16-letter words containing a, b, s, t, r, c
- constructability — Alternative form of constructibility.
- contrabassoonist — Someone who plays the contrabassoon.
- controllableness — The state of being controllable; the capability of being controlled.
- conversion table — a diagram which shows equivalent amounts in different measuring systems
- cramp sb's style — If someone or something cramps your style, their presence or existence restricts your behavior in some way.
- cray instability — A shortcoming of a program or algorithm that manifests itself only when a large problem is being run on a powerful machine such as a Cray. Generally more subtle than bugs that can be detected in smaller problems running on a workstation or minicomputer.
- cytotrophoblasts — Plural form of cytotrophoblast.
- data abstraction — (data) Any representation of data in which the implementation details are hidden (abstracted). Abstract data types and objects are the two primary forms of data abstraction.
- deboursification — (jargon) Removal of irrelevant newsgroups from the Newsgroups header of a followup. The term applies particularly to the removal of frivolous groups added by one of the Kooks. See also: sneck.
- dehydroascorbate — (organic compound) Any salt or ester of dehydroascorbic acid.
- discriminability — The condition of being discriminable.
- fish or cut bait — any of various cold-blooded, aquatic vertebrates, having gills, commonly fins, and typically an elongated body covered with scales.
- flat-bed scanner — a type of optical scanner having a flat, stationary surface on which a page is scanned by a moving head.
- globular cluster — a comparatively older, spherically symmetrical, compact group of up to a million old stars, held together by mutual gravitation, that are located in the galactic halo and move in giant and highly eccentric orbits around the galactic center.
- ground substance — Also called matrix. the homogeneous substance in which the fibers and cells of connective tissue are embedded.
- growth substance — any substance, produced naturally by a plant or manufactured commercially, that, in very low concentrations, affects plant growth; a plant hormone
- hairbrush cactus — a stout, spiny cactus, Pachycereus pecten-aboriginum, of Mexico, having white flowers and bristly fruits sometimes used locally as combs.
- indescribability — (uncountable) The state or characteristic of being indescribable.
- library pictures — a caption used to alert viewers that footage being broadcast is from an earlier time and is not happening now
- lick observatory — the astronomical observatory of the University of California, situated on Mount Hamilton, near San Jose, California, and having a 120-inch (3-meter) reflecting telescope and a 36-inch (91-cm) refracting telescope.
- low-carbon steel — steel containing between 0.04 and 0.25 per cent carbon
- lumberjack shirt — a thick checked shirt, as worn by lumberjacks
- megakaryoblastic — (cytology) Of or pertaining to a megakaryoblast.
- mossbauer effect — the phenomenon in which an atom in a crystal undergoes no recoil when emitting a gamma ray, giving all the emitted energy to the gamma ray, resulting in a sharply defined wavelength.
- nitrous bacteria — bacteria that convert ammonia to nitrites in the soil
- observation deck — an area on a high building that is surrounded with railings or fencing and which provides panoramic views
- paratuberculosis — Johne's disease.
- pocket billiards — pool2 (def 1).
- public relations — (used with a plural verb) the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc.
- public transport — fare-paying travel
- rambunctiousness — difficult to control or handle; wildly boisterous: a rambunctious child.
- rectus abdominis — a long flat muscle that extends along the whole length of both sides of the abdomen. It flexes the vertebral column, particularly the lumbar portion; it also tenses the anterior abdominal wall and assists in compressing the abdominal contents
- rich tea biscuit — any of various semisweet biscuits
- sabattier effect — the alteration of the image tones of a photographic print by briefly reexposing the negative after it has been partially developed.
- scavenger beetle — any beetle of the mostly aquatic family Hydrophilidae, having clubbed antennae and long palps, and usually feeding on decaying vegetation
- security blanket — a blanket or other familiar item carried especially by a young child to provide reassurance and a feeling of psychological security.
- self-lubricating — to apply some oily or greasy substance to (a machine, parts of a mechanism, etc.) in order to diminish friction; oil or grease (something).
- self-lubrication — the process of becoming lubricated without external factors
- sodium carbonate — Also called soda ash. an anhydrous, grayish-white, odorless, water-soluble powder, Na 2 CO 3 , usually obtained by the Solvay process and containing about 1 percent of impurities consisting of sulfates, chlorides, and bicarbonates of sodium: used in the manufacture of glass, ceramics, soaps, paper, petroleum products, sodium salts, as a cleanser, for bleaching, and in water treatment.
- spectacled cobra — Indian cobra.
- stretcher bearer — a person who helps to carry a stretcher, esp in wartime
- stretcher-bearer — a person who helps carry a stretcher, as in removing wounded from a battlefield.
- strict liability — responsibility for damage or loss regardless of intention or culpability
- strike a balance — compromise
- subcartilaginous — partially or incompletely cartilaginous.
- substance abuser — a person who takes an excessive amount of drugs in a manner that is detrimental to health
- subtropical high — one of several highs, as the Azores and Pacific highs, that prevail over the oceans at latitudes of about 30 degrees N and S. Also called subtropical anticyclone. Compare high (def 37).
- the black forest — a hilly wooded region of SW Germany, in Baden-Württemberg: a popular resort area
- the eastern bloc — (formerly) the Soviet bloc
- tobacco industry — business of selling smoking products