol, which is arbitrarily assigned the number 1: based on the time required to kill a given quantity of a specific type of bacteria.
  • phenylacetaldehyde — a colorless, oily, water-insoluble liquid, C 3 H 1 4 O, having a hyacinthlike odor: used chiefly in perfumery.
  • philharmonic pitch — a standard of pitch in which A above middle C is established at 440 vibrations per second.
  • philosophy of life — any philosophical view or vision of the nature or purpose of life or of the way that life should be lived.
  • phoenician juniper — a type of juniper that is found in the Mediterranean region
  • phosphatidylserine — any of a class of phospholipids occurring in biological membranes and fats
  • phosphonium iodide — a colorless to slightly yellowish, crystalline, water-soluble solid, PH 4 I, used in chemical synthesis.
  • photochemical smog — air pollution containing ozone and other reactive chemical compounds formed by the action of sunlight on nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons, especially those in automobile exhaust.
  • photodecomposition — the breaking down of molecules by radiant energy.
  • photoelectric cell — photocell.
  • photoisomerization — isomerization induced by light.
  • photomorphogenesis — plant development that is controlled by light.
  • photosensitization — to make (a material) photosensitive, as by the application of a photosensitive emulsion.
  • phthalic anhydride — a white, crystalline, slightly water-soluble solid, C 8 H 4 O 3 , used chiefly in the manufacture of dyes, alkyd resins, and plasticizers.
  • physical chemistry — the branch of chemistry dealing with the relations between the physical properties of substances and their chemical composition and transformations.
  • physical education — systematic instruction in sports, exercises, and hygiene given as part of a school or college program.
  • physical geography — the branch of geography concerned with natural features and phenomena of the earth's surface, as landforms, drainage features, climates, soils, and vegetation.
  • physical inventory — To carry out a physical inventory is to count all the stock on hand.
  • physical therapist — sb who performs physiotherapy
  • phytohemagglutinin — a lectin, obtained from the red kidney bean, that binds to the membranes of T cells and stimulates metabolic activity, cell division, etc.
  • pick of the litter — objects strewn or scattered about; scattered rubbish.
  • pick up the pieces — deal with aftermath
  • picture-in-picture — a feature of some television receivers and similar devices in which one programme is displayed on the full TV screen at the same time as one or more other programmes are displayed in inset windows
  • piecewise function — a function whose definition changes depending on the value of the independent variable
  • pierre d'iberville — Pierre le Moyne [pyer luh mwan] /pyɛr lə ˈmwan/ (Show IPA), Sieur, 1661–1706, French naval officer, born in Canada: founder of the first French settlement in Louisiana, 1699.
  • pig-tailed macaque — a forest-dwelling southeast Asian macaque, Macaca nemestrina, having a short, curled tail, colonized for animal behavior studies.
  • pigmy hippopotamus — a related but smaller animal, Choeropsis liberiensis
  • pileolated warbler — either of two western subspecies of Wilson's warbler.
  • pilgrim's progress — an allegory (1678) by John Bunyan.
  • pilotless aircraft — an aircraft equipped for operation by radio or by robot control, without a human pilot aboard; drone.
  • pilotless ignition — a system for igniting a gas burner, as in a gas range, furnace, or boiler, without the use of a pilot light.
  • pine tree shilling — a silver coin minted in Massachusetts in the mid to late 17th century, named for the pine tree within a circle shown on the obverse side.
  • piperonyl butoxide — a light-brown liquid, C 1 9 H 3 0 O 5 , used chiefly as a synergist in certain insecticides.
  • pitch-and-run shot — chip shot.
  • pitt-rivers museum — a museum in Oxford that houses a major anthropological collection of tools and weapons assembled by Augustus Henry Lane Fox Pitt-Rivers
  • plains grasshopper — a large, destructive short-horned grasshopper, Brachystola magna, of the western U.S., marked by pinkish hind wings.
  • plane of incidence — a plane determined by a given ray, incident on a surface, and the normal at the point where the incident ray strikes the surface.
  • plane polarization — a type of polarization in which the electric vector of waves of light or other electromagnetic radiation is restricted to vibration in a single plane
  • plane trigonometry — the branch of trigonometry dealing with plane triangles.
  • planned parenthood — an organization that gives out information on the planning of the number and spacing of the births of one's children, as through the use of birth-control measures
  • plate-glass window — a window that has glass which has been formed by rolling
  • platinocyanic acid — the hypothetical acid containing platinum and the cyano group, H 2 Pt(CN) 4 .
  • play cat and mouse — Also called cat and rat. a children's game in which players in a circle keep a player from moving into or out of the circle and permit a second player to move into or out of the circle to escape the pursuing first player.
  • play catch-up ball — to adjust one's style of play so as to make up for a lack of points, runs, etc.
  • play second fiddle — be considered less important
  • play silly buggers — to fool around and waste time
  • play someone false — to deceive, cheat, hoodwink, or betray someone
  • play the race card — to introduce the subject of race into a public discussion, esp to gain a strategic advantage
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