Synonyms

specify

American

[spes-uh-fahy] / ˈspɛs əˌfaɪ /

verb (used with object)

to mention or name specifically or definitely; state in detail.

He did not specify the amount needed.

Synonyms:

stipulate, enumerate, indicate, detail
to give a specific character to.
to set forth as a specification.
to name or state as a condition.

He specified that he be given my power of attorney.

verb (used without object)

to make a specific mention or statement.

specify British

/ ˈspɛsɪfɪˌkeɪtɪv, ˈspɛsɪˌfaɪ /

verb

to refer to or state specifically
to state as a condition
to state or include in the specification of

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of specify

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English specyfyen, from Old French specifier, from Medieval Latin specificāre “to describe, mention particularly,” from specific(us) specific + āre, infinitive verb suffix

Explanation

To explicitly name something or state a particular detail, you specify that thing. So, when you have a craving for dessert and you send someone to the store to buy ice cream, you may want to specify a flavor. If you assign something for a particular purpose, this verb means that you specify. Your parents can specify for safety's sake that you can only ride your bicycle on the sidewalk and not on the street. Another use of the verb specify is to give a set of requirements. If you have your grandmother's old recipe for snickerdoodle cookies, you may wonder what the recipe means when it specifies that you should add "a smidgen of molasses."

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Vocabulary lists containing specify

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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.

See Examples For:

specify specifies specified specifying

Radev did not specify where the drone, which caused no casualties, came from and said authorities did not yet know what type it was.

From Barron's ● Aug. 8, 2026

The statement did not specify what these reprisals would be.

From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026

The 2024 tax form did not originally specify how much the vacation compensation was, but it is being adjusted to show the payout was $329,243, according to Wright.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

McConnell said he would “continue to engage with my staff and colleagues on important Senate business” but didn’t specify a timeline for his Senate return.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

Or one could specify that a point was at a certain latitude and longitude and a certain height above sea level.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking

The most straightforward way of keeping your moods from affecting your portfolio is to have a detailed financial plan that, well in advance, specifies how you will react, come what may.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026

It specifies no tax periods or matters, purporting instead to resolve “any and all claims,” forever, before agencies it does not even name.

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

The text specifies that a procedure different to immediate returns at the border applies to those "intercepted on the high seas" because those migrants do not breach physical infrastructure.

From Barron's ● Aug. 6, 2026

But the release specifies that some other information has been withheld - such as the identities of junior civil servants, or data judged by the government to be "commercially sensitive".

From BBC ● Jun. 1, 2026

Yet scientists today could undoubtedly, if they wished, fulfill for many species that part of the definition of domestication that specifies the control of breeding and food supply.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

If the closing is delayed, shareholders will receive a ticking fee accruing at a rate of 6% per year for a period specified in the agreement.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

Bubic initially landed on the injured list in mid-May with a low-grade flexor strain in his left forearm, he specified.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026

Call options give the buyer the right to purchase an underlying share at a particular price within a specified time.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 4, 2026

Another factor that can increase the cost of graduation is buying an official photograph, with providers specified by your university, adds Allingham.

From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026

He specified that the only patients to be charged were those who could easily afford it, and that any money they brought in should then be spent treating those without money.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot

It established the General Accounting Office, specifying that it “shall be independent of the executive departments.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

The company had previously guided for significant revenue growth, but without specifying a figure.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

Separately, a landslide in China's northwestern Gansu province killed five people on Tuesday, with rescuers working to locate 12 others still missing, Xinhua said, without specifying what caused it.

From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026

But rather than regulating dinner guests, Congress was specifying when mandatory duties attach to government officials stationed at ports of entry.

From Slate ● Jun. 26, 2026

And once you start specifying long and short notes in a chain, you generate a rhythmic pattern.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023