Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Explicitly set forth; definite. See Synonyms at explicit.
- adj. Relating to, characterizing, or distinguishing a species.
- adj. Special, distinctive, or unique: specific qualities and attributes.
- adj. Intended for, applying to, or acting on a particular thing: a specific remedy for warts.
- adj. Concerned particularly with the subject specified. Often used in combination: "age-specific voting patterns” ( A. Dianne Schmidley).
- adj. Designating a disease produced by a particular microorganism or condition.
- adj. Having a remedial influence or effect on a particular disease.
- adj. Immunology Having an affinity limited to a particular antibody or antigen.
- adj. Designating a customs charge levied on merchandise by unit or weight rather than according to value.
- adj. Designating a commodity rate applicable to the transportation of a single commodity between named points.
- n. Something particularly fitted to a use or purpose.
- n. A remedy intended for a particular ailment or disorder.
- n. A distinguishing quality or attribute.
- n. Distinct items or details; particulars.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- That is specified or defined; distinctly named, formulated, or determined; of a special kind or a definite tenor; determinate; explicit: as, a specific sum of money; a specific offer; specific, obligations or duties; a specific aim or pursuit.
- Pertaining to or accordant with what is specified or determined; relating to or regarding a definite subject; conformable to special occasion or requirement, prescribed terms, or known conditions; having a special use or application.
- Of or pertaining to a species. Pertaining to a logical species.
- Peculiar; special.
- In law, having a certain or well-defined form or designation; observing a certain form; precise.
- In medicine, related to special infection, particularly syphilitic infection; produced by some distinct zymotic poison.
- Synonyms and
- Particular, etc. See special.
- n. Something adapted or expected to produce a specific effect; that which is, or is supposed to be, capable of infallibly bringing about a desired result; especially, a remedy which cures, or tends to cure, a certain disease, whatever may be its manifestations, as mercury used as a remedy for syphilis.
- n. A definite substance in the serum of an animal that gives rise to a special kind of immunity.
Wiktionary
- adj. explicit or definite
- adj. sciences Pertaining to a species.
- adj. taxonomy pertaining to a taxon at the rank of species
- adj. special, distinctive or unique
- adj. intended for, or applying to a particular thing
- adj. being a remedy for a particular disease
- adj. immunology limited to a particular antibody or antigen
- adj. physics of a value divided by mass (e.g. specific orbital energy)
- adj. physics similarly referring to a value divided by any measure which acts to standardize it (e.g. thrust specific fuel consumption, referring to fuel consumption divided by thrust)
- adj. physics a measure compared with a standard reference value by division, to produce a ratio without unit or dimension (e.g. specific refractive index is a pure number, and is relative to that of air)
- n. A distinguishing attribute or quality.
- n. Something particularly adapted for a particular use, as a remedy for a particular disorder
- n. Specification.
- n. in the plural The details; particulars.
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Of or pertaining to a species; characterizing or constituting a species; possessing the peculiar property or properties of a thing which constitute its species, and distinguish it from other things
- adj. Specifying; definite, or making definite; limited; precise; discriminating.
- adj. (Med.) Exerting a peculiar influence over any part of the body; preventing or curing disease by a peculiar adaptation, and not on general principles.
- n. (Med.) A specific remedy. See specific, a., 3.
- n. Anything having peculiar adaption to the purpose to which it is applied.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. stated explicitly or in detail
- n. a fact about some part (as opposed to general)
- adj. being or affecting a disease produced by a particular microorganism or condition; used also of stains or dyes used in making microscope slides
- n. a medicine that has a mitigating effect on a specific disease
- adj. (sometimes followed by `to') applying to or characterized by or distinguishing something particular or special or unique
- adj. relating to or distinguishing or constituting a taxonomic species
Etymologies
- From Old French specifique, from Late Latin specificus ("specific, particular"), from Latin speciēs ("kind") + faciō ("make"). (Wiktionary)
- Late Latin specificus : Latin speciēs, kind, species; see species + Latin -ficus, -fic. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“The arbiter appears to the undersigned to have viewed the rivers St. John and Restigouche as possessing both a specific and a generic character; that considered _alone_ they were _specific_ ', and the designation in the treaty of "rivers falling into the Atlantic" was inapplicable to them; that considered _In connection with other rivers_ they were _generic_ and were embraced in the terms of the treaty, but that as their connection with other rivers would bring them within a principle which, according to the views taken by him of other parts of the question, was equally realized by both lines, it would be hazardous to allow them any weight in deciding the disputed boundary.”
A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents Volume 3, part 2: Martin Van Buren
“Your referral to instant runoff voting in specific is particularly odd, given that IRV is neither a Democratic nor a Republican issue (with both McCain and Dean strongly supporting it), and is limited in popularity to conservatives or liberals.”
“The term specific gas production (Gp, measured in m³ gas/m³ Vd x day) supplements the above expression by defining the digester's biogas output. pH/volatile acids”
“We are now prepared to ask whether (a) the differences between angels are always specific and never individual differences, or (b) both specific and individual differences; and (c) if specific, in which sense of the term specific—the metaphysical or the biological sense.”
“Bearing in mind that for such substances the term specific resistance has no very definite meaning, M. Bouty considers it is not less than 3.19 x 1028 E.M. units at ordinary temperatures.”
“The term specific is used here in its ordinary sense, without raising the question of the propriety of its application to these or other remedies.”
“Record Collector gets a look-in every now and again - I'm a sucker for the label specific things they do; "Great Vertigo / Island / Harvest collectables", that sort of thing.”
“Al Gore thinks he has a winner here with what he calls a specific, with emphasis on the word "specific," prescription drug plan.”
“I tend to think of it as something domain specific, that is, I love foobar widgets or some niche topic and I show my love by showing that widget or whatever on my desktop.”
Breakfast Links: Voltron, Social Wallpapering & Harry Potter : #comments
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘specific’.
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EN - academic vocabulary
Use these and get promoted
abandon, abandonment, abnormally, abstract, abstraction, abstractly, abstracts, academia, academic, academically, academics, academies and 3119 more...
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IMCO - EU nomenclature
includes words of the "Prodcom list"
abaca, abdominal, abrasive, absorbent, absorber, accelerator, accessory, account book, accumulator, acebutolol, acetaldehyde, acetamide and 4515 more...
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TECH - web application frameworks
limit, pack, automatic, HTTP, database, poi, event, coverage, core, hibernate, function, product and 310 more...
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common UA vocab. in US
Interesting, there is a traditional vocabulary of an Ukrainian, that differs from vocabulary of average American. It would be nice to explore it.
jackdaw, incongruous, cassock, vivid, magpie, humdrum, amongst, wonder, wandering, wheedling, wheedle, osseous and 368 more...
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EU Buzz - Lisbon Treaty
All words of the Lisbon Treaty
(Persons' names, foreign and grammatical words have been eliminated, MWEs have been split up into individual words. Capitalization has been retained if r...conferral, stateless, person, voting, right, subsidiarity, Latvia, Malta, Slovenia, Lithuania, Finland, Estonia and 2614 more...
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EU Buzz - single words (1+2+3)
1. Strictly EU terms with special European meaning used only in the EU
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2. Keywords central to the understanding of the EU (people working for the EU are usually able to give thematic...acceleration, action, additionality, administrator, agenda, agricultural, agri-environmental, agriflation, agri-food, applicant, approach, assent and 1325 more...
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method
( investigation, randomness )
empirical, evidence, measurable, specific, quantifiable, principle, tact, foo, betwixt, axiom, maxim, uncertainty and 9 more...
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eggplantia5's Words
scintillate, marvel, cranberry, oscillate, triumph, bamboozle, grimace, magical, book, hexagon, cipher, compendium and 2727 more...
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Basic English Vocabulary
Very basic words for ESL students.
contemplate, container, consumer, consultant, consensus, conscious, conscience, connection, confusion, confront, conflict, confident and 4334 more...
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ESL Academic Word List
This is a list of academic words for students learning English as a Second or Foreign Language. It includes 570 word families that often appear in academic texts. It does not include words that are...
collapse, depression, colleagues, invoked, levy, nonetheless, likewise, so-called, ongoing, conceived, forthcoming, integrity and 558 more...
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My Self-Descriptors: A Mirror of Text
Read this list, and read it well. When you finish, you'll know me better than my mother. That is, unless she reads this list too.
libertarian, unorthodox, unfinished, sincere, frugal, lanky, introspective, critical, laid-back, taciturn, lexiphilic, kindly and 115 more...
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Jacqueline's Words
glittery, horny, amazing, wanderlust, forlorn, lustily, nonchalant, cool, passive, submissive, roundabout, carousel and 558 more...
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-fic, -fication
making
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a few of my favorite words
these are some of my favorite words...
brilliant, delicious, lovely, ever, with, present, here, light, radiant, bright, beauty, live and 209 more...
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Week 3
isolate, joint, modify, specific, specifications, component, document, flux residue, volt, voltage, laser, pca and 3 more...
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Favorites list
Some of my favorites
relative, exactly, intrinsic, instantiation, specific, thermonuclear, intercontinental, ballistic, trajectory, transatlantic, atmospheric, generator and 3 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for specific.
uselessness Be more or less specific. Jan 25, 2007