speculum

American  

[spek-yuh-luhm] / ˈspɛk jə ləm /

noun

specula, plural speculums plural

1. a mirror or reflector, especially one of polished metal, as on a reflecting telescope.

2. speculum metal.

3. Surgery. an instrument for rendering a part accessible to observation, as by enlarging an orifice.

4. Ornithology. a lustrous or specially colored area on the wings of certain birds.

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speculum British  

/ ˈspɛkjʊləm /

noun

1. a mirror, esp one made of polished metal for use in a telescope, etc

2. med an instrument for dilating a bodily cavity or passage to permit examination of its interior

3. a patch of distinctive colour on the wing of a bird, esp in certain ducks

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• specula
  plural
• speculums
  plural

Etymology

Origin of speculum

1590–1600; < Latin: mirror, equivalent to spec ( ere ) to look, behold + -ulum instrumental suffix; see -ule

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

speculum specula speculums

To insert an IUD, a clinician opens the vagina using a speculum and grips the cervix with a type of forceps, which can cause a sudden, sharp pain.

From Slate ● Jun. 7, 2026

Quinn ultimately accepted the DNA recovered from the vest top was his - although he disputed the finding from the medical speculum.

From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026

“The parts that hurt for some patients — just placing the speculum is uncomfortable — placing the tenaculum is the first part that's not just pressure that can sometimes feel sharp,” Espey told Salon.

From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2024

They’ve noted that the type of speculum he claimed to invent had long been in use by others and that some of procedures he utilized were not really his, or were dangerous.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 1, 2021

Female—The top of the head of the female is a rusty brown, and with a very faint stripe on the sides; upper parts, gray, spotted with black; speculum, green.

From Game Birds and Game Fishes of the Pacific Coast by Payne, Harry Thom

Adding “Web MD” brought back the same results, albeit staged in doctors’ offices, with lab coats and specula as props.

From The New Yorker ● Apr. 15, 2019

The firm also apparently compounded its problems through ill-advised specula tion in the market for Government securities.

From Time Magazine Archive

I know of a gentleman who made a hundred of these specula with his own hands.

From The Vast Abyss The Story of Tom Blount, his Uncles and his Cousin Sam by Fenn, George Manville

In Spanish, generos, merchandise.267.Many derivatives might have been added, such as specimen, spectator, le spectacle, specialité, spectrum, spectacles, specious, specula, &c.268.Benloew,

From Lectures on The Science of Language by Müller, Max

The metals, 9-1/4 inches in diameter, having a diagonal eye-piece, four eye tubes of different magnifying powers, and three small specula of various radii, were made by Mr. Watson.

From The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 12, No. 336, October 18, 1828 by Various

Many said there had been shortages of medical equipment such as speculums, emergency adrenaline, ECG patches, forceps and gloves due to "constantly unpaid invoices", which they claimed had resulted in some appointments being cancelled.

From BBC ● Feb. 26, 2025

Research commissioned by the charity suggests most women do not know they can make the test easier by asking for longer appointments, smaller speculums, or move to more comfortable positions.

From BBC ● Jan. 19, 2025

BBC Wales has also been told there have been difficulties obtaining supplies like wound packs and speculums, and that clinics had been cancelled, causing patient backlogs.

From BBC ● Nov. 29, 2024

She also practiced ultrasound techniques and used speculums, swabs and local anesthetic to prepare patients.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 20, 2022

Shut our eyes against them, and we are merely nicely- constructed speculums, which reflect the beauties of nature, but enjoy none.'

From Thaddeus of Warsaw by Porter, Jane

Related Words

• glass