peripatetic (en)

traveling from place to place, especially working or based in various places for relatively short periods

peripety (en)

(noun) a reversal of circumstances, or turning point; Anglicised form of the Greek "peripeteia"

periphrasis (en)

(noun) use of a longer phrasing in place of a possible shorter form of expression / (noun) an instance of periphrasis

periplus (en)

a manuscript document that lists the ports and coastal landmarks, in order and with approximate intervening distances, that the captain of a vessel could expect to find along a shore

peroration (en)

(noun) the concluding part of a discourse and especially an oration / (noun) a highly rhetorical speech

petite bourgeoisie (en)

(noun) the lower middle class including especially small shopkeepers and artisans

petitio principii (en)

"assuming the initial point"; a fallacy of circular reasoning

Petrashevsky Circle (en)

group of progressive-minded commoner-intellectuals in St. Petersburg in the 1840s; in 1849, members of the Circle were arrested and imprisoned, including Dostoyevsky

petroleumly (en)

relating to petroleum

petrous (en)

(adjective) of, relating to, or constituting the exceptionally hard and dense portion of the human temporal bone that contains the internal auditory organs

pettifogging (en)

(adj) placing undue emphasis on petty details; petty or trivial

phantasm (en)

an apparition or specter

phantasmagoric (en)

(noun) an exhibition of optical effects and illusions / (noun) a constantly shifting complex succession of things seen or imagined / (noun) a scene that constantly changes / (noun) a bizarre or fantastic combination, collection, or assemblage

pharisaism (en)

(noun) the doctrines or practices of the Pharisees / (noun) pharisaical character, spirit, or attitude; hypocrisy

phatic (en)

(adjective) of, relating to, or being speech used for social or emotive purposes rather than for communicating information

phenomological reduction (en)

(or bracketing, or Einklammerung in German; or epoché) the act of suspending judgment about the natural world to instead focus on analysis of experience; developed as part of phenomenology by Edmund Husserl

philippic (en)

(noun) a discourse or declamation full of bitter condemnation; tirade

Philoctetes (en)

(Greek mythology) Greek hero and subject of a play by Sophocles'

philologist (en)

(noun) the study of literature and of disciplines relevant to literature or to language as used in literature

philter (en)

(noun) a potion credited with magical power / (noun) a potion, drug, or charm held to have the power to arouse sexual passion

phlebitis (en)

(noun) inflammation of a vein, often occurring in the legs and involving the formation of a thrombus, characterized by swelling, pain, and change of skin color

phonocentrism (en)

the belief that sounds and speech are inherently superior to, or more primary than, written language

phosphenic (en)

a compound with phosphorus

phylogenic (en)

relating to phylogeny (the development or evolution of a particular group of organisms)

Physiocrat (en)

(noun) a member of a school of political economists founded in 18th century France and characterized chiefly by a belief that government policy should not interfere with the operation of natural economic laws and that land is the source of all wealth