blind level
A level or drainage gallery which has a vertical shaft at each end, and acts as an inverted siphon.
Entries starting with B
623 entries.
blind nailing
nounConstruction
the use of nails that are not exposed to the weather.
blind rivet
nounMetalworking
A rivet which can be fixed with access only to the factory head end; most commonly a pop rivet fitted by passing the bucktail through the sheets to be secured, then attaching a rivet gun to a frangible mandrel through the centre of the rivet, which upsets the bucktail to form the field head and breaks off when the correct pressure has been achieved.
blind spot
nounRail equipment
The part of the railway/tramway track that cannot be seen in the side mirror or the side window.
blindside
nounAutomotive
A driver's field of blindness around an automobile; the side areas behind the driver.
blip
A small dot registered on electronic equipment, such as a radar or oscilloscope screen.
blipper
nounAutomotive
A device that applies the throttle when downshifting, for a smoother gear transition and to avoid wheelspin.
BLIS
nounAutomotive
Initialism of blind spot information system, a warning light on a car dashboard that helps the driver avoid accidents when changing lanes.
blisk
An aircraft turbine engine rotor that has integral blades.
blister
nounConstruction
An enclosed pocket of air, which may be mixed with water or solvent vapor, trapped between impermeable layers of felt or between the membrane and substrate.
blivet
An electronic signal that is normally high or on, but goes low for a very short period and then returns to high. A low going spike.
block
A piece of hard wood on which a stereotype or electrotype plate is mounted.
block instrument
An instrument installed in a cabinet, used in block signalling installations.
block model
nounManufacturing
A simplified model of a ship with flat sides.
block post
nounRail equipment
In signalling, a signal box at one end of a block section.
block section
nounRail equipment
In railway signalling, a section of track on which, in normal circumstances, only one train is allowed at one time.
block signal
nounRail equipment
One of the danger signals or safety signals which guide the movement of trains in a block system, often coupled with a switch so that opening or closing the switch also operates the signal.
block system
nounRail equipment
On railways, a system by which the track is divided into sections of three or four miles, and trains are run by the guidance of electric signals so that no train enters a section or block before the preceding train has left it.
block upconverter
An electronic device that converts a band of frequencies from a lower frequency to a higher frequency, used in satellite uplinks.
blocked
adjectiveElectrical engineering
Banned or barred from connecting or logging on.
blockout
nounConstruction
A void that is deliberately not filled with concrete, so that it can be used to insert something else such as pipework.
blond metal
A variety of clay iron ore, from Staffordshire, England, once used for making tools such as nails, axes and horseshoes.
blooming
nounMetallurgy
The process of making blooms from the ore or from cast iron.
blow
An instance of using high-pressure air to empty water from the ballast tanks of a submarine, increasing the submarine's buoyancy and causing it to surface.
blow a backsight
verbSurveying
To occupy a point, then enter the wrong point for the backsight, or forget to enter the backsight.
blow a fuse
To overload a circuit sufficiently that a fuse protecting it melts away (or informally a circuit breaker trips), stopping current from flowing.
blow down
verbManufacturing
To clean off from top to bottom with an air current from a compressed air hose.
blow in
verbMetallurgy
To activate a blast furnace by eliminating moisture and then igniting a large amount of fuel.
blow-by
nounAutomotive
In an internal combustion engine, any burnt or unburnt matter escaping from the cylinder, past the (worn) rings on the piston, and into the crankcase.
blowable
adjectiveIndustrial electronics
That can cease to function when overloaded.
blowback
nounRail equipment
On a steam locomotive, the reversal of exhaust gases when the regulator is closed without using the blower.
blowdown
An instance of blowing down with compressed air.
blower
A fissure from which firedamp issues, often in quantity for many years.
blowhole
nounMetallurgy
An unintended cavity filled with air in a casting product.
blowing agent
An expanding agent used to produce a gas by chemical or thermal action, or both, in the manufacture of hollow or cellular materials.
blown diffuser
nounAutomotive
A diffuser which uses exhaust gases to generate aerodynamic forces.
blowoff
nounManufacturing
The removal of excess foam and carbon dioxide from the fermentation vessel during the active fermentation stage.
blowout
nounWoodworking
The damage done to the exit side of a drilled hole or sawn edge when no sacrificial backerboard is used during the drilling or sawing: the drill bit's or sawblade's exit on the far side causes chips of wood to be broken from the edge.
blowpipe
A long narrow pipe, rotated in the hands, upon which glassware is blown.
Blu-ray Disc
An optical disc storage medium used for data and video, introduced in 2006, having the same physical dimensions as a CD or DVD but greater storage capacity.
Blu-ray drive
An optical drive used for reading data from and possibly writing data on a Blu-ray disc.
blucket
A type of turbine blade where the inner portion of the blade is driven by expanding exhaust gases from the engine core, while the outer portion extends into the bypass duct and serves as a fan blade; used on a few turbofans with rear-mounted fans.
blue
verbMetallurgy
To treat the surface of steel so that it is passivated chemically and becomes more resistant to rust.
blue box
An electronic device used to bypass payment on a tone pulse telephone system.
blue John
Afterwort, partially fermented wort.
blue stain
A blue or grey discolouration in sapwood caused by mildew infection.
bluecap
A tiny blue-skinned fairy that inhabits a mine and helps the miners.
bluetop
nounConstruction
A stake or other marker set into the subgrade to indicate the desired grade elevation.
blunger
The apparatus used for blunging (mixing clay with water to make pottery).
blush
Of dope or varnish: to develop an undesirable white precipitate on the surface, due to being applied in humid conditions.
BMS
nounMetallurgy
Initialism of bright mild steel (“mild steel that has been cold finished and polished”).
BNC
Initialism of Bajonet Neill-Concelman connector.
BNC connector
A connector for a coaxial cable which keeps the central wire from touching the cable's outer shield.
Bo-Bo
A wheel arrangement for diesel and electric locomotives signifying that a locomotive has four axles, each powered by a motor, on two bogies.
boar hog
An intact (non-castrated) male pig used for breeding.
board
The distance a sailing vessel runs between tacks when working to windward.
board finger
A part used in printed circuit boards to form the traces of the edge connector which plug into matching sockets.
boast
verbConstruction
To dress, as a stone, with a broad chisel.
boat lift
A mechanism used for raising and lowering boats on a canal vertically from one water level to another, while keeping them afloat.
boater
nounManufacturing
A straw hat, very stiff, with a flat brim and crown.