12-letter words containing a, d, r, e
- badger state — any of various burrowing, carnivorous mammals of the family Mustelidae, as Taxidea taxus, of North America, and Meles meles, of Europe and Asia.
- badger-skunk — Also called badger skunk, rooter skunk. a large, naked-muzzled skunk, Conepatus mesoleucus, common in the southwestern U.S. and Mexico, having a black coat with one broad white stripe down the back and tail.
- baffle board — a plate or mechanical device designed to restrain or regulate the flow of a fluid, the emission of light or sound, or the distribution of sound, esp in a loudspeaker or microphone
- baker island — an island in the central Pacific near the equator, belonging to the U.S. 1 sq. mi. (2.6 sq. km).
- bald cypress — a tree, Taxodium distichum, of swampy areas of the southern U.S., having featherlike needles and cone-shaped projections growing up from the roots, yielding a hardwood used in construction, shipbuilding, etc.
- ballad metre — the metre of a ballad stanza
- ballad opera — an opera consisting of popular tunes to which appropriate words have been set, interspersed with spoken dialogue
- balladmonger — (formerly) a seller of ballads, esp on broadsheets
- bandaranaike — Chandrika
- banderillero — a bullfighter's assistant who sticks banderillas into the bull
- bandersnatch — a fictional creature created by Lewis Carroll in his poem Jabberwocky, and appearing also in The Hunting of the Snark and Through the Looking-Glass
- bandjermasin — a seaport on the S coast of Borneo, in Indonesia.
- banner cloud — a plume-shaped cloud extending downwind from an isolated mountain peak. Also called cloud banner. Compare cap cloud (def 1).
- barium oxide — a white or yellowish-white poisonous heavy powder used esp as a dehydrating agent. Formula: BaO
- barking deer — muntjac.
- barley field — a piece of land cleared of trees and undergrowth, usually enclosed with a fence or hedge and used for growing barley
- basal reader — an elementary-school textbook that teaches reading by combining stories with practice exercises: The Dick and Jane series was the most famous basal reader.
- basidiospore — one of the spores, usually four in number, produced in a basidium
- bastard file — a file of the commercial grade of coarseness between coarse and second-cut.
- bated breath — to moderate or restrain: unable to bate our enthusiasm.
- batter board — (at a building site) one of a number of boards set horizontally to support strings for outlining the foundation plan of a building.
- batter bread — spoon bread.
- battery acid — acid used in batteries, esp car batteries
- battle dress — military field uniform and accouterments, generally camouflaged and stripped of all ornamentation.
- battleground — A battleground is the same as a battlefield.
- bay-head bar — a sand bar at the head of a bay.
- bear down on — to press down on; exert pressure on
- bear in mind — to remember
- bearded clam — mollusc eaten as seafood
- bearded lady — a woman with a beard, esp in a circus or freakshow
- bearded seal — a large gray-to-golden seal, Erignathus barbatus, inhabiting the Arctic Ocean and adjacent waters, having square foreflippers and a thick mustache of long bristles on each side of the muzzle.
- beardtongues — Plural form of beardtongue.
- bearing down — to hold up; support: to bear the weight of the roof.
- bedraggledly — In a bedraggled manner.
- bell gardens — a town in SW California, near Los Angeles.
- belly dancer — A belly dancer is a woman who performs a Middle Eastern dance in which she moves her hips and abdomen about.
- bermuda high — a subtropical high centered near Bermuda.
- bermuda lily — a lily, Lilium longiflorum eximium, having white, funnel-shaped flowers, cultivated especially as an Easter lily.
- beth midrash — a place where Jews gather to study the Talmud and other religious writings; a small synagogue.
- beyond reach — inaccessible
- billiard cue — a long cue used for playing billiards
- bird fancier — a person who keeps, breeds, or sells birds
- bird watcher — a person who identifies and observes birds in their natural habitat as a recreation.
- bird-brained — silly; stupid
- bird-watcher — A bird-watcher is a person whose hobby is watching and studying wild birds in their natural surroundings.
- black powder — gunpowder as used in sports involving modern muzzleloading firearms
- blackhearted — wicked; evil
- bladder fern — a small fern, Cystoperis fragilis, with graceful lanceolate leaves, typically growing on limestone rocks and walls
- bladder kelp — any of various giant brown algae with air bladders that buoy up the leafy portions
- bladder worm — an encysted saclike larva of the tapeworm. The main types are cysticercus, hydatid, and coenurus