14-letter words containing b
- benzyl acetate — a colorless liquid, C 9 H 10 O 2 , having a flowerlike odor: used chiefly for flavoring tobacco and in soaps and cosmetics.
- benzyl alcohol — a colorless, faintly aromatic, slightly water-soluble liquid, C 7 H 8 O, used chiefly as a solvent in the manufacture of perfumes and flavorings, and as an intermediate in the synthesis of benzyl esters and ethers.
- berberidaceous — of, relating to, or belonging to the Berberidaceae, a mainly N temperate family of flowering plants (mostly shrubs), including barberry and barrenwort
- berkner island — an island in Antarctica, in the S Weddell Sea, between the Ronne Ice Shelf and the Filchner Ice Shelf.
- bermuda collar — a narrow, pointed collar on a woman's dress or blouse
- bermuda cutter — a marconi-rigged cutter.
- bermuda shorts — close-fitting shorts that come down to the knees
- bernicle goose — barnacle goose
- bertrand meyer — The author of the Eiffel Language and many articles on object-oriented software techniques.
- beseechingness — the quality or state of being beseeching
- beside oneself — If you are beside yourself with anger or excitement, you are extremely angry or excited.
- bessemer steel — steel made by the Bessemer process.
- bet your boots — to be certain; rely on it
- beta geminorum — Pollux
- beta reduction — [lambda-calculus] The application of a lambda abstraction to an argument expression. A copy of the body of the lambda abstraction is made and occurrences of the bound variable being replaced by the argument. E.g. (\ x . x+1) 4 --> 4+1 Beta reduction is the only kind of reduction in the pure lambda-calculus. The opposite of beta reduction is beta abstraction. These are the two kinds of beta conversion. See also name capture.
- beta structure — a secondary structure occurring in many proteins, consisting of several polypeptide chains running in parallel or alternating directions and joined by intermolecular hydrogen bonds, creating a flexible, strong arrangement.
- beta-endorphin — a potent endorphin released by the anterior pituitary gland in response to pain, trauma, exercise, or other forms of stress.
- beta-oxidation — a process by which fatty acids are degraded, involving oxidation of the beta carbons and removal of successive two-carbon fragments from the fatty acid.
- betake oneself — to go; move
- bethlehem sage — a plant, Pulmonaria saccharata, of the borage family, native to Europe, having mottled, white leaves and white or reddish-purple flowers in clusters.
- betray oneself — to reveal one's true character, intentions, etc
- betterment tax — a tax on an increase in the value of property effected by improvement
- betting office — a licensed bookmaker's premises not on a racecourse where bets can be placed on horses, teams, and other competitors
- between whiles — now and then; at intervals
- beveridge plan — the plan for comprehensive social insurance, proposed by Sir William Beveridge in Great Britain in 1941.
- bewilderedness — the state of being bewildered
- beyond a doubt — to be uncertain about; consider questionable or unlikely; hesitate to believe.
- beyond compare — If you describe something as beyond compare, you mean that it is extremely good or extremely great.
- beyond dispute — not open to dispute or question; settled
- beyond measure — If you say that something has changed or that it has affected you beyond measure, you are emphasizing that it has done this to a great extent.
- bezier surface — (graphics) A surface defined by mathematical formulae, used in computer graphics. A surface P(u, v), where u and v vary orthogonally from 0 to 1 from one edge of the surface to the other, is defined by a set of (n+1)*(m+1) "control points" (X(i, j), Y(i, j), Z(i, j)) for i = 0 to n, j = 0 to m.
- bib and tucker — an outfit of clothes (esp in the phrase best bib and tucker)
- bible-thumping — an evangelist or other person who quotes the Bible frequently, especially as a means of exhortation or rebuke.
- biblical latin — the form of Latin used in versions of the Bible, esp the form used in the Vulgate
- bibliomaniacal — relating to a bibliomaniac
- biceps brachii — See under biceps.
- biceps femoris — See under biceps.
- bicuspid valve — mitral valve
- bicycle-racing — the act or sport of riding or traveling by bicycle, motorcycle, etc.
- bidding prayer — the formal petitionary prayer, said especially in the Anglican Church immediately before the sermon.
- bide sb's time — If you bide your time, you wait for a good opportunity before doing something.
- bidialectalism — the state of being bidialectal
- big blue river — a river in SE Nebraska, flowing E and SE to the Kansas (Kaw) River. 300 miles (483 km) long.
- big brotherism — paternalistic authoritarianism that seeks to supply the needs and regulate the conduct of people.
- big government — a form of government characterized by high taxation and public spending and centralization of political power
- big house, the — a penitentiary
- big red switch — (jargon) (BRS) IBM jargon for the power switch on a computer, especially the "Emergency Pull" switch on an IBM mainframe or the power switch on an IBM PC where it really is large and red. "This [email protected]%$% bitty box is hung again; time to hit the Big Red Switch." It is alleged that the emergency pull switch on an IBM 360/91 actually fired a non-conducting bolt into the main power feed; the BRSes on more recent mainframes physically drop a block into place so that they can't be pushed back in. People get fired for pulling them, especially inappropriately (see also molly-guard). Compare power cycle, three-finger salute, 120 reset; see also scram switch.
- bight of bonny — a wide bay at the E end of the Gulf of Guinea off the coasts of Nigeria and Cameroon
- bikini bottoms — the part of a bikini worn over the groin
- bildungsromane — a type of novel concerned with the education, development, and maturing of a young protagonist.