flyspeck

American  

[flahy-spek] / ˈflaɪˌspɛk /

noun

1. a speck or tiny stain from the excrement of a fly.

2. any minute spot.

3. Plant Pathology. a disease of pome fruits, characterized by small, raised, dark spots on the fruit, caused by a fungus, Leptothyrium pomi.

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verb (used with object)

1. to mark with flyspecks.

flyspeck British  

/ ˈflaɪˌspɛk /

noun

1. the small speck of the excrement of a fly

2. a small spot or speck

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verb

1. (tr) to mark with flyspecks

Etymology

Origin of flyspeck

First recorded in 1850–55; fly ¹ + speck

Example Sentences

The 17-year-old best friends are neighbors in a flyspeck California town in the Mojave Desert.

From The Wall Street Journal

He pared away the flyspecks and stray hairs and human impulses.

From New York Times

“Look, I’m not going to flyspeck this,” the president added.

From Washington Post

My hometown, Gibsland, a flyspeck of a place, was and is majority Black.

From Seattle Times

In Sunday’s filing, prosecutors said the bar for overturning a jury verdict should be very high and that judges should reject the “invitation to flyspeck the jury’s verdict in hopes of a better outcome.”

From Seattle Times

Related Words

• blot
• dot
• fleck
• iota
• mite
• particle
• shred
• splotch
• stain