12-letter words containing o, n, a, k
- frankalmoign — a form of tenure by which religious bodies held lands, esp on condition of praying for the soul of the donor
- futtock band — a metal band around a lower mast somewhat below the top, for holding the lower ends of a futtock shroud.
- gammon steak — a thick cut of meat made from smoked or cured bacon or ham and often served with pineapple or fried egg
- georges bank — a bank extending generally NE from Nantucket: fishing grounds. 150 miles (240 km) long.
- glossy snake — a nocturnal burrowing snake, Arizona elegans, of the western U.S. and northern Mexico, having smooth, glistening scales of tan with brown blotches.
- gondola back — a chair or couch back curving forward and downward to form arms.
- gopher snake — a bullsnake, Pituophis melanoleucus, of western North America, that invades burrows to prey on rodents.
- gordian knot — pertaining to Gordius, ancient king of Phrygia, who tied a knot (the Gordian knot) that, according to prophecy, was to be undone only by the person who was to rule Asia, and that was cut, rather than untied, by Alexander the Great.
- graving dock — an excavated shore dry dock for the repair and maintenance of ships.
- grayson kirk — Grayson (Louis) 1903–1997, U.S. educator: president of Columbia University 1953–68.
- ground shark — any of various requiem sharks, especially of the genus Carcharhinus.
- ground track — the path on the earth's surface below an aircraft, missile, rocket, or spacecraft.
- haliplankton — plankton living in sea water
- hanover park — a city in NE Illinois.
- hard-working — industrious; zealous: a hardworking family man.
- heaven knows — You can say 'Heaven knows' to emphasize that you do not know something, or that you find something very surprising.
- hemiplankton — plankton that spend part of their life cycle in a vegetative state on the sea bottom, riverbed, etc. (opposed to holoplankton).
- heterokaryon — a cell containing two or more nuclei of differing genetic constitutions.
- heterokontan — of or relating to a heterokont
- holding tank — a tank for the temporary storage of a substance.
- holoplankton — plankton that spend their entire life cycle as free-swimming organisms (opposed to hemiplankton).
- home banking — a system whereby a person at home or in an office can use a computer with a modem to call up information from a bank or to transfer funds electronically
- hook and eye — a two-piece clothes fastener, usually of metal, consisting of a hook that catches onto a loop or bar.
- indigo snake — a large, deep-blue or brown harmless snake, Drymarchon corais, ranging from the southern U.S. to South America and invading burrows to prey on small mammals: the eastern subspecies D. corais couperi is now greatly reduced in number.
- infrakingdom — (taxonomy) A taxonomic category sometimes inserted below subkingdom.
- ink fountain — the part of a printing press that stores ink and feeds it to the rollers.
- jacket crown — a type of artificial, tooth-colored dental crown made of acrylic or porcelain
- jackson hole — a valley in NW Wyoming, near the Teton Range: wildlife preserve.
- jacksonville — a seaport in NE Florida, on the St. John's River.
- jickajogging — the act of moving in a jogging or rolling motion
- jodrell bank — site of a radio astronomy observatory (Nuffield Radio Astronomy Laboratories) in NE Cheshire, England, that operates a 250-foot (76-meter) radio telescope.
- john hancock — Herbert Jeffrey ("Herbie") born 1940, U.S. jazz pianist and composer.
- joking apart — seriously: said to recall a discussion to seriousness after there has been joking
- k/t boundary — Cretaceous/Tertiary boundary: the time zone comprising the end of the Cretaceous and the beginning of the Tertiary periods
- kachina doll — a Hopi Indian doll carved from cottonwood root in representation of a kachina and given as a gift to a child or used as a household decoration.
- kaleidophone — an instrument, invented by Professor Charles Wheatstone (1802-1875), consisting of a light on a vibrating rod with a reflecting knob for exhibiting the effect of sound waves
- kalmar sound — a strait between SE Sweden and Öland Island. 85 miles (137 km) long; 14 miles (23 km) wide.
- kangaroo dog — an Australian breed of large rough-haired dog that resembles a greyhound and is bred to hunt kangaroos
- kangaroo paw — any plant of the Australian genus Anigozanthos, resembling a kangaroo's paw, esp the red-and-green flowered A. manglesii, which is the floral emblem of Western Australia: family Haemodoraceae
- kangaroo rat — any of various small jumping rodents of the family Heteromyidae, of Mexico and the western U.S.
- karyokinesis — mitosis.
- karyokinetic — Of or pertaining to karyokinesis.
- karyomapping — a technique for determining whether an embryo has inherited a genetic defect by analysing DNA taken from it and its close relatives
- keep company — a number of individuals assembled or associated together; group of people.
- keep tabs on — a small flap, strap, loop, or similar appendage, as on a garment, used for pulling, hanging, or decoration.
- keratinocyte — An epidermal cell that produces keratin.
- keratogenous — producing horn or a horny substance.
- keratohyalin — (biology) A protein structure found in granules in the stratum granulosum of the epidermis, which may be involved in keratinization, and in Hassall corpuscles in the thymus.
- keraunograph — an instrument for recording thunderstorms by detecting the radio waves generated
- ketoconazole — a synthetic substance, C 26 H 28 Cl 2 N 4 O 4 , used to treat a variety of fungal infections.