14-letter words containing d, i, b, e
- benzosulfimide — saccharin.
- 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.
- beside oneself — If you are beside yourself with anger or excitement, you are extremely angry or excited.
- 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-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.
- 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 dispute — not open to dispute or question; settled
- bib and tucker — an outfit of clothes (esp in the phrase best bib and tucker)
- bicuspid valve — mitral valve
- 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 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.
- bildungsromane — a type of novel concerned with the education, development, and maturing of a young protagonist.
- billiard table — the rectangular table used for playing billiards
- binding energy — the energy that must be supplied to a stable nucleus before it can undergo fission. It is equal to the mass defect
- binding handle — (networking) An identifier representing the connection between a client and server. An association between client/server end-points and protocols.
- binding rafter — a timber for supporting rafters between their extremities, as a purlin.
- binding strake — a very strong, heavy strake of planking, especially one next to a sheer strake.
- binge drinking — Binge drinking is the consumption of large amounts of alcohol within a short period of time.
- biodegradation — to decay and become absorbed by the environment: toys that will biodegrade when they're discarded.
- bioremediation — the use of plants to extract heavy metals from contaminated soils and water
- birdcage clock — lantern clock.
- birds and bees — 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.
- black bindweed — a twining polygonaceous European plant, Polygonum convolvulus, with heart-shaped leaves and triangular black seed pods
- bladder ketmia — plant with pale yellow flowers
- bladder ketmie — flower-of-an-hour
- blade-shearing — the shearing of sheep using hand shears
- bleeding heart — If you describe someone as a bleeding heart, you are criticizing them for being sympathetic towards people who are poor and suffering, without doing anything practical to help.
- blended family — a social unit consisting of two previously married parents and the children of their former marriages
- blessed virgin — the Virgin Mary
- blind register — (in the United Kingdom) a list of those who are blind and are therefore entitled to financial and other benefits
- blind staggers — the staggers
- blister-packed — presented in a blister pack
- blood disorder — a medical condition affecting the blood
- blood relation — A blood relation or blood relative is someone who is related to you by birth rather than by marriage.
- blow one's lid — a removable or hinged cover for closing the opening, usually at the top, of a pot, jar, trunk, etc.; a movable cover.
- blue dandelion — chicory (def 1).
- blurred vision — a condition which makes it impossible to see clearly
- boarding house — A boarding house is a house which people pay to stay in for a short time.
- bodice-ripping — A bodice-ripping film or novel is one which is set in the past and which includes a lot of sex scenes. You use this word especially if you do not think it is very good and is just intended to entertain people.
- body beautiful — a beautiful body
- body mechanics — body exercises that are intended to improve one's posture, stamina, poise, etc.
- bonded-whiskey — something that binds, fastens, confines, or holds together.
- border disease — a congenital infectious disease of sheep and goats caused by a Togavirus and characterized by abortion, infertility, and deformity of lambs
- border dispute — a disagreement between countries about where the border between them should be drawn
- border terrier — a small rough-coated breed of terrier that originated in the Borders