speck
Americannoun
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a small spot differing in color or substance from that of the surface or material upon which it appears or lies.
Specks of soot on the window sill.
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a very little bit or particle.
We haven't a speck of sugar.
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something appearing small by comparison or by reason of distance.
By then the town was just a speck.
verb (used with object)
noun
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a very small mark or spot
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a small or tiny piece of something
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of speck
before 900; Middle English specke, Old English specca; cognate with Dutch spikkel
Explanation
A speck is a tiny patch or spot. At night, the stars look like glittering specks against the sky. And when you look up at the night sky, you might feel like a mere speck in the universe. A speck is a bit of color or light, or a very slight amount of something: "I'd like my eggs with lots of salt and just a speck of pepper." If you're extremely tidy, discovering specks of sand on your jeans after a walk on the beach might prompt you to change your clothes. Speck can be traced back to the Old English specca, "small spot or stain," but beyond that its origin remains a mystery.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Mr. Speck looks past the rhetorical flourishes to the surprisingly pragmatic and, he argues, even mainstream worldview at the security strategy’s core.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 8, 2025
It has been the subject of intensive research in the working group of Prof. Dr. Thomas Speck for many years.
From Science Daily • Nov. 20, 2024
“He is saying that the world has changed and that we will protect you,” Mr. Speck said.
From New York Times • Feb. 3, 2024
This is different from "A Speck of Dust," because it is more of a kind of loose "hangout with Sarah" versus a stand-up special.
From Salon • Jul. 7, 2023
Mr. Speck feared the worst, and the Captain had asked for Eliza.
From The Argosy Vol. 51, No. 5, May, 1891 by Wood, Charles W.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
