12-letter words containing a, k, u
- greater kudu — a spiral-horned antelope, Tragelaphus strepsiceros, which inhabits the bush of Africa
- ground shark — any of various requiem sharks, especially of the genus Carcharhinus.
- ground track — the path on the earth's surface below an aircraft, missile, rocket, or spacecraft.
- hauraki gulf — an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, on the N coast of North Island, New Zealand.
- housebreaker — a person who breaks into and enters a house with a felonious intent.
- hydraulicked — (of an extracted mineral) excavated using water
- ink fountain — the part of a printing press that stores ink and feeds it to the rollers.
- jack russell — a small short-legged terrier having a white coat with tan, black, or lemon markings: there are rough- and smooth-haired varieties
- jesus freaks — a member of any of several fundamentalist groups of chiefly young people (Jesus people) originating in the early 1970s and emphasizing intense personal devotion to and study of Jesus Christ and His teachings.
- jumping jack — a toy consisting of a jointed figure that is made to jump, move, or dance by pulling a string or stick attached to it.
- jury-packing — the practice of contriving that the majority of those chosen for a jury will be persons likely to have partialities affecting a particular case.
- k'ang yu-wei — 1858–1927, Chinese scholar and reformer.
- k/t boundary — Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary: the time zone comprising the end of the Cretaceous and the beginning of the Tertiary periods
- kalmar sound — a strait between SE Sweden and Öland Island. 85 miles (137 km) long; 14 miles (23 km) wide.
- kanchenjunga — a mountain in S Asia, between NE India and Nepal, in the E Himalayas: third highest in the world. 28,169 feet (8586 meters).
- karnaugh map — A Karnaugh map is a pictorial method used to minimize Boolean expressions without having to use Boolean algebra theorems.
- katharevousa — The purist form of modern Greek used in traditional literary writing, as opposed to the form that is spoken and used in everyday writing (called demotic).
- keratogenous — producing horn or a horny substance.
- keraunograph — an instrument for recording thunderstorms by detecting the radio waves generated
- ketoaciduria — (pathology) The presence of (excess) ketoacids in the urine.
- khachaturian — Aram Ilich [ar-uh m il-yich;; Russian uh-rahm ee-lyeech] /ˈær əm ˈɪl yɪtʃ;; Russian ʌˈrɑm iˈlyitʃ/ (Show IPA), 1903–78, Armenian composer.
- kigoma-ujiji — a city composed of two merged towns in W Tanzania, on Lake Tanganyika: Stanley found Livingstone in Ujiji 1871.
- kikuyu grass — a type of fast-growing tropical grass, Pennisetum clandestinum, native to E Africa
- kim dae jung — 1925–2009, president of South Korea 1998–2003.
- kinchinjunga — Kanchenjunga.
- kit-cat club — a club of Whig wits, painters, politicians, and men of letters, including Robert Walpole, John Vanbrugh, William Congreve, Joseph Addison, Richard Steele, and Godfrey Kneller, that flourished in London between 1703 and 1720.
- kit-kat club — a club of Whig wits, painters, politicians, and men of letters, including Robert Walpole, John Vanbrugh, William Congreve, Joseph Addison, Richard Steele, and Godfrey Kneller, that flourished in London between 1703 and 1720.
- kluge around — (jargon) To avoid a bug or difficult condition by inserting a kluge. Compare workaround.
- knock around — to strike a sounding blow with the fist, knuckles, or anything hard, especially on a door, window, or the like, as in seeking admittance, calling attention, or giving a signal: to knock on the door before entering.
- knuckle ball — a slow pitch that moves erratically toward home plate, usually delivered by holding the ball between the thumb and the knuckles of the first joints of the first two or three fingers.
- knuckleballs — Plural form of knuckleball.
- knuckleheads — Plural form of knucklehead.
- ku klux klan — U.S. History. a secret hate group in the southern U.S., active for several years after the Civil War, which aimed to suppress the newly acquired rights of black people and to oppose carpetbaggers from the North, and which was responsible for many lawless and violent proceedings.
- kuala lumpur — a constitutional monarchy in SE Asia: a federation, comprising the former British territories of Malaya, Sabah, and Sarawak: member of the Commonwealth of Nations. 126,310 sq. mi. (327,143 sq. km). Capital: Kuala Lumpur.
- kurchatovium — (chemistry) A rejected name for rutherfordium.
- ladder truck — hook and ladder.
- lake lucerne — a lake in central Switzerland: fed and drained chiefly by the River Reuss. Area: 115 sq km (44 sq miles)
- lake managua — a lake in W Nicaragua: drains into Lake Nicaragua by the Tipitapa River. Length: 61 km (38 miles). Width: about 26 km (16 miles)
- lake success — a town on Long Island, in SE New York: temporary United Nations headquarters 1946–51.
- lake turkana — a long narrow lake in E Africa, in the Great Rift Valley. Area: 7104 sq km (2743 sq miles)
- lark bunting — a finch, Calamospiza melanocorys, of the western U.S., the male of which is black with a large, white patch on each wing.
- laundry mark — a symbol on a label on an article of clothing, bed-linen, etc, which specifies how the item should be washed and cared for, for example, at which temperature it should be washed at, whether it should be ironed, dry-cleaned, etc
- leakage-flux — an act of leaking; leak.
- lee kuan yew — 1923–2015, Singaporean statesman; prime minister of Singapore 1959–90, during which period his party's authoritarian rule was criticized but the country's economy progressed rapidly
- liliuokalani — Lydia Kamekeha [kah-me-ke-hah] /ˌkɑ mɛˈkɛ hɑ/ (Show IPA), 1838–1917, last queen of the Hawaiian Islands 1891–93.
- loudspeakers — Plural form of loudspeaker, especially a pair for a left and right channel.
- luggage rack — shelf for baggage on a train
- lukewarmness — The property of being lukewarm; ambivalence, weakness.
- lumberjacket — a short, straight, wool plaid jacket or coat, for informal wear, usually belted and having patch pockets.
- make much of — great in quantity, measure, or degree: too much cake.