16-letter words containing i, n, s, t, r
- bird's-nest soup — a rich spicy Chinese soup made from the outer part of the nests of SE Asian swifts of the genus Collocalia
- birthday honours — (in Britain) honorary titles conferred on the official birthday of the sovereign
- birthday present — a gift given to someone on their birthday
- blunt instrument — something such as a hammer, used as a weapon
- boston cream pie — a cake of two layers with icing and a creamy filling
- boundary dispute — dispute between neighbours about the boundary between their properties
- bragg scattering — the diffraction phenomenon exhibited by a crystal bombarded with x-rays in such a way that each plane of the crystal lattice acts as a reflector (Bragg reflector)
- braking distance — the distance a vehicle travels from the point at which its brakes are applied to the point at which it comes to a stop
- branchiopneustic — breathing by means of gills, as certain aquatic insect larvae.
- brass instrument — a musical wind instrument of brass or other metal with a cup-shaped mouthpiece, as the trombone, tuba, French horn, trumpet, or cornet.
- brave west winds — the strong west and west-northwest winds blowing between latitudes 40° S and 60° S.
- breast screening — a radiological or other examination of a woman's breasts to check for signs of cancer
- bright-blindness — blindness occurring in sheep grazing pastures heavily infested with bracken
- bring sb to book — If you bring someone to book, you punish them for an offence or make them explain their behaviour officially.
- bring sb to heel — If you bring someone to heel, you force them to obey you.
- bring to justice — to capture, try, and usually punish (a criminal, an outlaw, etc)
- bristlecone pine — a coniferous tree, Pinus aristata, of the western US, bearing cones with bristle-like prickles: one of the longest-lived trees, useful in radiocarbon dating
- british honduras — Belize
- british longhair — a breed of large cat with a semi-long thick soft coat
- brittany spaniel — a short-tailed French bird dog that typically has a smooth orange- or liver-and-white coat
- bronchial asthma — asthma.
- bullet-resistant — not allowing bullets to pass through
- burnet saxifrage — a Eurasian umbelliferous plant of the genus Pimpinella, having umbrella-like clusters of white or pink flowers
- burning question — urgent matter for discussion
- bypass operation — an operation involving redirection of blood flow, either to avoid a diseased blood vessel or in order to perform heart surgery
- cabinet minister — a minister who is a member of the cabinet
- calcium arsenate — a toxic, white powder, Ca3(AsO4)2, used as an insecticide in the form of a spray or dust
- canaries current — an ocean current of the North Atlantic flowing southward past Spain and North Africa.
- canine distemper — distemper1 (def 1a).
- cardinal virtues — the most important moral qualities, traditionally justice, prudence, temperance, and fortitude
- carrot and stick — If an organization has a carrot and stick approach or policy, they offer people things in order to persuade them to do something and punish them if they refuse to do it.
- cash transaction — a piece of business, for example an act of buying or selling something
- casting director — the person in charge of choosing of actors for a production
- castor-oil plant — a tall euphorbiaceous Indian plant, Ricinus communis, cultivated in tropical regions for ornament and for its poisonous seeds, from which castor oil is extracted
- cataractogenesis — The formation of a cataract.
- category listing — A category listing is a list of different product categories such as menswear, womenswear, and childrenswear.
- cavity resonator — a conducting surface enclosing a space in which an oscillating electromagnetic field can be maintained, the dimensions of the cavity determining the resonant frequency of the oscillations. It is used in microwave devices for frequencies exceeding 300 megahertz
- cesarean section — Also called Cesarean section, C-section. an operation by which a fetus is taken from the uterus by cutting through the walls of the abdomen and uterus.
- character string — a series of characters that can be manipulated as a group, but do not necessarily represent anything
- characterisation — (British spelling) Alternative form of characterization.
- chattering class — well-educated members of the upper-middle or upper class who freely express especially liberal opinions or judgments on current issues and events.
- chinese crescent — crescent (def 6).
- chinese wisteria — a high-climbing Chinese vine, Wisteria sinensis, of the legume family, having hanging clusters of fragrant, bluish-violet flowers and long, velvety pods.
- chorioamnionitis — Inflammation of the fetal membranes (amnion and chorion) due to a bacterial infection, most often associated with prolonged labour.
- choriomeningitis — (medicine) A form of cerebral meningitis associated with inflammation of the choroid plexus.
- christening robe — a long white dress worn by a baby at his or her christening
- christian action — an inter-Church movement formed in 1946 to promote Christian ideals in society at large
- christmas dinner — the main meal on Christmas day, eaten any time in the afternoon or evening
- christmas island — an island in the Indian Ocean, south of Java: administered by Singapore (1900–58), now by Australia; phosphate mining. Pop: 1496 (2013 est). Area: 135 sq km (52 sq miles)
- chryselephantine — (of ancient Greek statues) made of or overlaid with gold and ivory