specimen

American  

[spes-uh-muhn] / ˈspɛs ə mən /

noun

1. a part or an individual taken as exemplifying a whole mass or number; a typical animal, plant, mineral, part, etc.

   Synonyms:

   pattern, model, type

2. (in medicine, microbiology, etc.) a sample of a substance or material for examination or study.

   a urine specimen; a tissue specimen.

3. a particular or peculiar kind of person.

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specimen British  

/ ˈspɛsɪmɪn /

noun

1. 1. an individual, object, or part regarded as typical of the group or class to which it belongs

   2. ( as modifier )

      a specimen signature

      a specimen page

2. med a sample of tissue, blood, urine, etc, taken for diagnostic examination or evaluation

3. the whole or a part of an organism, plant, rock, etc, collected and preserved as an example of its class, species, etc

4. informal a person

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Related Words

See example.

Etymology

Origin of specimen

1600–10; < Latin: mark, example, indication, sign, equivalent to speci-, stem of specere to look, regard + -men noun suffix denoting result or means

Example Sentences

The research also revisits older specimens that were previously too damaged to study in detail.

From Science Daily

"The occurrence of juvenile specimens raises the question whether active reproduction may be occurring in the region."

From Science Daily

"When specimens are digitized, we can build libraries of organisms that can streamline their use from scientific laboratories to classrooms to Hollywood studios."

From Science Daily

Preparing the specimen was a slow and careful process.

From Science Daily

To determine whether these frogs had been significantly underestimated, Chan and his colleagues collected DNA from specimens gathered across the mountainous rainforests of Malaysian Borneo.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• copy
• exhibit
• variety