14-letter words containing k, i, o
- isthmus of kra — an isthmus of SW Thailand, between the Bay of Bengal and the Gulf of Thailand: the narrowest part of the Malay Peninsula. Width: about 56 km (35 miles)
- jack-in-office — a self-important petty official
- jiggery-pokery — trickery, hocus-pocus; fraud; humbug.
- john steinbeck — John (Ernst) [urnst] /ɜrnst/ (Show IPA), 1902–68, U.S. novelist: Nobel prize 1962.
- jonker diamond — a noted diamond weighing 726 carats, discovered in the Transvaal in 1934 and cut into 12 pieces.
- kakistocracies — Plural form of kakistocracy.
- kalamata olive — a purplish-black, almond-shaped olive with a fruity flavor and meaty texture, often split and cured in brine and packed in vinegar.
- karstification — the process of turning into karst
- karyotypically — (cytology) With regard to the karyotype.
- keep a rein on — to check, control, or restrain
- kenilworth ivy — a European climbing vine, Cymbalaria muralis, of the figwort family, having irregularly lobed leaves and small, lilac-blue flowers.
- kentish plover — Charadrius alexandrinus, a small wading bird belonging to the plover family, breeding in the tropics and subtropics; it is white and greyish-brown, with black legs and bill
- keratinization — Conversion into keratin or keratinous tissue.
- keratinophilic — (of a plant such as a fungus) growing on keratinous substances such as hair, hooves, nails, etc
- kettle of fish — an awkward, difficult, or bad situation; muddle; mess: He's managed to get himself into a fine kettle of fish!
- keystone joist — a reinforced-concrete joist with sloping sides and the top wider than the bottom.
- khaki election — a general election held during or immediately after a war, esp one in which the war has an effect on how people vote
- kill the clock — an instrument for measuring and recording time, especially by mechanical means, usually with hands or changing numbers to indicate the hour and minute: not designed to be worn or carried about.
- kilogram-force — a meter-kilogram-second unit of force, equal to the force that produces an acceleration equal to the acceleration of gravity, when acting on a mass of one kilogram. Abbreviation: kgf.
- kilogram-meter — a meter-kilogram-second unit of work or energy, equal to the work done by a force of one kilogram when its point of application moves through a distance of one meter in the direction of the force; approximately 7.2 foot-pounds. Abbreviation: kg-m.
- kinetheodolite — a type of theodolite containing a cine camera instead of a telescope and giving continuous film of a moving target together with a record of its altitude and azimuth: used in tracking a missile, satellite, etc
- kinetic theory — the theory that the minute particles of all matter are in constant motion and that the temperature of a substance is dependent on the velocity of this motion, increased motion being accompanied by increased temperature: according to the kinetic theory of gases, the elasticity, diffusion, pressure, and other physical properties of a gas are due to the rapid motion in straight lines of its molecules, to their impacts against each other and the walls of the container, to weak cohesive forces between molecules, etc.
- king of beasts — the lion.
- king's counsel — a body of barristers of a higher status who are specially appointed to be the crown's counsel, and who are permitted to plead inside the bar in the court.
- king's proctor — a British judiciary officer who may intervene in probate, nullity, or divorce actions when collusion, suppression of evidence, or other irregularities are alleged.
- kings mountain — a ridge in N South Carolina: American victory over the British 1780.
- kissing cousin — any more or less distant kin familiar enough to be greeted with a kiss, as a cousin (kissing cousin)
- kit inspection — inspection of soldiers' kit by a superior officer, to make sure it is all clean, working, and in a good state
- kitchen police — soldiers detailed by roster or as punishment to assist in kitchen duties.
- kitty-cornered — cater-cornered
- kleptomaniacal — Having a compulsion to steal, as a kleptomaniac does.
- kleptoparasite — A bird, insect, or other animal that habitually robs animals of other species of food.
- knickerbockers — Also, knickerbockers [nik-er-bok-erz] /ˈnɪk ərˌbɒk ərz/ (Show IPA). loose-fitting short trousers gathered in at the knees.
- knobbling roll — a roll for a rolling mill, having a series of regularly shaped projections and depressions on its face.
- known quantity — Mathematics. a quantity whose value is given: in algebra, frequently represented by a letter from the first part of the alphabet, as a, b, or c.
- kochel listing — the chronological number of a composition of Mozart as assigned in the catalog of the composer's works compiled in the 19th century by the Austrian musicologist Ludwig von Köchel (1800–1877) and since revised several times. Abbreviation: K.
- kola peninsula — Also called Kola Peninsula. a peninsula in the NW Russian Federation in Europe, between the White and Barents seas.
- kola-peninsula — Also called Kola Peninsula. a peninsula in the NW Russian Federation in Europe, between the White and Barents seas.
- konstantinovka — a city in E Ukraine, NW of Gorlovka.
- kyphoscoliosis — a condition in which the spinal column is convex both backward and sideways.
- lacrosse stick — stick: for lacrosse
- lake maracaibo — a lake in NW Venezuela, linked with the Gulf of Venezuela by a dredged channel: centre of the Venezuelan and South American oil industry. Area: about 13 000 sq km (500 sq miles)
- lake winnebago — a lake in E Wisconsin, fed and drained by the Fox river: the largest lake in the state. Area: 557 sq km (215 sq miles)
- last knockings — the final stage of a period or activity
- laughing stock — object of others' amusement
- laughingstocks — Plural form of laughingstock.
- leukocytopenia — a decrease in the number of white blood cells in the blood.
- lexington park — a town in S Maryland.
- licorice stick — a clarinet.
- like clockwork — the mechanism of a clock.