17-letter words containing o, n, b, a
- light dawns on sb — If light dawns on you, you begin to understand something after a period of not being able to understand it.
- limousine liberal — a wealthy left-wing person
- lithium carbonate — a colorless crystalline compound, Li 2 CO 3 , slightly soluble in water: used in ceramic and porcelain glazes, pharmaceuticals, and luminescent paints.
- lombrosian school — a school of criminology, promulgating the theories and employing the methods developed by Lombroso.
- loose-leaf binder — a hard cover with metal rings inside which is used to hold loose pieces of paper
- macroinvertebrate — (zoology) An invertebrate that is large enough to be seen without the use of a microscope.
- madiba generation — the generation born around 1994, when Nelson Mandela became the first president of a multiracial South Africa
- make noises about — to give indications of one's intentions
- management buyout — A management buyout is the buying of a company by its managers. The abbreviation MBO is also used.
- medulla oblongata — the lowest or hindmost part of the brain, continuous with the spinal cord.
- membrane recovery — Membrane recovery is a process which uses membranes to obtain hydrogen from refinery fuel gas, hydrocrackers, and chemical processes such as methanol production.
- methemoglobinemia — (medicine) A form of toxic anemia characterized by the presence of methemoglobin in the blood.
- michigan bankroll — a large roll of paper money in small denominations.
- microdermabrasion — A cosmetic treatment in which the face is sprayed with exfoliant crystals to remove dead epidermal cells.
- microinvertebrate — An invertebrate of microscopic size.
- monarch butterfly — a large, deep-orange butterfly, Danaus plexippus, having black and white markings, the larvae of which feed on the leaves of milkweed.
- monkey bread tree — a bombacaceous tree, Adansonia digitata, native to Africa, that has a very thick trunk, large white flowers, and a gourdlike fruit with an edible pulp called monkey bread
- mount robson park — a national park in the Rocky Mountains of E British Columbia, Canada.
- national assembly — the body constituted by the French Third Estate in June 1789 after the calling of the Estates General. It was dissolved in Sept 1791 to be replaced by the new Legislative Assembly
- naval observatory — an astronomical observatory located in Washington, D.C., operated by the U.S. government, and responsible for the U.S. time service.
- near-earth object — a comet or asteroid pushed by the gravitational attraction of nearby planets into an orbit that allows it to enter the earth's orbit and thereby pose a danger of collision. Abbreviation: NEO.
- neath port talbot — a county borough in S Wales, created from part of West Glamorgan in 1996. Administrative centre: Port Talbot. Pop: 135 300 (2003 est). Area: 439 sq km (169 sq miles)
- negotiating table — If you say that people are at the negotiating table, you mean that they are having discussions in order to settle a dispute or reach an agreement.
- nervous breakdown — (not in technical use) any disabling mental disorder requiring treatment.
- neurobiologically — In terms of or by means of neurobiology.
- neurofibromatosis — a dominantly inherited genetic disorder characterized by flat brown patches on the skin, neurofibromas of the skin and internal organs, and in some cases skeletal deformity.
- never looked back — If you say that someone did something and then never looked back, you mean that they were very successful from that time on.
- nicholas bourbaki — the pseudonym of a group of mainly French mathematicians that, since 1939, has been producing a monumental work on advanced mathematics, Eléments de Mathématique
- non-assignability — capable of being specified: The word has no assignable meaning in our language.
- non-biodegradable — capable of decaying through the action of living organisms: biodegradable paper; biodegradable detergent.
- non-subordination — the act of placing in a lower rank or position: The refusal to allow women to be educated was part of society's subordination of women to men.
- nonalcoholic beer — Nonalcoholic beer is beer that does not contain any alcohol.
- nonsense syllable — any of numerous letter combinations without meaning, used in learning experiments.
- nonunderstandable — Not understandable.
- north miami beach — a city in SE Florida.
- northeast by east — a point on the compass 11°15′ east of northeast. Abbreviation: NEbE.
- not a happy bunny — deeply dissatisfied or discontented
- not bat an eyelid — When something surprising or shocking happens, if someone doesn't bat an eyelid in British English, or doesn't bat an eye in American English, they remain calm and do not show any reaction.
- objectionableness — The quality of being objectionable.
- observation tower — lookout, observation point
- off one's own bat — If someone does something off their own bat, they do it without anyone else suggesting it.
- old south arabian — a group of four closely related Semitic languages, having a writing system and used from about the eighth to the fifth centuries b.c. in the southern part of Arabia.
- on one's deathbed — about to die
- on someone's back — criticizing or pestering someone
- on the barrelhead — upon being presented for sale; at the time of delivery
- on the pig's back — successful; established
- opisthobranchiate — (zoology) Of or pertaining to the Opisthobranchiata.
- oregon crab apple — a shrub or small tree, Malus fusca, of the rose family, of the northwestern coast of North America, having hairy leaves, white flowers, and yellow or green oblong fruit.
- otto von bismarck — Otto von [ot-oh von;; German aw-toh fuh n] /ˈɒt oʊ vɒn;; German ˈɔ toʊ fən/ (Show IPA), 1815–98, German statesman: first chancellor of modern German Empire 1871–90.
- palaeoethnobotany — the study of fossil seeds and grains to further archaeological knowledge, esp of the domestication of cereals