specular

[ spek-yuh-ler ]

/ ˈspɛk yə lər /

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adjective

pertaining to or having the properties of a mirror.

pertaining to a speculum.

Optics. (of reflected light) directed, as from a smooth, polished surface (opposed to diffuse).

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Origin of specular

1570–80; <Latin speculāris, equivalent to specul(um) a mirror (spec(ere) to look, regard + -ulum instrumental suffix; see -ule) + -āris-ar¹

OTHER WORDS FROM specular

spec·u·lar·ly, adverb

Words nearby specular

spectroscopy, spectrum, spectrum analyser, spectrum analysis, spectrum disorder, specular, speculate, speculation, speculative, speculative fiction, speculative philosophy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use specular in a sentence

The regions where the specular reflections show up are bafflingly dry.
Flat spots on Saturn’s moon Titan may be the floors of ancient lake beds|Lisa Grossman|June 16, 2020|Science News
Red, somewhat slaty jasper, mixed with quartz and chalcedony, and containing specular iron ore.
Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia] [Volume 2 of 2]|Phillip Parker King
Magnetite or magnetic iron ore, specular iron, and limonite are also oxides of iron.
Geology|James Geikie
Galena is often mistaken for other ores, specular iron ore for instance.
The A B C of Mining|Charles A. Bramble

Does it seem cold and unhandsome, this specular survey of persons?
Tablets|Amos Bronson Alcott
The pepitas occur in different forms, often adhering to micaceous specular iron.
A Dictionary of Arts, Manufactures and Mines|Andrew Ure

British Dictionary definitions for specular

specular

/ (ˈspɛkjʊlə) /

adjective

of, relating to, or having the properties of a mirrorspecular reflection

of or relating to a speculum

Derived forms of specular

specularly, adverb

Word Origin for specular

C16: from Latin speculāris, from speculum a mirror, from specere to look at

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