15-letter words starting with b
- belt-and-braces — providing double security, in case one security measure should fail
- belt-tightening — If you need to do some belt-tightening, you must spend less money and manage without things because you have less money than you used to have.
- belted sandfish — a sea bass, Serranus subligarius, inhabiting warm, shallow waters of the western Atlantic Ocean.
- ben day process — a method of adding texture, shading, or detail to line drawings by overlaying a transparent sheet of dots or any other pattern during platemaking
- bench scientist — a scientist who does experiments in a laboratory
- benedict arnold — Benedict, 1741–1801, American general in the Revolutionary War who became a traitor.
- benefit concert — a concert to raise money for charity
- benefit in kind — a nonpecuniary benefit, such as a company car or medical insurance, given to an employee
- benefit payment — a payment of money by the government to people who are ill, unemployed, poor or who have children
- benefit society — an organization which, by means of dues, secures for its members certain benefits, such as life insurance, hospitalization, etc.
- benefits agency — an agency that handles the payment of benefits
- benevolent fund — a charitable organization
- benzal chloride — a colorless, oily liquid, C 7 H 6 Cl 2 , used chiefly in the synthesis of benzaldehyde, and in the manufacture of dyes.
- benzoglyoxaline — benzimidazole.
- benzyl benzoate — a colorless, faintly aromatic liquid, C 14 H 12 O 2 , used chiefly as a fixative and solvent in the manufacture of flavorings and perfume and in medicine in the treatment of certain skin conditions.
- benzyl butyrate — a liquid, C 11 H 14 O 2 , having a fruitlike odor, used as a plasticizer and in flavoring.
- benzyl chloride — a colorless, corrosive liquid, C 7 H 7 Cl, used chiefly as an intermediate in the synthesis of benzyl compounds.
- benzyl fluoride — a colorless liquid, C 7 H 7 F, used in organic synthesis.
- berenice's hair — the constellation Coma Berenices
- bergamot orange — a small Asian spiny rutaceous tree, Citrus bergamia, having sour pear-shaped fruit
- bergius process — a method of hydrogenation formerly used with coal to produce an oil similar to petroleum.
- berkeley castle — a castle in Gloucestershire: scene of the murder of Edward II in 1327
- berkshire hills — region of wooded hills in W Mass.: resort area
- bernoulli trial — one of a sequence of independent experiments each of which has the same probability of success, such as successive throws of a die, the outcome of which is described by a binomial distribution
- beside the mark — not striking the point aimed at
- bessel function — one of several transcendental functions, usually represented as power series, that are solutions to a group of related differential equations.
- best-ball match — a match, scored by holes, in which one player competing against two or more others must score lower than the lowest scoring opponent to win a hole.
- bet one's boots — to be certain
- beta conversion — (theory) A term from lambda-calculus for beta reduction or beta abstraction.
- beta-adrenergic — pertaining to or involving beta receptors
- beurre noisette — a sauce of butter cooked until golden or nut brown, sometimes flavored with capers, vinegar, herbs, etc.
- bevelled mirror — a mirror with a bevelled edge
- beyond question — a sentence in an interrogative form, addressed to someone in order to get information in reply.
- beyond sb's ken — If something is beyond your ken, you do not have enough knowledge to be able to understand it.
- beyond the pale — If you think that someone's actions or behaviour are not acceptable, you can say that they are beyond the pale.
- bias (ply) tire — a motor vehicle tire having a foundation of plies of rubberized cords in a crisscross pattern of lines diagonal to the center line of the tread
- biblia pauperum — any of the picture books illustrating Biblical events and usually containing a short text, used chiefly in the Middle Ages for purposes of religious instruction.
- biblical hebrew — the Hebrew language used in the Old Testament. Abbreviation: BiblHeb.
- bibliographical — a complete or selective list of works compiled upon some common principle, as authorship, subject, place of publication, or printer.
- bicycle touring — the activity of touring on a bicycle
- bide one's time — to wait patiently for an opportunity
- bidirectionally — in a bidirectional manner
- big bang theory — In astronomy the big bang theory is a theory that suggests that the universe was created as a result of an extremely large explosion.
- big black river — a river in N central Mississippi, flowing SW to the Mississippi River near Vicksburg. 330 miles (531 km) long.
- big muddy river — a river in SW Illinois, flowing SW into the Mississippi. About 120 miles (195 km) long.
- big sandy creek — a river in central Colorado, flowing NE and SE to the Arkansas River near Lamar: site of the 1864 Sand Creek Massacre. 200 miles (322 km) long.
- big white chief — an important person, boss, or leader
- bilateral trade — a system of trading between two countries in which each country attempts to balance its trade with that of the other
- billiard parlor — poolroom (def 1).
- billing machine — a business machine used to itemize and total customer accounts, produce bills, post account records, etc.