-
bunsen burner
a gas burner used in laboratories; has an air valve to regulate the mixture of gas and air
-
Moonie
an often derogatory term for a member of the Unification Church
-
mesmerise
attract strongly, as if with a magnet
-
Dewar flask
vacuum flask that holds liquid air or helium for scientific experiments
-
bacitracin
a polypeptide antibiotic of known chemical structure effective against several types of Gram-positive organisms; usually applied locally
-
Bessemer process
an industrial process for making steel using a Bessemer converter to blast air through molten iron and thus burning the excess carbon and impurities; the first successful method of making steel in quantity at low cost
-
guillotine
instrument of execution that consists of a weighted blade between two vertical poles; used for beheading people
-
marcel
a hairdo characterized by deep regular waves that are made by a heated curling iron
-
buddleia
tropical shrub having clusters of white or violet or yellow flowers
-
ohm
a unit of electrical resistance equal to the resistance between two points on a conductor when a potential difference of one volt between them produces a current of one ampere
-
Petri dish
a shallow dish used to culture bacteria
-
Maginot Line
a fortification built before World War II to protect France's eastern border; initially considered to be impregnable, it was easily overrun by the German army in 1940
-
Bakelite
a thermosetting plastic used as electric insulators and for making plastic ware and telephone receivers etc.
-
pantaloon
trousers worn in former times
-
galvanise
stimulate (muscles) by administering a shock
-
cereal
grass whose starchy grains are used as food: wheat; rice; rye; oats; maize; buckwheat; millet
-
Aaron's rod
tall-stalked very woolly mullein with densely packed yellow flowers; ancient Greeks and Romans dipped the stalks in tallow for funeral torches
-
Beaufort scale
a scale from 0 to 12 for the force of the wind
-
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease
rare (usually fatal) brain disease (usually in middle age) caused by an unidentified slow virus; characterized by progressive dementia and gradual loss of muscle control
-
frangipani
any of various tropical American deciduous shrubs or trees of the genus Plumeria having milky sap and showy fragrant funnel-shaped variously colored flowers
-
lobelia
any plant or flower of the genus Lobelia
-
maverick
someone who exhibits great independence in thought and action
-
Nissen hut
a prefabricated hut of corrugated iron having a semicircular cross section
-
Huntington's chorea
hereditary disease; develops in adulthood and ends in dementia
-
hygiene
a condition promoting sanitary practices
-
Benedictine
of or relating to Saint Benedict or his works
-
bigot
a prejudiced person who is intolerant of any opinions differing from his own
-
plimsoll
a light gym shoe with a rubber sole and a canvas top
-
Tuesday
the third day of the week; the second working day
-
mansard roof
a hip roof having two slopes on each side
-
bloomers
underpants worn by women
-
sideburn
facial hair that has grown down the side of a man's face in front of the ears (especially when the rest of the beard is shaved off)
-
gray
of an achromatic color of any lightness intermediate between the extremes of white and black
-
Richter scale
a logarithmic scale of 1 to 10 formerly used to express the magnitude of an earthquake on the basis of the size of seismograph oscillations
-
fuchsia
any of various tropical shrubs widely cultivated for their showy drooping purplish or reddish or white flowers; Central and South America and New Zealand and Tahiti
-
charlotte russe
lady fingers enclosing Bavarian cream
-
roentgen
a unit of radiation exposure; the dose of ionizing radiation that will produce 1 electrostatic unit of electricity in 1 cc of dry air
-
Oscar
an annual award by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for achievements in motion picture production and performance
-
marigold
any of various tropical American plants of the genus Tagetes widely cultivated for their showy yellow or orange flowers
-
Gay-Lussac's law
(physics) the density of an ideal gas at constant pressure varies inversely with the temperature
-
grog
rum cut with water
-
Congorism
-
Chippendale
a British cabinetmaker remembered for his graceful designs (especially of chairs) which influenced his contemporaries (1718-1779)
-
golliwog
a grotesque black doll
-
Salk vaccine
a poliovirus vaccine consisting of inactivated polio virus that is injected subcutaneously to provide immunity to poliomyelitis
-
atlas
a collection of maps in book form
-
Braille
French educator who lost his sight at the age of three and who invented a system of writing and printing for sightless people (1809-1852)
-
Fosbury flop
jumping over the bar backwards and head first
-
Salisbury steak
ground beef patty usually with a sauce
-
Faraday
the English physicist and chemist who discovered electromagnetic induction (1791-1867)
-
magnolia
any shrub or tree of the genus Magnolia; valued for their longevity and exquisite fragrant blooms
-
spoonerism
transposition of initial consonants in a pair of words
-
Rorschach test
a projective tests using bilaterally symmetrical inkblots; subjects state what they see in the inkblot
-
Cassandra
(Greek mythology) a prophetess in Troy during the Trojan War whose predictions were true but were never believed
-
tarmac
a paved surface having compressed layers of broken rocks held together with tar
-
diddle
manipulate manually or in one's mind or imagination
-
Gilbertian
of or pertaining to or characteristic of the style of William S. Gilbert
-
sandwich
two (or more) slices of bread with a filling between them
-
Dewey decimal system
a system used by libraries to classify nonfictional publications into subject categories; the subject is indicated by a three-digit numeral and further specification is given by numerals following a decimal point; publications are shelved by number
-
Plinian eruption
a volcanic eruption in which a stream of gas and ash is violently ejected to a height of several miles
-
Eustachian tube
either of the paired tubes connecting the middle ears to the nasopharynx; equalizes air pressure on the two sides of the eardrum
-
forsythia
any of various early blooming oleaceous shrubs of the genus Forsythia; native to eastern Asia and southern Europe but widely cultivated for their branches of bright yellow bell-shaped flowers
-
Soubise
veloute sauce with sauteed chopped onions and whipping cream
-
jumbo
of great mass; huge and bulky
-
euphuism
any artificially elegant style of language
-
Addison's disease
a glandular disorder caused by failure of function of the cortex of the adrenal gland and marked by anemia and prostration with brownish skin
-
hooligan
a cruel and brutal fellow
-
Jekyll and Hyde
someone with two personalities - one good and one evil
-
mentor
a wise and trusted guide and advisor
-
bunkum
unacceptable behavior (especially ludicrously false statements)
-
quixotic
not sensible about practical matters; idealistic and unrealistic
-
Chateaubriand
French statesman and writer; considered a precursor of the romantic movement in France (1768-1848)
-
derringer
a pocket pistol of large caliber with a short barrel
-
blurb
a promotional statement (as found on the dust jackets of books)
-
gerrymander
divide unfairly and to one's advantage; of voting districts
-
Dantean
of or relating to Dante Alighieri or his writings
-
Graafian follicle
a vascular body in a mammalian ovary enclosing a developing egg
-
Crohn's disease
a serious chronic and progressive inflammation of the ileum producing frequent bouts of diarrhea with abdominal pain and nausea and fever and weight loss
-
nemesis
something causing misery or death
-
catherine wheel
a circular firework that spins round and round emitting colored fire
-
Pyrrhic victory
a victory that is won by incurring terrible losses
-
flora
all the plant life in a particular region or period
-
Geiger counter
counter tube that detects ionizing radiations
-
martin
any of various swallows with squarish or slightly forked tail and long pointed wings; migrate around Martinmas
-
orrery
planetarium consisting of an apparatus that illustrates the relative positions and motions of bodies in the solar system by rotation and revolution of balls moved by wheelwork; sometimes incorporated in a clock
-
banting
wild ox of the Malay Archipelago
-
vulcanise
undergo vulcanization
-
curie
a unit of radioactivity equal to the amount of a radioactive isotope that decays at the rate of 37,000,000,000 disintegrations per second
-
Hadrian's Wall
an ancient Roman wall built by Hadrian in the 2nd century; marked the northern boundary of the Roman Empire in Britain
-
bowdlerise
edit by omitting or modifying parts considered indelicate
-
tesla
a unit of magnetic flux density equal to one weber per square meter
-
peach melba
ice cream and peaches with a liqueur
-
Graves' disease
exophthalmos occurring in association with goiter; hyperthyroidism with protrusion of the eyeballs
-
hansom cab
a two-wheeled horse-drawn covered carriage with the driver's seat above and behind the passengers
-
Leninism
the political and economic theories of Lenin which provided the guiding doctrine of the Soviet Union; the modification of Marxism by Lenin stressed that imperialism is the highest form of capitalism (which shifts the struggle from developed to underdeveloped countries)
-
Eschscholtzia
showy herbs of western North America
-
Calvinism
the theological system of John Calvin and his followers emphasizing omnipotence of God and salvation by grace alone
-
malpighian corpuscle
the capsule that contains Bowman's capsule and a glomerulus at the expanded end of a nephron
-
Becquerel
French physicist who discovered that rays emitted by uranium salts affect photographic plates (1852-1908)
-
simony
traffic in ecclesiastical offices or preferments
-
Rankine scale
a scale of absolute temperature in Fahrenheit degrees; the freezing point of water is 491.69 degrees and the boiling point of water is 671.69 degrees
-
eggs Benedict
toasted English muffin topped with ham and a poached egg (or an oyster) and hollandaise sauce
-
Esperanto
an artificial language based as far as possible on words common to all the European languages
-
onanism
manual stimulation of the genital organs (of yourself or another) for sexual pleasure
-
Heimlich maneuver
an emergency procedure to help someone who is choking because food is lodged in the trachea
-
maxwell
a cgs unit of magnetic flux equal to the flux perpendicular to an area of 1 square centimeter in a magnetic field of 1 gauss
-
doily
a small round piece of linen placed under a dish or bowl
-
timothy
grass with long cylindrical spikes grown in northern United States and Europe for hay
-
juggernaut
a massive inexorable force that seems to crush everything in its way
-
Mohs scale
a scale of hardness of solids; talc is 0 and diamond is 10; ordering is determined by which substance can scratch another substance
-
Pavlovian
of or relating to Ivan Pavlov or his experiments
-
dahlia
any of several plants of or developed from the species Dahlia pinnata having tuberous roots and showy rayed variously colored flower heads; native to the mountains of Mexico and Central America and Colombia
-
Euphorbia
type genus of the Euphorbiaceae: very large genus of diverse plants all having milky juice
-
Gothic
of or relating to the Goths
-
saxhorn
any of a family of brass wind instruments that resemble a bugle with valves
-
wendy house
plaything consisting of a small model of a house that children can play inside of
-
bunk
beds built one above the other
-
Alexandrine
(prosody) a line of verse that has six iambic feet
-
Shavian
of or relating to George Bernard Shaw or his works
-
gilbert
a unit of magnetomotive force equal to 0.7958 ampere-turns
-
May
the month following April and preceding June
-
zinnia
any of various plants of the genus Zinnia cultivated for their variously and brightly colored flower heads
-
mint
any member of the mint family of plants
-
gal
alliterative term for girl (or woman)
-
Falkland Islands
a group of over 100 islands in the southern Atlantic off the coast of Argentina; a British Crown Colony
-
begonia
any of numerous plants of the genus Begonia grown for their attractive glossy asymmetrical leaves and colorful flowers in usually terminal cymes or racemes
-
Georgian
of or relating to the Hanoverian kings of England
-
quisling
someone who collaborates with an enemy occupying force
-
erotic
an erotic person
-
macadam
a paved surface having compressed layers of broken rocks held together with tar
-
Pre-Raphaelite
of or relating to or characteristic of the Pre-Raphaelites
-
Bolivia
a landlocked republic in central South America; Simon Bolivar founded Bolivia in 1825 after winning independence from Spain
-
Pandora's box
(Greek mythology) a box that Zeus gave to Pandora with instructions that she not open it; she gave in to her curiosity and opened it; all the miseries and evils flew out to afflict mankind
-
Parkinson's law
C. Northcote Parkinson's cynical observation that work will expand so as to fill the time available for its completion
-
Teddy boy
a tough youth of 1950's and 1960's wearing Edwardian style clothes
-
sadism
sexual pleasure obtained by inflicting harm (physical or psychological) on others
-
Maoism
a form of communism developed in China by Mao Zedong
-
Baffin Island
the 5th largest island and the largest island of Arctic Canada; lies between Greenland and Hudson Bay
-
lesbian
of or relating to or characterized by homosexual relations between woman
-
Friday
the sixth day of the week; the fifth working day
-
greengage
sweet green or greenish-yellow variety of plum
-
Electra complex
a complex of females; sexual attraction to the father
-
Bowie knife
a stout hunting knife with a single edge
-
cravat
neckwear worn in a slipknot with long ends overlapping vertically in front
-
nobelium
a radioactive transuranic element synthesized by bombarding curium with carbon ions; 7 isotopes are known
-
gun
a weapon that discharges a missile at high velocity (especially from a metal tube or barrel)
-
coulomb
a unit of electrical charge equal to the amount of charge transferred by a current of 1 ampere in 1 second
-
Fresnel
French physicist who invented polarized light and invented the Fresnel lens (1788-1827)
-
Rayleigh
English physicist who studied the density of gases and discovered argon; made important contributions to acoustic theory (1842-1919)
-
jackanapes
someone who is unimportant but cheeky and presumptuous
-
Svengali
someone (usually maleficent) who tries to persuade or force another person to do his bidding
-
Molotov cocktail
a crude incendiary bomb made of a bottle filled with flammable liquid and fitted with a rag wick
-
henry
a unit of inductance in which an induced electromotive force of one volt is produced when the current is varied at the rate of one ampere per second
-
guy
an informal term for a youth or man
-
Mennonite
a member of an Anabaptist movement in Holland noted for its simplicity of life
-
Doberman pinscher
medium large breed of dog of German origin with a glossy black and tan coat; used as a watchdog
-
Reaumur scale
a temperature scale on which water freezes at 0 degrees and boils at 80 degrees
-
Gregorian calendar
the solar calendar now in general use, introduced by Gregory XIII in 1582 to correct an error in the Julian calendar by suppressing 10 days, making Oct 5 be called Oct 15, and providing that only centenary years divisible by 400 should be leap years; it was adopted by Great Britain and the American colonies in 1752
-
blimp
a small nonrigid airship used for observation or as a barrage balloon
-
Wednesday
the fourth day of the week; the third working day
-
poise
hold or carry in equilibrium
-
weber
a unit of magnetic flux equal to 100,000,000 maxwells
-
August
the month following July and preceding September
-
freesia
any of several plants of the genus Freesia valued for their one-sided clusters of usually fragrant yellow or white or pink tubular flowers
-
Fahrenheit
of or relating to a temperature scale proposed by the inventor of the mercury thermometer
-
Sverdrup
Norwegian explorer who led expeditions into the Arctic (1855-1930)
-
oersted
the magnetic field strength 1 cm from a unit magnetic pole
-
daguerreotype
a photograph made by an early photographic process; the image was produced on a silver plate sensitized to iodine and developed in mercury vapor
-
stentorian
used of the voice
-
cinchona
any of several trees of the genus Cinchona
-
lambert
a cgs unit of illumination equal to the brightness of a perfectly diffusing surface that emits or reflects one lumen per square centimeter
-
Mauser
German arms manufacturer and inventor of a repeating rifle and pistol (1838-1914)
-
decibel
a logarithmic unit of sound intensity; 10 times the logarithm of the ratio of the sound intensity to some reference intensity
-
Socratic method
a method of teaching by question and answer; used by Socrates to elicit truths from his students
-
pinchbeck
an alloy of copper and zinc that is used in cheap jewelry to imitate gold
-
bobby
an informal term for a British policeman
-
negus
wine and hot water with sugar and lemon juice and nutmeg
-
cattleya
any orchid of the genus Cattleya characterized by a three-lobed lip enclosing the column; among the most popular and most extravagantly beautiful orchids known
-
siemens
a unit of conductance equal to the reciprocal of an ohm
-
Uzi
a type of submachine gun that is designed and manufactured in Israel
-
Mickey Finn
slang term for knockout drops
-
Hobson's choice
the choice of taking what is offered or nothing at all
-
Binet-Simon Scale
the first intelligence test
-
March
the month following February and preceding April
-
gadolinium
a ductile silvery-white ductile ferromagnetic trivalent metallic element of the rare earth group
-
saxophone
a single-reed woodwind with a conical bore
-
hector
be bossy towards
-
paean
(ancient Greece) a hymn of praise (especially one sung in ancient Greece to invoke or thank a deity)
-
cardigan
knitted jacket that is fastened up the front with buttons or a zipper
-
Linnaean
of or relating to Linnaeus or to the system of taxonomic classification that Linnaeus proposed
-
Spencer
English philosopher and sociologist who applied the theory of natural selection to human societies (1820-1903)
-
bacchanalia
a wild gathering involving excessive drinking and promiscuity
-
thespian
a theatrical performer
-
stonewall
engage in delaying tactics or refuse to cooperate
-
Dioscorea
yams
-
gentian
any of various plants of the family Gentianaceae especially the genera Gentiana and Gentianella and Gentianopsis
-
Trotskyism
the form of communism advocated by Leon Trotsky; calls for immediate worldwide revolution by the proletariat
-
raglan
a garment (coat or sweater) that has raglan sleeves
-
nebuchadnezzar
a very large wine bottle holding the equivalent of 20 normal bottles of wine; used especially for display
-
Watt
Scottish engineer and inventor whose improvements in the steam engine led to its wide use in industry (1736-1819)
-
Wassermann test
a blood test to detect syphilis; a complement fixation test is used to detect antibodies to the syphilis organism treponema; a positive reaction indicates the presence of antibodies and therefore syphilis infection
-
Heaviside layer
a region of the ionosphere (from 50 to 90 miles up) that reflects radio waves of medium length
-
Parkinson's disease
a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system characterized by tremor and impaired muscular coordination
-
Cushing's disease
a glandular disorder caused by excessive ACTH resulting in greater than normal functioning of the adrenal gland; characterized by obesity
-
Plimsoll line
waterlines to show the level the water should reach when the ship is properly loaded
-
fermi
a metric unit of length equal to one quadrillionth of a meter
-
biotite
dark brown to black mica found in igneous and metamorphic rock
-
joule
a unit of electrical energy equal to the work done when a current of one ampere passes through a resistance of one ohm for one second
-
U
the 21st letter of the Roman alphabet
-
burke
get rid of, silence, or suppress
-
Euclidean geometry
(mathematics) geometry based on Euclid's axioms
-
silhouette
a drawing of the outline of an object; filled in with some uniform color
-
Charles's law
(physics) the density of an ideal gas at constant pressure varies inversely with the temperature
-
hyacinth
any of numerous bulbous perennial herbs
-
Judas
(New Testament) the Apostle who betrayed Jesus to his enemies for 30 pieces of silver
-
Boolean logic
a system of symbolic logic devised by George Boole; used in computers
-
fermium
a radioactive transuranic metallic element produced by bombarding plutonium with neutrons
-
Grimm's law
a sound law relating German consonants and consonants in other Indo-European languages
-
brougham
light carriage; pulled by a single horse
-
dolomite
a kind of sedimentary rock resembling marble or limestone but rich in magnesium carbonate
-
Rudbeckia
North American perennial herbs with showy cone-shaped flower heads
-
January
the first month of the year; begins 10 days after the winter solstice
-
Cyrillic
an alphabet derived from the Greek alphabet and used for writing Slavic languages (Russian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Ukrainian, and some other Slavic languages)
-
Amish
an American follower of the Mennonite religion
-
Dionysian
of or relating to or worshipping Dionysus
-
Brix scale
a system for measuring the concentration of sugar solutions
-
doggerel
a comic verse of irregular measure
-
derby
a felt hat that is round and hard with a narrow brim
-
Wagnerian
of or relating to Richard Wagner or his music
-
lynch
kill without legal sanction
-
malapropism
the unintentional misuse of a word by confusion with one that sounds similar
-
slave
a person who is owned by someone
-
quassia
handsome South American shrub or small tree having bright scarlet flowers and yielding a valuable fine-grained yellowish wood; yields the bitter drug quassia from its wood and bark
-
Thatcherism
(England) the political policy of Margaret Thatcher
-
beef Stroganoff
sauteed strips of beef and mushrooms in sour cream sauce served with noodles
-
cotangent
ratio of the adjacent to the opposite side of a right-angled triangle
-
Fibonacci number
a number in the Fibonacci sequence
-
praline
cookie-sized candy made of brown sugar and butter and pecans
-
teddy bear
plaything consisting of a child's toy bear (usually plush and stuffed with soft materials)
-
nicotine
an alkaloid poison that occurs in tobacco; used in medicine and as an insecticide
-
Appleton layer
the highest region of the ionosphere (from 90 to 600 miles up) which contains the highest concentration of free electrons and is most useful for long-range radio transmission
-
Rabelaisian
of or relating to or characteristic of Francois Rabelais or his works
-
Broca's aphasia
aphasia in which expression by speech or writing is severely impaired
-
sabin
a unit of acoustic absorption equivalent to the absorption by a square foot of a surface that absorbs all incident sound
-
Beau Brummell
English dandy who was a fashion leader during the Regency (1778-1840)
-
Shakespearean
of or relating to William Shakespeare or his works
-
palladium
a silver-white metallic element of the platinum group that resembles platinum; occurs in some copper and nickel ores; does not tarnish at ordinary temperatures and is used (alloyed with gold) in jewelry
-
spaniel
any of several breeds of small to medium-sized gun dogs with a long silky coat and long frilled ears
-
gamp
colloquial terms for an umbrella
-
lobster Newburg
lobster in Newburg sauce served on buttered toast or rice
-
Kafkaesque
relating to or in the manner of Franz Kafka or his writings
-
Bailey bridge
a temporary bridge designed for rapid construction
-
torr
a unit of pressure equal to 0.001316 atmosphere; named after Torricelli
-
lucullan
characterized by extravagance and profusion
-
Oedipus complex
a complex of males; desire to possess the mother sexually and to exclude the father; said to be a source of personality disorders if unresolved
-
georgette
a thin silk dress material
-
Napoleonic
of or relating to or like Napoleon Bonaparte
-
Spode
a brand of fine English porcelain
-
guillemot
small black or brown speckled auks of northern seas
-
Daltonism
dichromacy characterized by a lowered sensitivity to green light resulting in an inability to distinguish green and purplish-red
-
newton
a unit of force equal to the force that imparts an acceleration of 1 m/sec/sec to a mass of 1 kilogram; equal to 100,000 dynes
-
knickerbockers
trousers ending above the knee
-
asphalt
a dark bituminous substance found in natural beds and as residue from petroleum distillation; consists mainly of hydrocarbons
-
Boyle's law
the pressure of an ideal gas at constant temperature varies inversely with the volume
-
jeremiad
a long and mournful complaint
-
Stalinism
a form of government in which the ruler is an absolute dictator (not restricted by a constitution or laws or opposition etc.)
-
jovial
full of or showing high-spirited merriment
-
Svedberg
Swedish theologian (1688-1772)
-
tam-o'-shanter
a woolen cap of Scottish origin
-
caesarean section
the delivery of a fetus by surgical incision through the abdominal wall and uterus (from the belief that Julius Caesar was born that way)
-
Marxism
the economic and political theories of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels that hold that human actions and institutions are economically determined and that class struggle is needed to create historical change and that capitalism will ultimately be superseded by communism
-
abelia
any of various deciduous or evergreen ornamental shrubs of the genus Abelia having opposite simple leaves and cymes of small white or pink or purplish flowers; Asia and Mexico
-
Luddite
any opponent of technological progress
-
groggy
stunned or confused and slow to react (as from blows or drunkenness or exhaustion)
-
Mendel's law
(genetics) one of two principles of heredity formulated by Gregor Mendel on the basis of his experiments with plants; the principles were limited and modified by subsequent genetic research
-
pasteurise
heat food in order to kill harmful microorganisms
-
Mount Everest
a mountain in the central Himalayas on the border of Tibet and Nepal; the highest mountain peak in the world (29,028 feet high)
-
Casanova
an Italian adventurer who wrote vivid accounts of his sexual encounters (1725-1798)
-
rodomontade
vain and empty boasting
-
Darwinian
an advocate of Darwinism
-
bechamel sauce
milk thickened with a butter and flour roux
-
Gladstone bag
a large travelling bag made of stiff leather
-
Doppler effect
change in the apparent frequency of a wave as observer and source move toward or away from each other
-
Celsius
Swedish astronomer who devised the centigrade thermometer (1701-1744)
-
Saturday
the seventh and last day of the week; observed as the Sabbath by Jews and some Christians
-
Morse code
a telegraph code in which letters and numbers are represented by strings of dots and dashes (short and long signals)
-
gardenia
any of various shrubs and small trees of the genus Gardenia having large fragrant white or yellow flowers
-
Machiavellian
of or relating to Machiavelli or the principles of conduct he recommended
-
python
large Old World boas
-
nosey-parker
a person who meddles in the affairs of others
-
filbert
small nut-bearing tree much grown in Europe
-
Baedeker
German publisher of a series of travel guidebooks (1801-1859)
-
Levi's
a popular brand of jeans
-
Confucianism
the teachings of Confucius emphasizing love for humanity; high value given to learning and to devotion to family (including ancestors); peace; justice; influenced the traditional culture of China
-
bel
-
Stetson
a hat made of felt with a creased crown
-
Dalton's law
(chemistry) law stating that when two elements can combine to form more than one compound the amounts of one of them that combines with a fixed amount of the other will exhibit a simple multiple relation
-
valentine
a sweetheart chosen to receive a greeting on Saint Valentine's Day
-
namby-pamby
weak in willpower, courage or vitality
-
gadolinite
a mineral that is a source of rare earths; consists of silicates of iron and beryllium and cerium and yttrium and erbium
-
martinet
someone who demands exact conformity to rules and forms
-
hypnosis
a state that resembles sleep but that is induced by suggestion
-
peony
any of numerous plants widely cultivated for their showy single or double red or pink or white flowers
-
Washington
1st President of the United States; commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolution (1732-1799)
-
Malthusian
of or relating to Thomas Malthus or to Malthusianism
-
Titian
old master of the Venetian school (1490-1576)
-
sousaphone
the lowest brass wind instrument
-
graham cracker
semisweet whole-wheat cracker
-
Jacquard loom
a loom with an attachment for forming openings for the passage of the shuttle between the warp threads; used in weaving figured fabrics
-
bog spavin
spavin caused by collection of fluids
-
Wedgwood
English potter (1730-1795)
-
gauss
a unit of magnetic flux density equal to 1 maxwell per square centimeter
-
Victorian
a person who lived during the reign of Victoria
-
Bignonia
one species: cross vine
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Bougainvillaea
ornamental tropical woody vines
-
mogul
a very wealthy or powerful businessman
-
Talbot
English inventor and pioneer in photography who published the first book illustrated with photographs (1800-1877)
-
vernier
a small movable scale that slides along a main scale; the small scale is calibrated to indicate fractional divisions of the main scale
-
zany
a buffoon in one of the old comedies; imitates others for ludicrous effect
-
Montezuma's revenge
diarrhea contracted in Mexico or Central America
-
macadamia nut
small Australian tree with racemes of pink flowers; widely cultivated (especially in Hawaii) for its sweet edible nuts
-
Erlang
a unit of traffic intensity in a telephone system
-
farad
the capacitance of a capacitor that has an equal and opposite charge of 1 coulomb on each plate and a voltage difference of 1 volt between the plates
-
samarskite
a complex black mineral occurring in pegmatites
-
Ockham's Razor
the principle that entities should not be multiplied needlessly; the simplest of two competing theories is to be preferred
-
Comstockery
censorship because of perceived obscenity or immorality
-
langley
unit of solar radiation
-
sequoia
either of two huge coniferous California trees that reach a height of 300 feet; sometimes placed in the Taxodiaceae
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camellia
any of several shrubs or small evergreen trees having solitary white or pink or reddish flowers
-
Wellington boot
(19th century) a man's high tasseled boot
-
Hansard
the official published verbatim report of the proceedings of a parliamentary body; originally of the British Parliament
-
banksia
any shrub or tree of the genus Banksia having alternate leathery leaves apetalous yellow flowers often in showy heads and conelike fruit with winged seeds
-
Baffin Bay
a body of water between Greenland and northeastern Canada; connected with the Arctic Ocean to the north and with the Atlantic Ocean (via the Labrador Sea) to the south; icebound in winter
-
Davis Cup
cup awarded for the annual international team tennis competition
-
dunce
a stupid person; these words are used to express a low opinion of someone's intelligence
-
Bloody Mary
daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon who was Queen of England from 1553 to 1558; she was the wife of Philip II of Spain and when she restored Roman Catholicism to England many Protestants were burned at the stake as heretics (1516-1558)
-
braggadocio
vain and empty boasting
-
hermetic
completely sealed; completely airtight
-
clerihew
a witty satiric verse containing two rhymed couplets and mentioning a famous person
-
Georgia
a state in southeastern United States; one of the Confederate states during the American Civil War
-
ampere
the basic unit of electric current adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
-
Freudian slip
a slip-up that (according to Sigmund Freud) results from the operation of unconscious wishes or conflicts and can reveal unconscious processes in normal healthy individuals
-
Ferris wheel
a vertical rotating mechanism consisting of a large wheel with suspended seats that remain upright as the wheel rotates; provides a ride at an amusement park
-
protean
taking on different forms
-
deutzia
any of various shrubs of the genus Deutzia having usually toothed opposite leaves and shredding bark and white or pink flowers in loose terminal clusters
-
Planck's constant
the constant of proportionality relating the energy of a photon to its frequency; approximately 6.626 x 10^-34 joule-second
-
Van Allen belt
a belt of charged particles (resulting from cosmic rays) above the Earth trapped by the Earth's magnetic field
-
ammonia
a pungent gas compounded of nitrogen and hydrogen (NH3)
-
Elizabethan
of or relating to Elizabeth I of England or to the age in which she ruled as queen
-
cannibal
a person who eats human flesh
-
rhesus monkey
of southern Asia; used in medical research
-
Gatling gun
an early form of machine gun having several barrels that fire in sequence as they are rotated
-
Davy lamp
an oil lamp that will not ignite flammable gases (methane)
-
leotard
a tight-fitting garment of stretchy material that covers the body from the shoulders to the thighs (and may have long sleeves or legs reaching down to the ankles); worn by ballet dancers and acrobats for practice or performance
-
cicerone
a guide who conducts and informs sightseers
-
diesel
an internal-combustion engine that burns heavy oil
-
platonic
free from physical desire
-
Eiffel Tower
a wrought iron tower 300 meters high that was constructed in Paris in 1889; for many years it was the tallest man-made structure
-
mackintosh
a waterproof raincoat made of rubberized fabric
-
panic
an overwhelming feeling of fear and anxiety
-
masochism
sexual pleasure obtained from receiving punishment (physical or psychological)
-
Palladian
referring to or relating to or having the style of architecture created by Andrea Palladio
-
Klein bottle
a closed surface with only one side; formed by passing one end of a tube through the side of the tube and joining it with the other end
-
hermaphrodite
one having both male and female sexual characteristics and organs; at birth an unambiguous assignment of male or female cannot be made
-
Pullman
luxurious passenger car; for day or night travel
-
molly
popular aquarium fish
-
Downing Street
the British government
-
havelock
a cloth covering for a service cap with a flap extending over the back of the neck to protect the neck from direct rays of the sun
-
Zoroastrianism
system of religion founded in Persia in the 6th century BC by Zoroaster; set forth in the Zend-Avesta; based on concept of struggle between light (good) and dark (evil)
-
pompadour
a hair style in which the front hair is swept up from the forehead
-
Gunter's chain
a unit of length (22 yards)
-
Tradescantia
spiderworts
-
pander
arrange for sexual partners for others
-
Erastianism
the doctrine that the state is supreme over the church in ecclesiastical matters
-
Lamaze method
a method that prepares a mother for natural childbirth; the pregnant woman (in classes and at home) practices (usually with the help of a coach) and learns about the physiology of childbirth and techniques of relaxation, concentration, and breathing
-
Gregorian chant
a liturgical chant of the Roman Catholic Church
-
Mae West
United States film actress (1892-1980)
-
Wankel engine
a rotary engine that is a four-stroke internal-combustion engine without reciprocating parts
-
Pap test
a method of examining stained cells in a cervical smear for early diagnosis of uterine cancer
-
Rickettsia
-
poinsettia
tropical American plant having poisonous milk and showy tapering usually scarlet petallike leaves surrounding small yellow flowers
-
Tommy gun
a .45-caliber submachine gun
-
baud
(computer science) a data transmission rate (bits/second) for modems
-
tantalise
harass with persistent criticism or carping
-
mausoleum
a large burial chamber, usually above ground
-
arachnid
air-breathing arthropods characterized by simple eyes and four pairs of legs
-
chauvinism
fanatical patriotism
-
Alzheimer's disease
a progressive form of presenile dementia that is similar to senile dementia except that it usually starts in the 40s or 50s; first symptoms are impaired memory which is followed by impaired thought and speech and finally complete helplessness
-
Dandie Dinmont terrier
a breed of small terrier with long wiry coat and drooping ears
-
vandal
someone who willfully destroys or defaces property
-
Mercator projection
a map projection of the earth onto a cylinder; areas appear greater the farther they are from the equator
-
shrapnel
shell containing lead pellets that explodes in flight
-
Gresham's Law
(economics) the principle that when two kinds of money having the same denominational value are in circulation the intrinsically more valuable money will be hoarded and the money of lower intrinsic value will circulate more freely until the intrinsically more valuable money is driven out of circulation; bad money drives out good; credited to Sir Thomas Gresham
-
tontine
an annuity scheme wherein participants share certain benefits and on the death of any participant his benefits are redistributed among the remaining participants; can run for a fixed period of time or until the death of all but one participant
-
Sam Browne belt
leather belt supported by a strap over the right shoulder
-
Black Maria
a form of whist in which players avoid winning tricks containing hearts or the queen of spades
-
Julian calendar
the solar calendar introduced in Rome in 46 b.c. by Julius Caesar and slightly modified by Augustus, establishing the 12-month year of 365 days with each 4th year having 366 days and the months having 31 or 30 days except for February
-
eminence grise
(French) a person who exercises power or influence in certain areas without holding an official position
-
churrigueresque
having elaborate symmetrical ornamentation
-
jorum
a large drinking bowl
-
July
the month following June and preceding August
-
salmonella
rod-shaped Gram-negative enterobacteria; cause typhoid fever and food poisoning; can be used as a bioweapon
-
volcano
a fissure in the earth's crust (or in the surface of some other planet) through which molten lava and gases erupt
-
Gordon setter
a Scottish breed with a black-and-tan coat
-
narcissism
an exceptional interest in and admiration for yourself
-
Orangeman
a member of a society founded in Ireland in 1795 to uphold Protestantism and the British sovereign
-
Orwellian
of or relating to the works of George Orwell (especially his picture of a future totalitarian state)
-
Jezebel
wife of Ahab who was king of Israel; according to the Old Testament she was a cruel immoral queen who fostered the worship of Baal and tried to kill Elijah and other prophets of Israel (9th century BC)
-
einsteinium
a radioactive transuranic element produced by bombarding plutonium with neutrons
-
savarin
a sponge cake baked in a ring mold
-
klieg light
carbon arc lamp that emits an intense light used in producing films
-
Jacuzzi
-
Maxim gun
an obsolete water-cooled machine gun having a single barrel
-
Elgin Marbles
a collection of classical Greek marble sculptures and fragments of architecture created by Phidias; chiefly from the Parthenon in Athens
-
bartlett pear
juicy yellow pear
-
douglas fir
tall evergreen timber tree of western North America having resinous wood and short needles
-
venereal
of or relating to the external sex organs
-
rutherford
a unit strength of a radioactive source equal to one million disintegrations per second
-
wisteria
any flowering vine of the genus Wisteria
-
ottoman
a low seat or a stool to rest the feet of a seated person
-
America
North America and South America and Central America
-
mendelevium
a radioactive transuranic element synthesized by bombarding einsteinium with alpha particles (Md is the current symbol for mendelevium but Mv was formerly the symbol)
-
einsteinium
a radioactive transuranic element produced by bombarding plutonium with neutrons
-
Melba toast
very thin crisp brown toast
-
boysenberry
cultivated hybrid bramble of California having large dark wine-red fruit with a flavor resembling raspberries
-
Mercalli scale
a scale formerly used to describe the magnitude of an earthquake; an earthquake detected only by seismographs is a I and an earthquake that destroys all buildings is a XII
-
volt
a unit of potential equal to the potential difference between two points on a conductor carrying a current of 1 ampere when the power dissipated between the two points is 1 watt; equivalent to the potential difference across a resistance of 1 ohm when 1 ampere of current flows through it
-
guppy
small freshwater fish of South America and the West Indies; often kept in aquariums
-
Fallopian tube
either of a pair of tubes conducting the egg from the ovary to the uterus
-
angstrom
a metric unit of length equal to one ten billionth of a meter (or 0.0001 micron); used to specify wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation
-
calamine
a white mineral; a common ore of zinc
-
morphine
an alkaloid narcotic drug extracted from opium; a powerful, habit-forming narcotic used to relieve pain
-
cretin
a person of subnormal intelligence
-
Nobel prize
an annual award for outstanding contributions to chemistry or physics or physiology and medicine or literature or economics or peace
-
Down's syndrome
a congenital disorder caused by having an extra 21st chromosome; results in a flat face and short stature and mental retardation
-
derrick
a simple crane having lifting tackle slung from a boom
-
clarence
a closed carriage with four wheels and seats for four passengers
-
Pennsylvania
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
-
maudlin
effusively or insincerely emotional
-
algorithm
a precise rule (or set of rules) specifying how to solve some problem
-
Hertz
German physicist who was the first to produce electromagnetic waves artificially (1857-1894)
-
Venn diagram
a diagram that uses circles to represent mathematical or logical sets pictorially inside a rectangle (the universal set); elements that are common to more than one set are represented by intersections of the circles
-
boffin
(British slang) a scientist or technician engaged in military research
-
Draconian
of or relating to Draco or his harsh code of laws
-
herculean
extremely difficult; requiring the strength of a Hercules
-
Caesar salad
typically having fried croutons and dressing made with a raw egg
-
pascal
a unit of pressure equal to one newton per square meter
-
Mach number
the ratio of the speed of a moving body to the speed of sound
-
syphilis
a common venereal disease caused by the treponema pallidum spirochete; symptoms change through progressive stages; can be congenital (transmitted through the placenta)
-
Mobius strip
a continuous closed surface with only one side; formed from a rectangular strip by rotating one end 180 degrees and joining it with the other end
-
Galilean
of or relating to Galileo or his works
-
aphrodisiac
a drug or other agent that stimulates sexual desire
-
Dickensian
of or like the novels of Charles Dickens (especially with regard to poor social and economic conditions)
-
lawrencium
a radioactive transuranic element synthesized from californium
-
tawdry
tastelessly showy
-
rydberg
a wave number characteristic of the wave spectrum of each element
-
Hippocratic oath
an oath taken by physicians to observe medical ethics deriving from Hippocrates
-
loganberry
red-fruited bramble native from Oregon to Baja California
-
jeroboam
a large wine bottle (holds 4/5 of a gallon)
-
Petrarchan sonnet
a sonnet consisting of an octave with the rhyme pattern abbaabba, followed by a sestet with the rhyme pattern cdecde or cdcdcd
-
Rastafarian
(Ethiopia) adherents of an African religion that regards Ras Tafari as divine
-
Rh factor
a blood group antigen possessed by Rh-positive people; if an Rh-negative person receives a blood transfusion from an Rh-positive person it can result in hemolysis and anemia
-
trilby
a hat made of felt with a creased crown
-
Zeppelin
German inventor who designed and built the first rigid motorized dirigible (1838-1917)
-
Hoover
31st President of the United States; in 1929 the stock market crashed and the economy collapsed and Hoover was defeated for reelection by Franklin Roosevelt (1874-1964)
-
kelvin
the basic unit of thermodynamic temperature adopted under the Systeme International d'Unites
-
marmalade
a preserve made of the pulp and rind of citrus fruits
-
Ho Chi Minh City
a city in South Vietnam; formerly (as Saigon) it was the capital of French Indochina
-
Hodgkin's disease
a malignant disorder in which there is progressive (but painless) enlargement of lymph tissue followed by enlargement of the spleen and liver
-
Sabin vaccine
an oral vaccine (containing live but weakened poliovirus) that is given to provide immunity to poliomyelitis
-
Jonah
(Old Testament) Jonah did not wish to become a prophet so God caused a great storm to throw him overboard from a ship; he was saved by being swallowed by a whale that vomited him out onto dry land
-
busby
tall hat; worn by some British soldiers on ceremonial occasions
-
Tasmania
an island off the southeastern coast of Australia
-
ritzy
luxuriously elegant
-
boycott
a group's refusal to have commercial dealings with some organization in protest against its policies
-
gargantuan
of great mass; huge and bulky
-
Wesleyan
of or pertaining to or characteristic of the branch of Protestantism adhering to the views of Wesley
-
Thursday
the fifth day of the week; the fourth working day
-
Biro
a pen that has a small metal ball as the point of transfer of ink to paper
-
alexandrite
a green variety of chrysoberyl used as a gemstone
-
cordoba
the basic unit of money in Nicaragua; equal to 100 centavos
-
Napier's bones
a set of graduated rods formerly used to do multiplication and division by a method invented by John Napier
-
stoic
seeming unaffected by pleasure or pain; impassive