16-letter words containing r, u, b, e, c
- globular cluster — a comparatively older, spherically symmetrical, compact group of up to a million old stars, held together by mutual gravitation, that are located in the galactic halo and move in giant and highly eccentric orbits around the galactic center.
- ground substance — Also called matrix. the homogeneous substance in which the fibers and cells of connective tissue are embedded.
- growth substance — any substance, produced naturally by a plant or manufactured commercially, that, in very low concentrations, affects plant growth; a plant hormone
- huckleberry finn — (The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn) a novel (1884) by Mark Twain.
- humboldt current — a cold Pacific Ocean current flowing N along the coasts of Chile and Peru.
- hypersusceptible — hypersensitive (def 2).
- incommensurables — Plural form of incommensurable.
- insurance broker — person who sells insurance policies
- jude the obscure — a novel (1895) by Thomas Hardy.
- kentucky warbler — a wood warbler, Oporornis formosus, of the U.S., olive-green above, yellow below, and marked with black on the face.
- khakass republic — a constituent republic of S central Russia, formerly in Krasnoyarsk Territory: formed in 1930. Capital: Abakan. Pop: 546 100 (2002). Area: 61 900 sq km (23 855 sq miles)
- krebs urea cycle — urea cycle.
- labrador current — a cold ocean current flowing southwards off the coast of Labrador and meeting the warm Gulf Stream, causing dense fogs off the coast of Newfoundland
- library pictures — a caption used to alert viewers that footage being broadcast is from an earlier time and is not happening now
- lumberjack shirt — a thick checked shirt, as worn by lumberjacks
- mari el republic — a constituent republic of W central Russia, in the middle Volga basin. Capital: Yoshkar-Ola. Pop: 728 000 (2002). Area: 23 200 sq km (8955 sq miles)
- mossbauer effect — the phenomenon in which an atom in a crystal undergoes no recoil when emitting a gamma ray, giving all the emitted energy to the gamma ray, resulting in a sharply defined wavelength.
- mountain climber — someone who climbs or walks up mountains
- multituberculate — a rodentlike mammal of the extinct order Multituberculata, which lived from the late Jurassic Period to the Oligocene Epoch, reaching the size of a woodchuck and having molars with two or three rows of simple pointed cusps.
- nitrous bacteria — bacteria that convert ammonia to nitrites in the soil
- non-bureaucratic — of, relating to, or characteristic of a bureaucrat or a bureaucracy; arbitrary and routine.
- non-contributive — to give (money, time, knowledge, assistance, etc.) to a common supply, fund, etc., as for charitable purposes.
- non-reproducible — to make a copy, representation, duplicate, or close imitation of: to reproduce a picture.
- nubuck (leather) — tanned leather similar to suede, but with the nap on the grain side
- nuclear membrane — the double membrane surrounding the nucleus within a cell.
- nuclear umbrella — a guarantee from a country or state that possesses nuclear weapons to a country that does not that they will defend them
- number crunching — a person or thing that performs a great many numerical calculations, as a financial analyst, statistician, computer, or computer program.
- number-crunching — a person or thing that performs a great many numerical calculations, as a financial analyst, statistician, computer, or computer program.
- numbered account — a bank account whose owner is identified by a number for the purpose of preserving anonymity.
- obtuse bisectrix — See under bisectrix (def 1).
- october surprise — a major event, occurring shortly before a presidential election, which influences the result
- onboard computer — onboard a vehicle, ship, plane, train or spacecraft
- oversubscription — to subscribe for more of than is available, expected, or required: The charity drive was oversubscribed by several thousand dollars.
- paratuberculosis — Johne's disease.
- pre-subscription — a sum of money given or pledged as a contribution, payment, investment, etc.
- public ownership — ownership by the state; nationalization
- public relations — (used with a plural verb) the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc.
- rambunctiousness — difficult to control or handle; wildly boisterous: a rambunctious child.
- reaction turbine — a turbine driven by the reactive force of a fluid passing through the rotor blades.
- rectus abdominis — a long flat muscle that extends along the whole length of both sides of the abdomen. It flexes the vertebral column, particularly the lumbar portion; it also tenses the anterior abdominal wall and assists in compressing the abdominal contents
- reference number — a unique number on an order, application, etc, used to designate and quickly locate that order, application, etc
- republican party — one of the two major political parties in the U.S.: originated 1854–56.
- republican river — a river flowing E from E Colorado through Nebraska and Kansas into the Kansas River. 422 miles (680 km) long.
- reserve buoyancy — the difference between the volume of a hull below the designed waterline and the volume of the hull below the lowest opening incapable of being made watertight.
- ribonucleic acid — RNA.
- rich tea biscuit — any of various semisweet biscuits
- right about face — Military. a command, given to a soldier or soldiers at attention, to turn the body about toward the right so as to face in the opposite direction. the act of so turning in a prescribed military manner.
- rock creek butte — a mountain in NE Oregon: highest peak in the Blue Mountains. 9106 feet (2777 meters).
- round lake beach — a town in NE Illinois.
- run the blockade — to go past or through a blockade