17-letter words containing a, e, g
- automatic vending — selling goods by vending machines
- auxiliary storage — secondary storage.
- average deviation — a measure of dispersion, computed by taking the arithmetic mean of the absolute values of the deviations of the functional values from some central value, usually the mean or median.
- average seek time — (storage) The mean time it takes to move the head of a disk drive from one track to another, averaged over the source and destination cylinders. Usually measured in milliseconds (ms). The average seek time gives a good measure of the speed of the drive in a multi-user environment where successive read/write request are largely uncorrelated. Ten ms is common for a hard disk and 200 ms for an eight-speed CD-ROM.
- avogadro's number — the constant, 6.022 × 10 23 , representing the number of atoms, molecules, or ions in one mole of a substance. Symbol: N. Compare gram-atom, gram molecule.
- baby doll nightie — a short, frilly nightdress
- bachelor's degree — A bachelor's degree is a first degree awarded by universities.
- background report — a report on someone or something that sheds light on their background, esp a report on the background of a person convicted of a crime before they are sentenced by a judge
- bacteriologically — In a bacteriological manner; with respect to bacteriology.
- baden-wurttemberg — a state of SW Germany. Capital: Stuttgart. Pop: 53 938 (2003 est). Area: 35 742 sq km (13 800 sq miles)
- baggage checkroom — a left luggage office; a place at, for example, a railway station where baggage can be left
- baggage screening — the procedure whereby baggage is electronically screened at an airport before it is allowed on the plane
- bangalore torpedo — an explosive device in a long metal tube, used to blow gaps in barbed-wire barriers
- banking principle — the principle that bank notes are a form of credit and should be issued freely in order to maintain an elastic currency.
- bar-tailed godwit — a large wader, Limosa lapponica, of the family Scolopacidae which, in migrating from Alaska to New Zealand, makes the longest journey without stopping for food taken by any animal
- barbed-wire grass — an aromatic grass, Cymbopogon refractus, with groups of seed heads resembling barbed wire
- bari delle puglie — Italian name of Bari.
- base lending rate — a minimum interest rate on which financial institutions base the rates they use for lending
- baseboard heating — a heating system by pipes, through which steam or hot water circulates, near the base of the walls of rooms
- be running scared — If you say that a person or group is running scared, you mean that they are frightened of what someone might do to them or what might happen.
- beardmore glacier — one of the largest glaciers, in central Antarctica. About 125 miles (200 km) long.
- beefsteak begonia — an ornamental plant, Begonia erythrophylla, having light-pink flowers and nearly round, thick, fleshy leaves that are red on the underside.
- bell-hanger's bit — a bit for drilling small holes through studs or the like.
- bergisch gladbach — city in W Germany, in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia: pop. 105,000
- bergisch-gladbach — an industrial city in W Germany, near Cologne.
- betagalactosidase — any of a family of enzymes capable of liberating galactose from carbohydrates.
- biological father — the man whose semen fertilized the ovum from which a child was born
- biological marker — a substance, physiological characteristic, gene, etc that indicates, or may indicate, the presence of disease, a physiological abnormality or a psychological condition
- biological mother — the mother who gave birth to a child
- biological parent — a parent who has conceived (biological mother) or sired (biological father) rather than adopted a child and whose genes are therefore transmitted to the child.
- biological shield — a protective shield impervious to radiation, esp the thick concrete wall surrounding the core of a nuclear reactor
- biological weapon — a weapon which uses a biological agent to harm people and other living organisms
- black-backed gull — either of two common black-and-white European coastal gulls, Larus fuscus (lesser black-backed gull) and L. marinus (great black-backed gull)
- black-box testing — functional testing
- black-headed gull — a small gull, Chroicocephalus ridibundus, that breeds in much of Europe and Asia, and often scavenges in towns
- blackboard jungle — a school or school system characterized by lack of discipline and by juvenile delinquency.
- blue dog democrat — a fiscally conservative member of the Democratic Party
- blue false indigo — a North American plant, Baptisia australis, of the legume family, having wedge-shaped leaflets and blue, clustered flowers.
- bluegrass country — region in central Ky. where there is much bluegrass
- board of managers — a group of people responsible for managing an organization
- board-and-shingle — a small dwelling with wooden walls and a shingle roof
- bottlebrush grass — a North American grass, Hystrix patula, having loose flower spikes with long awns.
- brain haemorrhage — bleeding into the brain
- breakdown voltage — the minimum applied voltage that would cause a given insulator or electrode to break down.
- brigadier general — In the United States, a brigadier general is a senior officer in the armed forces who is often in charge of a brigade and has a rank above colonel and below major general.
- brightening agent — a compound applied to a textile to increase its brightness by the conversion of ultraviolet radiation to visible (blue) light, used in detergents
- brighton and hove — a city and unitary authority in S England, in East Sussex. Pop: 251 500 (2003 est). Area: 72 sq km (28 sq miles)
- bring up the rear — to be at the back in a procession, race, etc
- broad-winged hawk — an American hawk, Buteo platypterus, dark brown above and white barred with rufous below.
- broadview heights — a town in N Ohio.