17-letter words containing l, e, s, i
- board-and-shingle — a small dwelling with wooden walls and a shingle roof
- boileau-despreaux — Nicolas [nee-kaw-lah] /ni kɔˈlɑ/ (Show IPA), 1636–1711, French critic and poet.
- boiler horsepower — a unit of measurement of the ability of a boiler to evaporate water, usually given as the ability to evaporate 34½ pounds (15.6 kg) of water an hour, into dry saturated steam from and at 212°F (100°C).
- boothia peninsula — a peninsula of N Canada: the northernmost part of the mainland of North America, lying west of the Gulf of Boothia, an arm of the Arctic Ocean
- bowel obstruction — a blockage in the bowel
- boys will be boys — If you say boys will be boys, for example when a group of men are behaving noisily or aggressively, you are suggesting in a light-hearted way that this is typical male behaviour and will never change.
- british israelite — a member of a religious movement claiming that the British people are descended from the lost tribes of Israel
- broderie anglaise — open embroidery on white cotton, fine linen, etc
- browserconfig.xml — (web) A Microsoft configuration file used to customise the appearance and behaviour of website links pinned to the Windows start screen or desktop taskbar. browserconfig.xml allows the site owner to specify things like badges and tile images.
- budget resolution — a resolution adopted by both houses of the U.S. Congress setting forth, reaffirming, or revising the budget for the U.S. government for a fiscal year.
- bull's-eye mirror — a circular, convex, ornamental mirror.
- bull's-eye window — bull's-eye (def 7).
- bushman's singlet — a sleeveless heavy black woollen singlet, used as working clothing by timber fellers
- business as usual — In a difficult situation, if you say it is business as usual, you mean that people will continue doing what they normally do.
- business envelope — an envelope into which standard-size (81⁄2″ × 11″) letterhead stationery can be put with only two folds
- butacaine sulfate — a colorless, crystalline substance, (C18H30N2O2)2·H2SO4, used as a local anesthetic, esp. on mucous membranes
- buttonhole stitch — a reinforcing looped stitch for the edge of material, such as around a buttonhole
- buyers' inflation — inflation in which rising demand results in a rise in prices.
- café-au-lait spot — a brown patch on the skin that can occur normally in small numbers or in neurofibromatosis, when they are more numerous
- calcium phosphate — the insoluble nonacid calcium salt of orthophosphoric acid (phosphoric(V) acid): it occurs in bones and is the main constituent of bone ash. Formula: Ca3(PO4)2
- calorie-conscious — aware of the calorie content of one's diet
- cancer specialist — a medical professional who specializes in the treatment or study of malignant growths or tumours
- capital structure — the way that a company finances its assets through a combination of equity, debt etc
- capital-intensive — Capital-intensive industries and businesses need the investment of large sums of money. Compare labour-intensive.
- carbon disulphide — a colourless slightly soluble volatile flammable poisonous liquid commonly having a disagreeable odour due to the presence of impurities: used as an organic solvent and in the manufacture of rayon and carbon tetrachloride. Formula: CS2
- cardiac glycoside — any of a group of drugs used to stimulate the heart in cases of heart failure, obtained from a number of plants, as the foxglove, squill, or yellow oleander.
- cardinal grosbeak — any of various mostly tropical American buntings, such as the cardinal and pyrrhuloxia, the males of which have brightly coloured plumage
- carlos de austria — Don [dawn] /dɔn/ (Show IPA), 1545–68, eldest son of Philip II of Spain: died during imprisonment for conspiracy against his father.
- carolina allspice — any of a genus (Calycanthus) of hardy shrubs (family Calycanthaceae) of a dicotyledonous order (Laurales) of plants, bearing reddish-brown, sweet-smelling flowers
- carolina moonseed — a twining woody vine, Cocculus carolinus, of the southeastern U.S., having inconspicuous flowers and showy, red fruit.
- castilla la nueva — Spanish name of New Castile.
- castilla la vieja — Spanish name of Old Castile.
- castle in the air — a hope or desire unlikely to be realized; daydream
- cat-o'-nine-tails — a rope whip consisting of nine knotted thongs, used formerly to flog prisoners
- catholic epistles — the epistles of James, I and II Peter, I John, and Jude, which were addressed to the universal Church rather than to an individual or a particular church
- caudal anesthesia — anesthesia below the pelvis, induced by injecting an anesthetic into the sacral portion of the spinal canal.
- cavalier servente — a lover; suitor.
- celestial equator — the great circle lying on the celestial sphere, the plane of which is perpendicular to the line joining the north and south celestial poles
- celestial horizon — the line or circle that forms the apparent boundary between earth and sky.
- cellulose nitrate — a compound made by treating cellulose with nitric and sulphuric acids, used in plastics, lacquers, and explosives: a nitrogen-containing ester of cellulose
- cellulose varnish — a varnish made from cellulose nitrate, used as a protective sealing film
- centi-call second — (spelling) No, it's centum call second.
- charles lindbergh — Anne (Spencer) Morrow, 1906–2001, U.S. writer (wife of Charles Augustus Lindbergh).
- checkable deposit — a checking account
- chelsea pensioner — an old ex-soldier resident in the Chelsea Royal Hospital
- chemiluminescence — the phenomenon in which a chemical reaction leads to the emission of light without incandescence
- chemoluminescence — (chemistry) The emission of light as the result of a chemical reaction.
- chiltern hundreds — (in Britain) short for Stewardship of the Chiltern Hundreds; a nominal office that an MP applies for in order to resign his seat
- chinese vermilion — pimento (def 3).
- chocolate biscuit — a biscuit covered with chocolate