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16-letter words containing r, o, b, c

  • bullock's oriole — a common oriole, Icterus galbula bullockii, of western North America: a subspecies of the northern oriole.
  • buoyancy chamber — an enclosed section of a canoe, float, ship or other object that contains air, foam, or another buoyant substance in order to help maintain buoyancy
  • burnt-tip orchid — a small orchid, Orchis ustulata, resembling the lady orchid, having dark reddish-brown hoods that give a burnt look to the tip of the flower spike
  • butterfly orchid — an orchid (Oncidium papilio) with reddish flowers, native to South America
  • by hook or crook — by any means
  • bypass capacitor — a capacitor which provides a low-impedance path for alternating current while not passing any direct current
  • cabbage root fly — a dipterous fly, Erioischia brassicae, whose larvae feed on the roots and stems of cabbages and other brassicas: family Muscidae (houseflies, etc)
  • camborne-redruth — a former (until 1974) urban district in SW England, in Cornwall: formed in 1934 by the amalgamation of the neighbouring towns of Camborne and Redruth. Pop: 39 936 (2001)
  • cannonball serve — (in tennis) a very fast low serve
  • capsule wardrobe — a collection of clothes and accessories that includes only items considered essential
  • carbon 14 dating — radiocarbon dating.
  • carbon bisulfide — carbon disulfide
  • carbon disulfide — a heavy, volatile, colorless liquid, CS2, highly flammable and poisonous, used as a solvent, insecticide, etc.
  • carbon footprint — Your carbon footprint is a measure of the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere by your activities over a particular period.
  • carbon-14 dating — radiocarbon dating.
  • carbonless paper — a sheet of paper impregnated with dye which transfers writing or typing onto the copying surface below without the necessity for carbon pigment
  • carboxylesterase — (enzyme) Any enzyme that catalyses the hydrolysis of a carboxylic ester.
  • carboxypeptidase — any of several digestive enzymes that catalyze the removal of an amino acid from the end of a peptide chain having a free carbonyl group.
  • cathode ray tube — (hardware)   (CRT) An electrical device for displaying images by exciting phosphor dots with a scanned electron beam. CRTs are found in computer VDUs and monitors, televisions and oscilloscopes. The first commercially practical CRT was perfected on 29 January 1901 by Allen B DuMont. A large glass envelope containing a negative electrode (the cathode) emits electrons (formerly called "cathode rays") when heated, as in a vacuum tube. The electrons are accelerated across a large voltage gradient toward the flat surface of the tube (the screen) which is covered with phosphor. When an electron strikes the phosphor, light is emitted. The electron beam is deflected by electromagnetic coils around the outside of the tube so that it scans across the screen, usually in horizontal stripes. This scan pattern is known as a raster. By controlling the current in the beam, the brightness at any particular point (roughly a "pixel") can be varied. Different phosphors have different "persistence" - the length of time for which they glow after being struck by electrons. If the scanning is done fast enough, the eye sees a steady image, due to both the persistence of the phospor and of the eye itself. CRTs also differ in their dot pitch, which determines their spatial resolution, and in whether they use interlace or not.
  • cathode-ray tube — A cathode-ray tube is a device in televisions and computer terminals which sends an image onto the screen.
  • cedar of lebanon — a cedar, Cedrus libani, of SW Asia with level spreading branches and fragrant wood
  • cerebellopontine — (anatomy) Relating to the cerebellum and pons.
  • chamber of trade — a national organization representing local chambers of commerce
  • chernobyl packet — (networking)   /cher-noh'b*l pak'*t/ A network packet that induces a broadcast storm and/or network meltdown, named in memory of the April 1986 nuclear accident at Chernobyl in Ukraine. The typical scenario involves an IP Ethernet datagram that passes through a gateway with both source and destination Ethernet address and IP address set as the respective broadcast addresses for the subnetworks being gated between. Compare Christmas tree packet.
  • chiclet keyboard — (hardware, abuse)   A keyboard with a small, flat rectangular or lozenge-shaped rubber or plastic keys that look like pieces of Chiclets chewing gum. Used especially to describe the original IBM PCjr keyboard. Vendors unanimously liked these because they were cheap, and a lot of early portable and laptop computers were launched with them. Customers rejected the idea with almost equal unanimity, and chiclets are not often seen on anything larger than a digital watch any more.
  • christening robe — a long white dress worn by a baby at his or her christening
  • chromatic number — (mathematics)   The smallest number of colours necessary to colour the nodes of a graph so that no two adjacent nodes have the same colour. See also: four colour map theorem.
  • circumambulation — The act of walking around something in a circle, especially for a ritual purpose.
  • city of aberdeen — a council area in NE Scotland, established in 1996. Pop: 206 600 (2003 est). Area: 186 sq km (72 sq miles)
  • class background — a person's background with reference to social class
  • cobra de capello — a cobra, Naja tripudians, that has ringlike markings on the body and exists in many varieties in S and SE Asia
  • collaborationism — The act of collaborating, especially with an enemy.
  • collaborationist — A collaborationist government or individual is one that helps or gives support to the enemy during the war.
  • combination door — an outside door having a frame into which different types of panels can be inserted, as a screen for summer or storm sash for winter.
  • combination drug — a medication comprised of set dosages of two or more separate drugs.
  • combination room — (at Cambridge University) a common room
  • combined honours — (in British education) a degree course that includes more than one subject
  • come from behind — sport: win from a disadvantaged position
  • come/bring alive — If a story or description comes alive, it becomes interesting, lively, or realistic. If someone or something brings it alive, they make it seem more interesting, lively, or realistic.
  • commensurability — The quality of being commensurable or commensurate.
  • commercial break — A commercial break is the interval during a commercial television programme, or between programmes, during which advertisements are shown.
  • committee member — a member of a committee
  • comparable worth — the doctrine that a woman's and man's pay should be equal when their work requires equal training, skills, and responsibilities.
  • complex variable — a variable to which complex numbers may be assigned as value.
  • composite number — a positive integer that can be factorized into two or more other positive integers
  • concertina table — an extensible table having a hinged double top falling onto a hinged frame that unfolds like an accordion when pulled out.
  • conference table — a large table, often rectangular, around which a number of people may be seated, as when holding a conference
  • congeliturbation — the churning, heaving, and thrusting of soil material due to the action of frost.
  • constant lambert — Constant [kon-stuh nt] /ˈkɒn stənt/ (Show IPA), 1905–51, English composer and conductor.
  • constructability — Alternative form of constructibility.
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