14-letter words containing y, s, a
- biosystematics — the study of the variation and evolution of a population of organisms in relation to their taxonomic classification
- biosystematist — someone who studies or works professionally in the field of biosystematics
- bird sanctuary — an area of land in which birds are protected and encouraged to breed
- bitmap display — (hardware) A computer output device where each pixel displayed on the monitor screen corresponds directly to one or more bits in the computer's video memory. Such a display can be updated extremely rapidly since changing a pixel involves only a single processor write to memory compared with a terminal or VDU connected via a serial line where the speed of the serial line limits the speed at which the display can be changed. Most modern personal computers and workstations have bitmap displays, allowing the efficient use of graphical user interfaces, interactive graphics and a choice of on-screen fonts. Some more expensive systems still delegate graphics operations to dedicated hardware such as graphics accelerators. The bitmap display might be traced back to the earliest days of computing when the Manchester University Mark I(?) computer, developed by F.C. Williams and T. Kilburn shortly after the Second World War. This used a storage tube as its working memory. Phosphor dots were used to store single bits of data which could be read by the user and interpreted as binary numbers.
- blepharoplasty — cosmetic surgery performed on the eyelid
- blue-arsed fly — a blowfly; bluebottle
- body mechanics — body exercises that are intended to improve one's posture, stamina, poise, etc.
- body snatching — the act or practice of robbing a grave to obtain a cadaver for dissection.
- born yesterday — brought forth by birth.
- boundary-stone — a stone marking a boundary, sometimes giving information such as the initials of the local authority in whose jurisdiction the boundary is
- brandy snifter — snifter (def 1).
- brewer's yeast — a yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, used in brewing
- british malaya — a comprehensive term for the former British possessions on the Malay Peninsula and the Malay Archipelago: now part of Malaysia.
- britney spears — beers
- buyer's market — When there is a buyer's market for a particular product, there are more of the products for sale than there are people who want to buy them, so buyers have a lot of choice and can make prices come down.
- buyers' market — a market in which goods and services are plentiful and prices relatively low.
- by a long shot — People sometimes use the expression by a long shot to emphasize the opinion they are giving.
- by easy stages — not hurriedly
- cabalistically — In a cabalistic manner.
- caller display — a facility which shows the number of an incoming call
- campylobacters — Plural form of campylobacter.
- campylotropous — (of an ovule) curved so that the micropyle and funiculus almost touch
- canary islands — a group of mountainous islands in the Atlantic off the NW coast of Africa, forming an Autonomous Community of Spain. Capital: Las Palmas. Pop: 1 944 700 (2003 est)
- cantankerously — In a cantankerous manner.
- cash-and-carry — A cash-and-carry is a large shop where you can buy goods in larger quantities and at lower prices than in ordinary shops. Cash-and-carries are mainly used by people in business to buy goods for their shops or companies.
- caucasian lily — a tall lily plant, Lilium monadelphum, having large, fragrant, drooping golden-yellow flowers.
- caustic baryta — baryta (def 2).
- caustic-baryta — Also called calcined baryta, barium oxide, barium monoxide, barium protoxide. a white or yellowish-white poisonous solid, BaO, highly reactive with water: used chiefly as a dehydrating agent and in the manufacture of glass.
- cayman islands — three coral islands in the Caribbean Sea northwest of Jamaica: a dependency of Jamaica until 1962, now a UK Overseas Territory. Capital: George Town. Pop: 53 737 (2013 est). Area: about 260 sq km (100 sq miles)
- celestial body — an object visible in the sky, such as a planet
- celestial city — the goal of Christian's journey in Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress; the heavenly Jerusalem.
- cerebral palsy — Cerebral palsy is a condition caused by damage to a baby's brain before or during its birth, which makes its limbs and muscles permanently weak.
- champs elysees — a boulevard in Paris, France, noted for its cafés, shops, and theaters.
- champs-elysées — a major boulevard in Paris, leading from the Arc de Triomphe: site of the Elysée Palace and government offices
- charge density — the electric charge per unit volume of a medium or body or per unit area of a surface
- charity school — an elementary school, usually funded by charitable persons or organizations, for those unable to pay: a forerunner of the public-school system.
- chesapeake bay — the largest inlet of the Atlantic in the coast of the US: bordered by Maryland and Virginia
- children's day — the second Sunday in June, celebrated by Protestant churches with special programs for children: first started in the U.S. in 1868.
- chimney breast — A chimney breast is the part of a wall in a room which is built out round a chimney.
- china syndrome — a hypothetical nuclear-reactor accident in which the fuel would melt through the floor of the containment structure and burrow into the earth.
- chlamydospores — Plural form of chlamydospore.
- chlorophyllase — an enzyme found in plants that decomposes chlorophyll by removing the phytol chain.
- cholecystogram — the production of x-ray photographs of the gallbladder following administration of a radiopaque substance that is secreted by the liver into the gallbladder.
- cholestyramine — a drug that reduces and prevents re-absorption of bile in the body
- choral society — an organization of amateur singers
- christian year — a year in the ecclesiastical calendar, used especially in reference to the various feast days and special seasons.
- christmasberry — toyon.
- chromodynamics — a theory that describes how gluons and their forces bind quarks together to form protons, neutrons, etc.
- chrysanthemums — Plural form of chrysanthemum.
- ciliary muscle — the smooth muscle in the ciliary body, the action of which affects the accommodation of the eye.