15-letter words containing b, e, d, l
- disreputability — The state of being disreputable.
- distinguishable — to mark off as different (often followed by from or by): He was distinguished from the other boys by his height.
- dodecasyllables — Plural form of dodecasyllable.
- dolomite marble — coarse-grained dolomite.
- double concerto — a concerto for two solo instruments
- double entendre — a double meaning.
- double exposure — the act of exposing the same film, frame, plate, etc., twice.
- double genitive — a possessive construction consisting of a prepositional phrase with of containing a substantive in the possessive case, as of father's in He is a friend of father's.
- double in brass — twice as large, heavy, strong, etc.; twofold in size, amount, number, extent, etc.: a double portion; a new house double the size of the old one.
- double integral — an integral in which the integrand involves a function of two variables and that requires two applications of the integration process to evaluate.
- double jeopardy — the subjecting of a person to a second trial or punishment for the same offense for which the person has already been tried or punished.
- double knitting — a widely used medium thickness of knitting wool
- double negation — the principle that a statement is equivalent to the denial of its negation, as it is not the case that John is not here meaning John is here
- double negative — a syntactic construction in which two negative words are used in the same clause to express a single negation.
- double or quits — twice as large, heavy, strong, etc.; twofold in size, amount, number, extent, etc.: a double portion; a new house double the size of the old one.
- double printing — the exposure of the same positive photographic emulsion to two or more negatives, resulting in the superimposition of multiple images after development
- double saucepan — a cooking utensil consisting of two saucepans, one fitting inside the other. The bottom saucepan contains water that, while boiling, gently heats food in the upper pan
- double standard — any code or set of principles containing different provisions for one group of people than for another, especially an unwritten code of sexual behavior permitting men more freedom than women. Compare single standard (def 1).
- double stopping — playing two notes or parts simultaneously on a string instrument
- double-barreled — having two barrels mounted side by side, as a shotgun.
- double-breasted — (of a coat, jacket, etc.) overlapping sufficiently in front to allow for two rows of buttons.
- double-declutch — to change to a lower gear in a motor vehicle by first placing the gear lever into the neutral position before engaging the desired gear, at the same time releasing the clutch pedal and increasing the engine speed
- double-entendre — a double meaning.
- doublet pattern — a pattern, as on a fabric, in which a figure or group is duplicated in reverse order on the opposite side of a centerline.
- drop handlebars — aerodynamic handlebars that drop down and curve towards the rider at the ends rather than turning upwards as on conventional bicycles
- dropping bottle — a bottle with correlated lengthwise grooves in the neck and in the stopper, permitting a controlled flow of the liquid contents in the form of drops.
- dumbbell nebula — the planetary nebula in the constellation Vulpecula, which in photographs appears to have the shape of a dumbbell.
- dumdum (bullet) — a soft-nosed bullet that expands when it hits, inflicting a large, jagged wound
- eat like a bird — any warm-blooded vertebrate of the class Aves, having a body covered with feathers, forelimbs modified into wings, scaly legs, a beak, and no teeth, and bearing young in a hard-shelled egg.
- elaborated code — a way of talking which is explicit and does not assume that the listener shares the same assumptions and understandings as the speaker
- elastic rebound — a theory of earthquakes that envisages gradual deformation of the fault zone without fault slippage until friction is overcome, when the fault suddenly slips to produce the earthquake
- embalming fluid — a liquid used to treat a dead body, which contains preservatives to retard putrefaction
- embroidery silk — a silk thread used for embroidery
- endocannibalism — A form of cannibalism, the eating of dead members of one's own social group, often associated with spiritual beliefs.
- english bulldog — bulldog (sense 1)
- ferromolybdenum — a ferroalloy containing up to 60 percent molybdenum.
- field ambulance — a mobile medical unit that accepts casualties from forward units, treating the lightly wounded and stabilizing the condition of the seriously wounded before evacuating them to a hospital
- fixed liability — a liability, as a mortgage or debenture, that will not mature for a relatively long time.
- flatbed scanner — a type of optical scanner having a flat, stationary surface on which a page is scanned by a moving head.
- flesh and blood — offspring or relatives: one's own flesh and blood.
- free-tailed bat — any of various small, swift, insect-eating bats of the family Molossidae, common in warm climates, having thick, leathery ears and a tail that projects well beyond the tail membrane.
- gambier islands — a group of islands in the S Pacific Ocean, in French Polynesia. Chief settlement: Rikitéa. Pop: 1097 (2002). Area: 30 sq km (11 sq miles)
- gilbert islands — a group of islands in the W Pacific: with Banaba, the Phoenix Islands, and three of the Line Islands they constitute the independent state of Kiribati; until 1975 they formed part of the British colony of Gilbert and Ellice Islands; achieved full independence in 1979. Pop: 82 902 (2005). Area: 295 sq km (114 sq miles)
- gladbach-rheydt — a former city in W Germany; now part of Mönchengladbach.
- golden boy/girl — If you refer to a man as a golden boy or a woman as a golden girl, you mean that they are especially popular and successful.
- half-remembered — (of a memory, idea, etc) partially remembered or recalled
- hard-boiled egg — egg boiled until the yolk is set
- hard-shell crab — a crab, especially an edible crab, that has not recently molted and has a hard shell.
- hebrew calendar — the lunisolar calendar used by Jews, as for determining religious holidays, that is reckoned from 3761 b.c. and was established by Hillel II in the 4th century a.d., the calendar year consisting of 353 days (defective year) 354 days (regular year) or 355 days (perfect year or abundant year) and containing 12 months: Tishri, Heshvan, Kislev, Tevet, Shevat, Adar, Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tammuz, Av, and Elul, with the 29-day intercalary month of Adar Sheni added after Adar seven times in every 19-year cycle in order to adjust the calendar to the solar cycle. The Jewish ecclesiastical year begins with Nisan and the civil year with Tishri.
- hendecasyllabic — having 11 syllables.