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specimen
[ spes-uh-muhn ]
/ ˈspɛs ə mən /
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noun
a part or an individual taken as exemplifying a whole mass or number; a typical animal, plant, mineral, part, etc.
(in medicine, microbiology, etc.) a sample of a substance or material for examination or study: a urine specimen; a tissue specimen.
a particular or peculiar kind of person.
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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
synonym study for specimen
1. See example.
Words nearby specimen
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use specimen in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for specimen
specimen
/ (ˈspɛsɪmɪn) /
noun
- an individual, object, or part regarded as typical of the group or class to which it belongs
- (as modifier)a specimen signature; a specimen page
med a sample of tissue, blood, urine, etc, taken for diagnostic examination or evaluation
the whole or a part of an organism, plant, rock, etc, collected and preserved as an example of its class, species, etc
informal, often derogatory a person
Word Origin for specimen
C17: from Latin: mark, evidence, proof, from specere to look at
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Medical definitions for specimen
specimen
[ spĕs′ə-mən ]
n.
A sample, as of tissue, blood, or urine, used for analysis and diagnosis.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.