Copy of `Princeton University - WordNet - a lexical database for the English language`

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Princeton University - WordNet - a lexical database for the English language Category: General Date & country: 27/01/2008, USA Words: 85192

Bakke decision
noun a ruling by the Supreme Court on affirmative action; the Court ruled in 1978 that medical schools are entitled to consider race as a factor in their admission policy

baklava
noun rich Middle Eastern cake made of thin layers of flaky pastry filled with nuts and honey

Baku
capital of Azerbaijan noun a port city on the Caspian Sea that is the capital of Azerbaijan and an important center for oil production

Bakunin
Mikhail Bakunin noun Russian anarchist; ally and later opponent of Karl Marx (1814-1876)

balaclava
balaclava helmet noun a cap that is close-fitting and woolen and covers all of the head but the face

Balaena
genus Balaena noun type genus of the Balaenidae: Greenland whales

Balaeniceps
genus Balaeniceps noun type genus of the Balaenicipitidae: shoebills

Balaenicipitidae
family Balaenicipitidae noun shoebills

Balaenidae
family Balaenidae noun right whales

Balaenoptera
genus Balaenoptera noun type genus of the Balaenopteridae

Balaenopteridae
family Balaenopteridae noun rorquals; blue whales

balagan
noun a word for chaos or fiasco borrowed from modern Hebrew (where it is a loan word from Russian); `it was utter and complete balagan!`

balalaika
noun a stringed instrument that has triangular body and three strings

balance
noun a scale for weighing; depends on pull of gravity

balance
verb hold or carry in equilibrium

balance beam
noun a gymnastic apparatus used by women gymnasts

balance of payments
balance of international payments noun a system of recording all of a country`s economic transactions with the rest of the world over a period of one year; `a favorable balance of payments exists when more payments are coming in than going out`

balance of power
noun an equilibrium of power between nations

balance of trade
trade balance noun the difference in value over a period of time of a country`s imports and exports of merchandise; `a nation`s balance of trade is favorable when its exports exceed its imports`

balance sheet
noun a record of the financial situation of an institution on a particular date by listing its assets and the claims against those assets

balance wheel
noun a wheel that regulates the rate of movement in a machine; especially a wheel oscillating against the hairspring of a timepiece to regulate its beat

balance-of-payments problem
noun an economic problem caused by payments for imports being greater than receipts for exports

balanced
adjective total debits and credits are equal; `the books looked balanced`

balanced budget
noun a budget is balanced when current expenditures are equal to receipts

balanced diet
noun a diet that contains adequate amounts of all the necessary nutrients required for healthy growth and activity

balancer
noun an acrobat who balances himself in difficult positions

Balanidae
family Balanidae noun stalkless barnacles

balanitis
noun inflammation of the head of the penis

balanoposthitis
noun inflammation of both the head of the penis and the foreskin

Balanus
genus Balanus noun type genus of the family Balanidae

Balarama
noun elder brother of Krishna; an incarnation of Vishnu

balas
balas ruby noun a pale rose-colored variety of the ruby spinel

balata
balata tree noun a tropical hardwood tree yielding balata gum and heavy red timber

balata
noun when dried yields a hard substance used e.g. in golf balls

Balaton
Lake Balaton noun a large shallow lake in western Hungary

Balboa
Vasco Nunez de Balboa noun Spanish explorer who in 1513 crossed the Isthmus of Darien and became the first European to see the eastern shores of the Pacific Ocean (1475-1519)

balbriggan
noun a cotton knit fabric used for underwear

balconied
adjective having balconies or a balcony; `the balconied houses of New Orleans`

bald
bald-headed adjective lacking hair on all or most of the scalp; `a bald pate`; `a bald-headed gentleman`

bald cypress
swamp cypress noun common cypress of southeastern United States having trunk expanded at base; found in coastal swamps and flooding river bottoms

bald eagle
American eagle noun a large eagle of North America that has a white head and dark wings and body

bald-faced
adjective (of animals) having white markings on the face

bald-faced hornet
white-faced hornet noun North American hornet

baldachin
noun ornamented canopy supported by columns or suspended from a roof or projected from a wall (as over an altar)

Balder
Baldr noun (Norse mythology) god of light and peace and noted for his beauty and sweet nature; son of Odin and Frigg and husband of Nanna; killed by Hoth

balderdash
fiddle-faddle noun trivial nonsense

baldhead
baldpate noun a person whose head is bald

balding
adjective getting bald

baldly
adverb in a bald manner; `this book is, to put it baldly, an uneven work.`

baldness
phalacrosis noun the condition of having no hair on the top of the head

baldric
baldrick noun a wide (ornamented) belt worn over the right shoulder to support a sword or bugle by the left hip

Baldwin
noun an American eating apple with red or yellow and red skin

Baldwin
James Arthur Baldwin noun United States author who was an outspoken critic of racism (1924-1987)

bale
noun a large bundle bound for storage or transport

Balearic Islands
noun an archipelago in the western Mediterranean off the eastern coast of Spain

baleen whale
whalebone whale noun whale with plates of whalebone along the upper jaw for filtering plankton from the water

baleful
baneful adjective deadly or sinister; `the Florida eagles have a fierce baleful look`

balefully
adverb in a baleful manner; `she looked at him balefully`

Balfour
Arthur James Balfour noun English statesman; member of the Conservative Party (1848-1930)

Bali
noun an island in Indonesia east of Java; striking volcanic scenery; culture is known for elaborate dances and rituals and for handicrafts

balibago
purau noun shrubby tree widely distributed along tropical shores; yields a light tough wood used for canoe outriggers and a fiber used for cordage and caulk; often cultivated for ornament

Balinese
noun the Indonesian language of the people of Bali

baling wire
noun wire used to make bales

Balistes
genus Balistes noun type genus of the Balistidae

Balistidae
family Balistidae noun triggerfishes

balk
noun an illegal pitching motion while runners are on base

Balkan
adjective of or denoting or relating to the Balkan countries or their inhabitants or the Balkan peninsula or the Balkan Mountains

Balkan country
Balkan nation noun a country on the Balkan Peninsula

Balkan Peninsula
noun a large peninsula in southeastern Europe containing the Balkan Mountain Range

Balkan Wars
noun two wars (1912-1913) that were fought over the last of the European territories of the Ottoman Empire and that left the area around Constantinople (now Istanbul) as the only Ottoman territory in Europe

Balkanize
Balkanise verb divide a territory into small, hostile states

Balkans
noun the Balkan countries collectively

balker
baulker noun a person who refuses to comply

balkiness
noun likely to stop abruptly and unexpectedly

balking
balky adjective stopping short and refusing to go on; `a balking`; `a balky mule`; `a balky customer`

balkline
baulk-line noun line across a billiard table behind which the cue balls are placed at the start of a game

ball
noun the people assembled at a lavish formal dance; `the ball was already emptying out before the fire alarm sounded`

ball
glob noun a compact mass; `a ball of mud caught him on the shoulder`

ball and chain
noun heavy iron ball attached to a prisoner by a chain

ball bearing
needle bearing noun bearings containing small metal balls

ball boy
noun a boy who retrieves balls for tennis players

ball carrier
noun (football) the player who is carrying (and trying to advance) the ball on an offensive play

ball cartridge
noun a general purpose cartridge having a primer and a ball and a full charge of powder

ball field
baseball field noun the baseball playing field

ball game
ballgame noun a field game played with a ball (especially baseball)

ball gown
noun the most formal gown; worn to a ball

ball hawk
noun a team athlete who is skilled at stealing or catching the ball

ball hawking
noun a skillful maneuver in catching balls or in stealing the ball from the opposing team

ball valve
noun any valve that checks flow by the seating of a ball

ball-and-socket joint
noun a joint that can rotate within a socket

ball-buster
ball-breaker noun a job or situation that is demanding and arduous and punishing; `Vietnam was a ball-breaker`

ball-hawking
adjective used of a player skilled in stealing the ball or robbing a batter of a hit; `a ball-hawking center fielder`

ball-peen hammer
noun a hammer with one round and one flat end; used in working metal

ball-shaped
global adjective having the shape of a sphere or ball; `a spherical object`; `nearly orbicular in shape`; `little globular houses like mud-wasp nests`- Zane Grey

ballad
lay noun a narrative poem of popular origin

ballade
noun a poem consisting of 3 stanzas and an envoy

ballast
noun an attribute that tends to give stability in character and morals; something that steadies the mind or feelings

ballast
noun an electrical device for starting and regulating fluorescent and discharge lamps

ballast resistor
ballast 2 barretter noun a resistor inserted into a circuit to compensate for changes (as those arising from temperature fluctuations)

ballcock
ball cock noun floating ball that controls level in a water tank