18-letter words starting with p
- pci mezzanine card — (hardware) (PMC) A family of low profile mezzanine cards for VMEbus, Futurebus+, desktop computers and other computer systems with logical and electrical layers based on the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) specification. PMC is defined in IEEE P1386.1 and follows the Common Mezzanine Card (CMC) mechanical specification. PCI2.0 defines a 4.2 inch by 12.3 inch board that plugs perpendicularly into a mother board.
- peacekeeping force — a force designated to the maintenance of peace, esp the prevention of further fighting between hostile forces in an area
- peak-to-peak value — Peak-to-peak value is the maximum voltage change occurring during one cycle of alternating voltage or current.
- peano's postulates — a collection of axioms concerning the properties of the set of all positive integers, including the principle of mathematical induction.
- peasant proprietor — a peasant who owns land, especially the land he or she tills.
- pectoral sandpiper — an American sandpiper, Calidris melanotos, the male of which, when courting, inflates its chest conspicuously.
- pedal steel guitar — an oblong, floor-mounted electrified guitar, usually having ten strings, fretted with a steel bar and producing a wailing sound that is modulated by use of a foot pedal.
- pedestrian traffic — the people coming and going on foot in a street, town, etc
- pellitory of spain — a small Mediterranean plant, Anacyclus pyrethrum, the root of which contains an oil formerly used to relieve toothache: family Asteraceae (composites)
- pemphigus vulgaris — a potentially fatal blistering skin disease, characterized by large blisters on the skin, mucous membranes of the mouth, genitals, intestines, etc, which eventually rupture and form painful denuded areas from which critical amounts of bodily protein, fluid, and blood may be lost
- pennsylvania dutch — the descendants of 17th- and 18th-century settlers in Pennsylvania from southwest Germany and Switzerland.
- pensioneer trustee — (in Britain) a person authorized by HMRC to oversee the management of a pension fund
- people trafficking — the practice of bringing immigrants into a country illegally
- people's democracy — (in Communist ideology) a country or form of government in transition from bourgeois democracy to socialism. In this stage there is more than one class, the largest being the proletariat, led by the Communist Party, which is therefore the dominant power
- peppermint camphor — menthol.
- per ardua ad astra — through difficulties to the stars: the motto of the RAF
- percentile ranking — the percentage of scores that a particular score is greater than
- perceptual defence — the process by which it is thought that certain stimuli are either not perceived or are distorted due to their offensive, unpleasant, or threatening nature
- perceptual mapping — the use of a graph or map in the development of a new product, in which the proximity of consumers' images of the new product to those of an ideal product provide an indication of the new product's likely success
- percussion flaking — a method of forming a flint tool by striking flakes from a stone core with another stone or a piece of bone or wood.
- percussion section — orchestra, group: drums, etc.
- percussion welding — a form of resistance welding in which the required pressure is provided by a hammerlike blow.
- perennial ryegrass — any of several European grasses of the genus Lolium, as L. perenne (perennial ryegrass) grown for forage in the U.S.
- perfect continuous — perfect progressive.
- perfect contrition — sincere penitence or remorse.
- perfect participle — past participle.
- perforated tracery — tracery, as in early Gothic architecture, formed of cut or pierced slabs of stone set on edge with the flat side outward.
- performance artist — an artist that is involved in a theatrical presentation that incorporates various art forms, such as dance, sculpture, music, etc
- periodic inventory — Periodic inventory is a method of valuing inventory, usually at the end of accounting periods, by physically counting all merchandise held in stock at that time.
- perish the thought — to die or be destroyed through violence, privation, etc.: to perish in an earthquake.
- perlocutionary act — the action of affecting someone by uttering certain words
- permanent hardness — hardness of water that cannot be removed by boiling as it results mainly from the presence of calcium and magnesium chlorides and sulphates
- permanent resident — an immigrant who has been given official residential status, often prior to being granted citizenship
- pernicious anaemia — Pernicious anaemia is a very severe blood disease.
- perpetual calendar — a calendar devised to be used for many years, as in determining the day of the week on which a given date falls.
- persistent cruelty — conduct causing fear of danger to the life or health of a spouse (used in matrimonial proceedings before magistrates)
- personal allowance — the amount of money you are allowed to earn each year without paying tax
- personal assistant — aide
- personal bodyguard — a person employed to protect a particular person
- personal exemption — Your personal exemption is the amount of money that is deducted from your gross income before you have to start paying income tax.
- personal insurance — insurance on personal risk, such as car insurance, health insurance or loss of earnings insurance
- personal organizer — a small notebook with sections for personal information, as dates and addresses.
- pescadores-islands — (used with a plural verb) Penghu.
- peter and the wolf — a composition by Sergei Prokofiev written in 1936. It is a children's story with both music and text, spoken by a narrator accompanied by the orchestra
- peter tschaikowsky — Peter Ilyich [il-yich] /ˈɪl yɪtʃ/ (Show IPA), Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilyich.
- peters' projection — a form of modified world map projection that attempts to reflect accurately the relative surface areas of landmasses, an approach which gives greater prominence (than do standard representations) to equatorial countries
- petite bourgeoisie — the portion of the bourgeoisie having the least wealth and lowest social status; the lower middle class.
- petroleum engineer — A petroleum engineer is an engineer who is involved in most stages of oil and gas field evaluation, development, and production, whose job is to maximize hydrocarbon recovery and reduce costs and environmental impact.
- phanerocrystalline — (of a rock) having the principal constituents in the form of crystals visible to the naked eye.
- phantasmagorically — having a fantastic or deceptive appearance, as something in a dream or created by the imagination.