16-letter words containing r, o, b
- bring sb to book — If you bring someone to book, you punish them for an offence or make them explain their behaviour officially.
- bring sb to heel — If you bring someone to heel, you force them to obey you.
- bring to bear on — to cause to have an effect on
- bring to justice — to capture, try, and usually punish (a criminal, an outlaw, etc)
- bristlecone pine — a coniferous tree, Pinus aristata, of the western US, bearing cones with bristle-like prickles: one of the longest-lived trees, useful in radiocarbon dating
- 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)
- british honduras — Belize
- british longhair — a breed of large cat with a semi-long thick soft coat
- broad-shouldered — having broad shoulders
- broadloom carpet — any carpet woven on a wide loom and not having seams, especially one wider than 54 inches (137 cm).
- brompton mixture — a mixture of narcotics, tranquilizers, and alcohol, used to kill pain for terminally ill patients
- bronchial asthma — asthma.
- bronchopneumonia — inflammation of the lungs, originating in the bronchioles
- brood parasitism — a type of parasitism in which a bird (brood parasite), as a cowbird or European cuckoo, lays and abandons its eggs in the nest of another species
- 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.
- broomstick skirt — a full, gathered or pleated skirt that has characteristic tiny creases obtained by wetting the skirt and winding it around a broomstick to dry.
- brothel-creepers — soft-soled men's shoes that were originally popular in the 1950s
- brother jonathan — the United States or its people: predecessor of Uncle Sam
- brown house moth — a species of micro moth, Hofmannophila pseudospretella, which, although it usually inhabits birds' nests, sometimes enters houses where its larvae can be very destructive of stored fabrics and foodstuffs
- brown-eyed susan — a composite plant, Rudbeckia triloba, of the southeastern U.S., having a single flower with yellow rays darkening to an orange orbrown at the base and a brownish-black disk.
- brussels griffon — one of a Belgian breed of toy dogs having a thick, wiry, reddish-brown coat.
- 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.
- bulletproof vest — a protective garment
- bullock's oriole — a common oriole, Icterus galbula bullockii, of western North America: a subspecies of the northern oriole.
- bumper to bumper — If traffic is bumper to bumper, the vehicles are so close to one another that they are almost touching and are moving very slowly.
- bumper-to-bumper — marked by a long line of cars moving slowly or with many stops and starts, one behind the other: bumper-to-bumper traffic.
- bundle of nerves — a very nervous person
- bundled software — software sold as part of a package with computers or other hardware or software
- 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
- burgundy trefoil — alfalfa.
- burkitt lymphoma — a rare type of tumour of the white blood cells, occurring mainly in Africa and associated with infection by Epstein-Barr virus
- burn oneself out — to undergo rapid combustion or consume fuel in such a way as to give off heat, gases, and, usually, light; be on fire: The fire burned in the grate.
- burning question — urgent matter for discussion
- 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
- burrowing blenny — graveldiver.
- butterfly ballot — a ballot paper in the form of two leaves extending from a central spine
- butterfly flower — Also called Jerusalem date. a shrub or small tree, Bauhinia monandra, of French Guiana, having clusters of pink, purple-streaked flowers.
- butterfly orchid — an orchid (Oncidium papilio) with reddish flowers, native to South America
- butterfly stroke — a swimming stroke in which the arms are plunged forward together in large circular movements
- button snakeroot — blazing star (sense 1)
- buying behaviour — the behaviours displayed by consumers when they purchase things, such as preferences, price points, etc
- by hook or crook — by any means
- by word of mouth — orally rather than by written means
- bypass capacitor — a capacitor which provides a low-impedance path for alternating current while not passing any direct current
- bypass operation — an operation involving redirection of blood flow, either to avoid a diseased blood vessel or in order to perform heart surgery
- 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.