12-letter words containing a, b, s, i
- balinese cat — a breed of cat with medium-length silky hair, a plumed tail, blue eyes, large ears, and a dark mask, tail, and paws
- ballast line — the level to which a vessel is immersed when in ballast.
- ballet skirt — a full skirt, often made with several layers of fabric, typical of those worn by ballet dancers
- ballet suite — music written for a ballet but suitable or arranged for performance in an orchestral concert.
- balloon sail — a large light bellying sail used in light winds
- balto-slavic — the Baltic and Slavic languages, when considered as constituting a subfamily within the Indo-European family of languages: the Baltic and Slavic branches are now generally considered by scholars as independently derived from Indo-European
- banana split — A banana split is a kind of dessert. It consists of a banana cut in half along its length, with ice cream, nuts, and sauce on top.
- bandjarmasin — Banjarmasin
- bandjermasin — a seaport on the S coast of Borneo, in Indonesia.
- bandoneonist — One who plays the bandoneon.
- bank deposit — money placed in a bank account
- bankruptcies — Plural form of bankruptcy.
- banks island — an island of N Canada, in the Northwest Territories: the westernmost island of the Arctic Archipelago. Area: about 67 340 sq km (26 000 sq miles)
- banksia rose — a climbing rose, Rosa banksiae, native to China, having long, serrated leaves and white or yellow flowers.
- baptisteries — Plural form of baptistery.
- bar sinister — the condition, implication, or stigma of being of illegitimate birth
- baraesthesia — the ability to sense pressure
- barbarianism — a person in a savage, primitive state; uncivilized person.
- barbarossa i — (Aruj) died 1518, Barbary pirate, born in Greece.
- barbiturates — any of a group of barbituric acid derivatives, used in medicine as sedatives and hypnotics.
- bargain sale — an event at which goods are sold at low prices, usually to clear old stocks
- barn raising — (in rural areas) a party, usually providing food, drink, etc., for the purpose of assisting a neighbor to put up a new barn.
- barnstorming — A barnstorming performance is full of energy and very exciting to watch.
- barodynamics — the branch of mechanics concerned with heavy structures
- barophoresis — the diffusion of suspended particles at a rate dependent on external forces
- barquisimeto — a city in NW Venezuela. Pop: 1 009 000 (2005 est)
- barristerial — pertaining to a barrister
- bartlesville — a city in NE Oklahoma.
- base bullion — smelted lead containing impurities, as gold, silver, or zinc, that are later removed.
- base jumping — a sport in which a participant parachutes from any of a variety of fixed objects such as high buildings, cliffs, etc
- base pairing — the hydrogen bonding that occurs between complementary nitrogenous bases in the two polynucleotide chains of a DNA molecule
- base station — a fixed transmitter that forms part of an otherwise mobile radio network
- base-pairing — the process of binding separate DNA sequences by base pairs.
- bashi-bazouk — a member of the notoriously brutal 19th-cent. Turkish irregulars
- bashibazouks — Plural form of bashibazouk.
- bashkirtseff — Marie, original name Marya Konstantinovna Bashkirtseva. 1858–84, Russian painter and diarist who wrote in French, noted esp for her Journal (1887)
- basic jovial — (language) A subset of JOVIAL written ca. 1965.
- basic salary — base pay.
- basic weight — basis weight.
- basidiocarps — Plural form of basidiocarp.
- basidiospore — one of the spores, usually four in number, produced in a basidium
- basification — the process of making something alkaline
- basilic vein — a large vein situated on the inner side of the arm
- basing point — a geographical location from which freight charges are computed by the seller regardless of the point from which the goods are shipped.
- basis weight — the weight in pounds of a ream of paper of a basic size, usually 25 × 38 inches (63 × 96 cm) for book stock, 17 × 22 inches (43 × 55 cm) for writing stock, and 20 × 26 inches (50 × 66 cm) for cover stock.
- basket chair — a chair made of wickerwork; a wicker chair
- basketmaking — The construction of baskets, especially by traditional means.
- basmati rice — a variety of long-grain rice with slender aromatic grains, used for savoury dishes
- basque shirt — a knitted pullover shirt having a crew neck, long or short sleeves, and a pattern of horizontal stripes.
- basse-taille — of or relating to an enameling technique in which transparent enamels are fused over a background carved in low relief, or to a piece, as of jewelry, so enameled.