specialized

American  

[spesh-uh-lahyzd] / ˈspɛʃ əˌlaɪzd /

especially British, specialised

adjective

1. invested with a special character or restricted to a special function or field of activity.

   He campaigned for a specialized burn department to be established at the hospital.

   The humanities, once a highly specialized pursuit, have rapidly become a much broader conversation.

2. Biology. (of an organism or organ) adapted to a special function or environment.

   If the coastal sage scrub were to vanish, so would these specialized species of insects that are dependent on it.

---

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of specialize.

Other Word Forms

• nonspecialized adjective
• overspecialized adjective
• unspecialized adjective

Etymology

Origin of specialized

specialize ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Given that specialized AI systems can produce gold-medal answers to International Math Olympiad questions, calculating taxes should be no big deal.

From The Wall Street Journal

At one weekend session, “Evolving RL-Based Reasoning Data in LLMs,” a startup founder who specialized in that esoteric area of research asked a reporter why they were at such a boring talk.

From The Wall Street Journal

While the heart surgery was underway, the donor liver was maintained on a TransMedics Organ Care System -- a specialized device designed to replicate normal liver function.

From Science Daily

Lewis was intubated and needed a specialized procedure across the state to survive.

From The Wall Street Journal

At that business, higher wages and the hiring of additional specialized salespersons in preparation for the spinoff are taking a toll.

From MarketWatch