13-letter words containing b, a, e
- bass clarinet — a clarinet with the lowest range, in the octave below the B-flat clarinet
- bass response — the response of an audio reproduction system or component to low frequencies
- bass trombone — the lower-pitched of the two main types of trombone
- bass-baritone — a singer or voice in the bass range with baritone qualities
- bassenthwaite — a lake in NW England, in Cumbria near Keswick. Length: 6 km (4 miles)
- basso rilievo — bas-relief
- basso-relievo — bas-relief
- bastard amber — a color of gelatin commonly used in stage lighting, similar to light amber but having a pinkish cast.
- bastard eigne — the first-born illegitimate son of parents whose second son was legitimate.
- bastard title — half title (def 1).
- bastard-title — Also called bastard title. the first printed page of certain books, appearing after the end papers and before the title page and containing only the title of the book.
- bat-eared fox — a fox, Vulpes chama, inhabiting dry areas of southern Africa and having large pointed ears, silvery gray coat, and a bushy tail with a black tip.
- batch-process — to perform batch processing on (files)
- bathtub curve — Common term for the curve (resembling an end-to-end section of one of those claw-footed antique bathtubs) that describes the expected failure rate of electronics with time: initially high, dropping to near 0 for most of the system's lifetime, then rising again as it "tires out". See also burn-in period, infant mortality.
- bathylimnetic — (of an organism) living in the depths of lakes and marshes
- baton twirler — someone who twirls a baton, esp a drum major or majorette
- battered wife — See under battered woman syndrome.
- battering ram — A battering ram is a long heavy piece of wood that is used to knock down the locked doors of buildings.
- battering-ram — an ancient military device with a heavy horizontal ram for battering down walls, gates, etc.
- batting order — the sequence in which hitters will bat in a given game, determined in advance by the team manager.
- battle it out — If one group or person battles it out with another, they take part in a fight or contest against each other until one of them wins or a definite result is reached. You can also say that two groups or two people battle it out.
- battle jacket — a closefitting jacket reaching to the waist
- battlecruiser — A large warship of a type built in the early 20th century, carrying similar armament to a battleship but faster and more lightly armored.
- battlegrounds — Plural form of battleground.
- bay of bengal — a wide arm of the Indian Ocean, between India and Myanmar
- bay of naples — an inlet of the Tyrrhenian Sea in the SW coast of Italy
- bay of plenty — a large bay of the Pacific on the NE coast of the North Island, New Zealand
- bazillionaire — (humorous) An incredibly rich person.
- bcg (vaccine) — a vaccine prepared from an attenuated strain of the tubercle bacillus, used for immunization against tuberculosis
- be hard going — If you say that something is hard going, you mean it is difficult and requires a lot of effort.
- be nuts about — to be greatly in love with
- be upstanding — (in a court of law) a direction to all persons present to rise to their feet before the judge enters or leaves the court
- be wild about — If you are wild about someone or something, you like them very much.
- beached whale — large sea mammal stranded on shore
- beacon school — a notably successful school whose methods and practices are brought to the attention of the education service as a whole in order that they may be adopted by other schools
- beacon status — a ranking awarded by the government to an organization, rendering it eligible for extra funding, and aimed at encouraging organizations to share good practice with each other
- bead and reel — a convex molding having the form of elongated beads alternating with disks placed edge-on, or with spherical beads, or with both.
- beaded lizard — a large, stout-bodied, venomous lizard, Heloderma horridum, inhabiting western Mexico, having black, beadlike scales with yellow to pinkish spots and splotches.
- beaked salmon — sandfish (def 2).
- beaked-salmon — sandfish (def 2).
- beaking joint — a straight joint made by several members, as strips of flooring, ending at the same line.
- beam splitter — a system that divides a beam of light, electrons, etc, into two or more paths
- beanbag chair — a chair like a large beanbag covered with vinyl, fabric, etc. and filled with foam pellets, as of polystyrene, that shift about to fit one's body
- bear the palm — to be the winner; take the prize
- bear's-breech — a widely cultivated S European acanthus plant, Acanthus mollis, having whitish purple-veined flowers
- bearer cheque — a cheque payable to the person who has it
- bearing plate — a heavy metal plate for receiving and distributing concentrated weight, as from a column or one end of a truss.
- bearing sword — a large sword carried for its owner by a squire or servant because of its size.
- beast of prey — any animal that hunts other animals for food
- beat sb to it — If you intend to do something but someone beats you to it, they do it before you do.