12-letter words containing i, s, r, a
- kashmir goat — one of a long-haired breed of goat raised in Tibet and the higher elevations of China, the Indian subcontinent, Afghanistan, and Turkey for its meat, milk, and cashmere wool.
- katamorphism — metamorphism at or near the earth's surface: breaks down complex minerals into simpler ones.
- kavir desert — Dasht-e-Kavir.
- keratotomies — Plural form of keratotomy.
- keyboardists — Plural form of keyboardist.
- khaibar pass — Khyber Pass.
- kick starter — a starter, as of a motorcycle, that operates by a downward kick on a pedal.
- kikuyu grass — a type of fast-growing tropical grass, Pennisetum clandestinum, native to E Africa
- kilocalories — Plural form of kilocalorie.
- kinesiatrics — the treatment of disease by the use of gymnastics or muscle exercises
- king-of-arms — a title of certain of the principal heralds of England and certain other kingdoms empowered by their sovereigns to grant armorial bearings.
- kirschwasser — a fragrant, colorless, unaged brandy distilled from a fermented mash of cherries, produced especially in Germany, Switzerland, and Alsace, France.
- kitchenwares — Plural form of kitchenware.
- korea strait — a strait between Korea and Japan, connecting the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea. 120 miles (195 km) long.
- korsakoffian — relating to or suffering from Korsakoff's psychosis
- kristiansand — a seaport in S Norway.
- kristianstad — a town in S Sweden: founded in 1614 as a Danish fortress, it was finally acquired by Sweden in 1678. Pop: 75 590 (2004 est)
- labor-saving — A labor-saving device or idea makes it possible for you to do something with less effort than usual.
- laboratories — a building, part of a building, or other place equipped to conduct scientific experiments, tests, investigations, etc., or to manufacture chemicals, medicines, or the like.
- labour pains — the pains felt during the contractions of childbirth
- labouriously — Alternative form of laboriously.
- laboursaving — reducing (human) effort, hard work, or labour
- lachrymosity — suggestive of or tending to cause tears; mournful.
- lacrimal sac — the dilated upper portion of the nasolacrimal duct that receives tears from the lacrimal ducts.
- ladies' room — a public lavatory for women.
- lady-slipper — cypripedium
- lammergeiers — Plural form of lammergeier.
- lamplighters — Plural form of lamplighter.
- landgravines — Plural form of landgravine.
- lansker line — (in Pembrokeshire) the linguistic and ethnic division between the Welsh-speaking north and the English-speaking south
- lantern fish — any of several small, deep-sea fishes of the family Myctophidae, having rows of luminous organs along each side, certain species of which migrate to the surface at night.
- laparoscopic — a flexible fiberoptic instrument, passed through a small incision in the abdominal wall and equipped with biopsy forceps, an obturator, scissors or the like, with which to examine the abdominal cavity or perform minor surgery.
- laparotomies — Plural form of laparotomy.
- laser tuning — a technique for adjusting a laser's output frequency to within a specific range, especially in semiconductors.
- laser-guided — (of a missile, etc) guided with the use of a laser beam
- latchstrings — Plural form of latchstring.
- lateral lisp — a speech defect consisting in pronouncing s and z like or nearly like the th- sounds of thin and this, respectively.
- laticiferous — bearing or containing latex.
- latin square — a square array of numbers, letters, etc., in which each item appears exactly once in each row and column: used in statistical analysis.
- laundry list — a lengthy, especially random list of items: a laundry list of hoped-for presents; a laundry list of someone's crimes.
- laureateship — a person who has been honored for achieving distinction in a particular field or with a particular award: a Nobel laureate.
- lawbreakings — Plural form of lawbreaking.
- lawyer's wig — the shaggy ink-cap
- lawyerliness — Quality of being lawyerly.
- lectionaries — Plural form of lectionary.
- legionnaires — Plural form of legionnaire.
- legislatures — a deliberative body of persons, usually elective, who are empowered to make, change, or repeal the laws of a country or state; the branch of government having the power to make laws, as distinguished from the executive and judicial branches of government.
- lenticularis — (meteorology) a cloud species which consists of rounded lens shaped of cloud, often forming near mountains. Associated with cirrocumulus, and altocumulus, and sometimes stratocumulus genera.
- leprosariums — Plural form of leprosarium.
- levi strauss — David Friedrich [dah-veet free-drikh] /ˈdɑ vit ˈfri drɪx/ (Show IPA), 1808–74, German theologian, philosopher, and author.