17-letter words containing b, a, n, t, e
- liberal education — an education based primarily on the liberal arts, emphasizing the development of intellectual abilities as opposed to the acquisition of professional skills.
- lithium carbonate — a colorless crystalline compound, Li 2 CO 3 , slightly soluble in water: used in ceramic and porcelain glazes, pharmaceuticals, and luminescent paints.
- macfarlane burnet — Sir (Frank) Macfarlane [muh k-fahr-luh n] /məkˈfɑr lən/ (Show IPA), 1899–1985, Australian physician: Nobel Prize in Physiology 1960.
- macroinvertebrate — (zoology) An invertebrate that is large enough to be seen without the use of a microscope.
- madiba generation — the generation born around 1994, when Nelson Mandela became the first president of a multiracial South Africa
- make noises about — to give indications of one's intentions
- man's best friend — a dog, especially as a pet.
- management buyout — A management buyout is the buying of a company by its managers. The abbreviation MBO is also used.
- maternity benefit — government allowance
- medulla oblongata — the lowest or hindmost part of the brain, continuous with the spinal cord.
- mental disability — a general or specific intellectual handicap, resulting directly or indirectly from injury to the brain or from abnormal neurological development
- mesembryanthemums — Plural form of mesembryanthemum.
- methemoglobinemia — (medicine) A form of toxic anemia characterized by the presence of methemoglobin in the blood.
- microinvertebrate — An invertebrate of microscopic size.
- misunderstandable — Capable of being misunderstood.
- monarch butterfly — a large, deep-orange butterfly, Danaus plexippus, having black and white markings, the larvae of which feed on the leaves of milkweed.
- monkey bread tree — a bombacaceous tree, Adansonia digitata, native to Africa, that has a very thick trunk, large white flowers, and a gourdlike fruit with an edible pulp called monkey bread
- national assembly — the body constituted by the French Third Estate in June 1789 after the calling of the Estates General. It was dissolved in Sept 1791 to be replaced by the new Legislative Assembly
- naval observatory — an astronomical observatory located in Washington, D.C., operated by the U.S. government, and responsible for the U.S. time service.
- near-earth object — a comet or asteroid pushed by the gravitational attraction of nearby planets into an orbit that allows it to enter the earth's orbit and thereby pose a danger of collision. Abbreviation: NEO.
- neath port talbot — a county borough in S Wales, created from part of West Glamorgan in 1996. Administrative centre: Port Talbot. Pop: 135 300 (2003 est). Area: 439 sq km (169 sq miles)
- negative feedback — Electronics. the process of returning part of the output of a circuit, system, or device to the input, either to oppose the input (negative feedback) or to aid the input (positive feedback) acoustic feedback.
- negotiating table — If you say that people are at the negotiating table, you mean that they are having discussions in order to settle a dispute or reach an agreement.
- neurofibromatosis — a dominantly inherited genetic disorder characterized by flat brown patches on the skin, neurofibromas of the skin and internal organs, and in some cases skeletal deformity.
- nonunderstandable — Not understandable.
- north miami beach — a city in SE Florida.
- northeast by east — a point on the compass 11°15′ east of northeast. Abbreviation: NEbE.
- not bat an eyelid — When something surprising or shocking happens, if someone doesn't bat an eyelid in British English, or doesn't bat an eye in American English, they remain calm and do not show any reaction.
- objectionableness — The quality of being objectionable.
- observation tower — lookout, observation point
- off one's own bat — If someone does something off their own bat, they do it without anyone else suggesting it.
- on one's deathbed — about to die
- on the barrelhead — upon being presented for sale; at the time of delivery
- on the pig's back — successful; established
- opisthobranchiate — (zoology) Of or pertaining to the Opisthobranchiata.
- palaeoethnobotany — the study of fossil seeds and grains to further archaeological knowledge, esp of the domestication of cereals
- phonetic alphabet — an alphabet containing a separate character for each distinguishable speech sound.
- pillar-and-breast — room-and-pillar.
- probation officer — an officer who investigates and reports on the conduct of offenders who are free on probation.
- proprietary brand — a brand of product that is privately owned and controlled
- public assistance — government aid to the poor, disabled, or aged or to dependent children, as financial assistance or food stamps.
- quarterback sneak — a play in which the quarterback charges into the middle of the line, usually immediately after receiving the ball from the center.
- receiving blanket — a small blanket, usually of cotton, for wrapping an infant, especially following a bath.
- red and the black — a novel (1832) by Stendhal.
- reflection nebula — a cloud of interstellar gas and dust that reflects the light of neighboring stars.
- rhode island bent — a European pasture grass, Agrostis tenuis, naturalized in North America, having red flower clusters.
- roseate spoonbill — a tropical New World spoonbill, Ajaia ajaja, having rose-colored plumage and a bare head.
- rub the wrong way — to subject the surface of (a thing or person) to pressure and friction, as in cleaning, smoothing, polishing, coating, massaging, or soothing: to rub a table top with wax polish; to rub the entire back area.
- rubber plantation — an estate in a tropical country where rubber trees are grown on a large scale
- rubber-base paint — latex paint.