16-letter words containing m, a, l, r, i
- baltimore canyon — a submarine valley cut into the continental shelf and slope seaward of Chesapeake Bay.
- baltimore heater — a stove for heating a lower and upper room, having its fire door in the lower room.
- baltimore oriole — a North American oriole, Icterus galbula, the male of which has orange and black plumage
- bartholomeu dias — Bartholomeu [bahr-too-loo-me-oo] /ˌbɑr tʊ lʊˈmɛ ʊ/ (Show IPA), c1450–1500, Portuguese navigator: discoverer of the Cape of Good Hope.
- basic curriculum — in England and Wales, the National Curriculum plus religious education
- basilar membrane — a membrane inside the cochlea that vibrates in response to sound
- bermuda triangle — an area in the Atlantic Ocean bounded by Bermuda, Puerto Rico, and Florida where ships and aeroplanes are alleged to have disappeared mysteriously
- biblical aramaic — the form of Aramaic that was the common language of Palestine in New Testament times. It was widespread throughout the Persian Empire from the 5th century and is found in the later books of the Old Testament (esp Daniel 2:4–7:28)
- bimetallic strip — a strip consisting of two metals of different coefficients of expansion welded together so that it buckles on heating: used in thermostats, etc
- binomial theorem — a mathematical theorem that gives the expansion of any binomial raised to a positive integral power, n. It contains n + 1 terms: (x + a)n = xn + nxn–1a + [n(n–1)/2] xn–2a2 +…+ (nk) xn–kak + … + an, where (nk) = n!/(n–k)!k!, the number of combinations of k items selected from n
- binuclear family — a social unit composed of an extended family, usually the children and subsequent spouses of divorced parents.
- bioenvironmental — pertaining to the environment of living organisms: Bioenvironmental engineers seek to reduce air and water pollution.
- bird's-eye maple — a cut of sugar maple wood used especially for veneers, having a wavy grain with many dark, circular markings.
- birthwort family — the plant family Aristolochiaceae, typified by mostly tropical woody vines and herbaceous plants, having alternate, heart-shaped leaves and flowers lacking true petals but having three petallike sepals, and including the birthwort, Dutchman's-pipe, and wild ginger.
- 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.
- bomb calorimeter — a device for determining heats of combustion by igniting a sample in a high pressure of oxygen in a sealed vessel and measuring the resulting rise in temperature: used for measuring the calorific value of foods
- bornholm disease — an epidemic virus infection characterized by pain round the base of the chest
- braille embosser — Braille printer
- breeding plumage — the plumage assumed by a male bird during the courtship period, especially in those species that are more colorful at this period.
- british columbia — a province of W Canada, on the Pacific coast: largely mountainous with extensive forests, rich mineral resources, and important fisheries. Capital: Victoria. Pop: 4 400 057 (2011 est). Area: 930 532 sq km (359 279 sq miles)
- bronchial asthma — asthma.
- broomrape family — the plant family Orobanchaceae, characterized by scaly, leafless herbaceous plants that are parasitic on the roots of other plants and have irregular flowers and many-seeded capsular fruit, and including beechdrops, broomrape, and squawroot.
- 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.
- bunker mentality — a defensive attitude in which others are seen as hostile or potentially hostile
- burkitt lymphoma — a rare type of tumour of the white blood cells, occurring mainly in Africa and associated with infection by Epstein-Barr virus
- buttercup family — the plant family Ranunculaceae, typified by mostly herbaceous plants having usually alternate leaves, multistaminate flowers sometimes lacking petals but with colorful sepals, and including the anemone, buttercup, clematis, columbine, delphinium, and monkshood.
- calcium arsenate — a toxic, white powder, Ca3(AsO4)2, used as an insecticide in the form of a spray or dust
- calcium chloride — a white deliquescent salt occurring naturally in seawater and used in the de-icing of roads and as a drying agent. Formula: CaCl2
- calcium fluoride — a white, crystalline compound, CaF 2 , insoluble in water, occurring in nature as the mineral fluorite: used as a flux in metallurgy and as a decay preventive in dentifrices.
- calorimetrically — In a calorimetric manner.
- cardinal numbers — Also called cardinal numeral. any of the numbers that express amount, as one, two, three, etc. (distinguished from ordinal number).
- celestial empire — Chinese Empire
- central american — of or relating to Central America or its inhabitants
- centrifugal pump — a pump having a high-speed rotating impeller whose blades throw the water outwards
- charlotte amalie — the capital of the Virgin Islands of the United States, a port on St Thomas Island. Pop: 18 914 (2000)
- charmed particle — See at charmed (def 2).
- chemical warfare — warfare in which chemicals other than explosives are used as weapons, esp warfare using asphyxiating or nerve gases, poisons, defoliants, etc
- chemoprophylaxis — the prevention of disease using chemical drugs
- chlorinated lime — bleaching powder.
- chlorpheniramine — an antihistaminic compound, C 20 H 23 ClN 2 O 4 , used in treating the symptoms of allergies.
- cholera infantum — an often fatal form of gastroenteritis occurring in infants, not of the same cause as cholera but having somewhat similar characteristics.
- cholesterolaemia — the presence of abnormally high levels of cholesterol in the blood
- christmas beetle — any of various greenish-gold Australian scarab beetles of the genus Anoplognathus, which are common in summer
- 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)
- christmas lights — strings of lights put up in the Christmas period to decorate houses
- chromium plating — plating, often for decorative effect, made of chromium
- chromolithograph — a picture produced by chromolithography
- chronic glaucoma — Ophthalmology. abnormally high fluid pressure in the eye, most commonly caused either by blockage of the channel through which aqueous humor drains (open-angle glaucoma or chronic glaucoma) or by pressure of the iris against the lens, which traps the aqueous humor (angle-closure glaucoma or acute glaucoma)