SPECK

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does speck mean? 

• SPECK (noun)
  The noun SPECK has 3 senses:

1. a very small spot

2. (nontechnical usage) a tiny piece of anything

3. a slight but appreciable amount

  Familiarity information: SPECK used as a noun is uncommon.

• SPECK (verb)
  The verb SPECK has 1 sense:

1. produce specks in or on

  Familiarity information: SPECK used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SPECK (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A very small spot

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

pinpoint; speck

Context example:

the plane was just a speck in the sky

Hypernyms ("speck" is a kind of...):

dapple; fleck; maculation; patch; speckle; spot (a small contrasting part of something)

Derivation:

speck (produce specks in or on)

Sense 2

Meaning:

(nontechnical usage) a tiny piece of anything

Classified under:

Nouns denoting substances

Synonyms:

atom; corpuscle; molecule; mote; particle; speck

Hypernyms ("speck" is a kind of...):

material; stuff (the tangible substance that goes into the makeup of a physical object)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "speck"):

grain (a relatively small granular particle of a substance)

grinding (material resulting from the process of grinding)

chylomicron (a microscopic particle of triglycerides produced in the intestines during digestion; in the bloodstream they release their fatty acids into the blood)

flyspeck (a tiny dark speck made by the excrement of a fly)

identification particle (a tiny particle of material that can be added to a product to indicate the source of manufacture)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A slight but appreciable amount

Classified under:

Nouns denoting quantities and units of measure

Synonyms:

hint; jot; mite; pinch; soupcon; speck; tinge; touch

Context example:

this dish could use a touch of garlic

Hypernyms ("speck" is a kind of...):

small indefinite amount; small indefinite quantity (an indefinite quantity that is below average size or magnitude)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "speck"):

snuff (a pinch of smokeless tobacco inhaled at a single time)

• SPECK (verb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Produce specks in or on

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

speck the cloth

Hypernyms (to "speck" is one way to...):

mark (make or leave a mark on)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s something

Derivation:

speck (a very small spot)

 Context examples 

Microcalcifications are specks of calcium that may be found in an area of rapidly dividing cells.

(Calcification, NCI Dictionary)

A cluster of these very small specks of calcium may indicate that cancer is present.

(Microcalcification, NCI Dictionary)

"What Jo would give for a sight of that famous speck!" said Amy, feeling in good spirits and anxious to see him so also.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

I well remember though, how the distant idea of the holidays, after seeming for an immense time to be a stationary speck, began to come towards us, and to grow and grow.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

Then I began to notice that there were some quaint little specks floating in the rays of the moonlight.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

Still the Ghost tore along, till the boat dwindled to a speck, when Wolf Larsen’s voice rang out in command and he went about on the starboard tack.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

I sought the orchard, driven to its shelter by the wind, which all day had blown strong and full from the south, without, however, bringing a speck of rain.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

Scientists conclude these specks of material came from interstellar space — the space between the stars.

(Saturn Spacecraft Samples Interstellar Dust, NASA)

Not only this, but on the table I found a small ball of black dough or clay, with specks of something which looks like sawdust in it.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

The two Slavonian hunters toiled upward till they grew small and smaller, and when they reached the top and waved their hats that all was well, they were like black specks against the sky.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)