16-letter words containing l, a, n
- biotic potential — the capacity of a population of organisms to increase in numbers under optimum environmental conditions.
- bite one's nails — to chew off the ends of one's fingernails
- black nightshade — a poisonous solanaceous plant, Solanum nigrum, a common weed in cultivated land, having small white flowers with backward-curved petals and black berry-like fruits
- black propaganda — propaganda that does not come from the source it claims to come from
- black-eyed susan — any of several North American plants of the genus Rudbeckia, esp R. hirta, having flower heads of orange-yellow rays and brown-black centres: family Asteraceae (composites)
- blasting gelatin — a type of plastic dynamite containing about 7 percent of a cellulose nitrate, used chiefly in underwater work.
- bleaching powder — a white powder with the odour of chlorine, consisting of chlorinated calcium hydroxide with an approximate formula CaCl(OCl).4H2O. It is used in solution as a bleaching agent and disinfectant
- blended learning — the use of both classroom teaching and on-line learning
- blenheim spaniel — a variety of toy spaniel that is white with reddish-brown spots
- blind man's buff — a game in which a blindfolded person tries to catch and identify the other players
- blind man's rule — a carpenter's rule having large numbers to permit its reading in dim light.
- blind salamander — any of several North American salamanders, especially of the genera Typhlotriton, Typhlomolge, and Haideotriton, that inhabit underground streams or deep wells and have undeveloped eyes and scant pigmentation.
- blink comparator — an optical instrument used to detect small differences in two photographs of the same field or object by viewing them alternately, switching rapidly from one to the other.
- block and tackle — a hoisting device in which a rope or chain is passed around a pair of blocks containing one or more pulleys. The upper block is secured overhead and the lower block supports the load, the effort being applied to the free end of the rope or chain
- blow one's stack — to lose one's temper; fly into a rage
- blue dawn-flower — a tropical American vine, Ipomoea acuminata, of the morning glory family, having large, funnel-shaped flowers that turn from blue to pink.
- blue in the face — the pure color of a clear sky; the primary color between green and violet in the visible spectrum, an effect of light with a wavelength between 450 and 500 nm.
- blue-green algae — any of a division (Cyanophycota) of photosynthetic monerans, microorganisms that contain a blue pigment which obscures the chlorophyll; cyanobacteria
- blue-winged teal — a small North American duck (Anas discors) found on ponds and rivers
- bluegrass region — a region in central Kentucky, famous for its horse farms and fields of bluegrass.
- boarding kennels — a place where dog owners can pay to have their dogs looked after while they are away
- bon gre, mal gre — whether willing or not; willy-nilly.
- bonneville flats — an area of salt flats in the W part of Great Salt Lake Desert, in NW Utah: site of automobile speed tests.
- boolean-operator — any operation in which each of the operands and the result take one of two values.
- bornholm disease — an epidemic virus infection characterized by pain round the base of the chest
- botanical garden — a place where collections of plants and trees are kept for scientific study and exhibition
- bowman's capsule — a membranous, double-walled capsule surrounding a glomerulus of a nephron.
- bracknell forest — a unitary authority in SE England, in E Berkshire. Pop: 110 100 (2003 est). Area: 109 sq km (42 sq miles)
- brain aid prolog — (language) (BAP) A parallel Prolog environment for transputer systems by Frank Bergmann <[email protected]>, Martin Ostermann <[email protected]>, and Guido von Walter <[email protected]> of Brain Aid Systems GbR. BAP is based on a model of communicating sequential Prolog processes. The run-time system consists of a multi-process operating system with support for several applications running concurrently.
- branchial groove — one of a series of rudimentary depressions on the surface of the embryo between adjacent branchial arches, homologous to the branchial clefts of gill-breathing ancestral forms.
- brandy alexander — an Alexander cocktail made with brandy
- breeding plumage — the plumage assumed by a male bird during the courtship period, especially in those species that are more colorful at this period.
- bright and early — very early in the morning
- 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.
- buckley's chance — no chance at all
- buckthorn family — the plant family Rhamnaceae, characterized by shrubs and trees having alternate, simple leaves, clusters of small flowers, and fruit in the form of a drupe or capsule, and including the buckthorn, cascara, and New Jersey tea.
- bullet-resistant — not allowing bullets to pass through
- bullying tactics — the use of intimidation to gain one's objective
- bundled software — software sold as part of a package with computers or other hardware or software
- bunker mentality — a defensive attitude in which others are seen as hostile or potentially hostile
- burge's language — Unnamed functional language based on lambda-calculus. Recursive Programming techniques", W.H. Burge, A-W 1975.
- business analyst — (job) A person who analyses the operations of a department or functional unit to develop a general systems solution to the problem. The solution will typically involve a combination of manual and automated processes. The business analyst can provide insights into an operation for an information systems analyst.
- busman's holiday — If you have a holiday, but spend it doing something similar to your usual work, you can refer to it as a busman's holiday.
- cable television — Cable television is a television system in which signals are sent along wires rather than by radio waves.
- calamian islands — a group of about 100 islands in the SW Philippines. 600 sq. mi. (1554 sq. km). Largest island, Busuanga.
- calcium arsenate — a toxic, white powder, Ca3(AsO4)2, used as an insecticide in the form of a spray or dust
- caledonian canal — a canal in N Scotland, linking the Atlantic with the North Sea through the Great Glen: built 1803–47; now used mostly for leisure boating
- california poppy — a papaveraceous plant, Eschscholtzia californica, of the Pacific coast of North America, having yellow or orange flowers and finely divided bluish-green leaves