specific
having a special application, bearing, or reference; specifying, explicit, or definite: to state one's specific purpose.
specified, precise, or particular: a specific sum of money.
peculiar or proper to somebody or something, as qualities, characteristics, effects, etc.: His specific problems got him into trouble.
of a special or particular kind.
concerned specifically with the item or subject named (used in combination): The Secretary addressed himself to crop-specific problems.
Biology. of or relating to a species: specific characters.
Medicine/Medical.
(of a disease) produced by a special cause or infection.
(of a remedy) having special effect in the prevention or cure of a certain disease.
Immunology. (of an antibody or antigen) having a particular effect on only one antibody or antigen or affecting it in only one way.
Commerce. noting customs or duties levied in fixed amounts per unit, as number, weight, or volume.
Physics.
designating a physical constant that, for a particular substance, is expressed as the ratio of the quantity in the substance to the quantity in an equal volume of a standard substance, as water or air.
designating a physical constant that expresses a property or effect as a quantity per unit length, area, volume, or mass.
something specific, as a statement, quality, detail, etc.
Medicine/Medical. a specific remedy: There is no specific for the common cold.
Origin of specific
1synonym study For specific
Opposites for specific
Other words from specific
- spe·cif·i·cal·ly, adverb
- non·spe·cif·i·cal·ly, adverb
- pre·spe·cif·ic, adjective
- pre·spe·cif·i·cal·ly, adverb
- un·spe·cif·ic, adjective
- un·spe·cif·i·cal·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use specific in a sentence
I had quickly found it impossible to be thus unspecifically betrothed.
In Accordance with the Evidence | Oliver Onions
British Dictionary definitions for specific
/ (spɪˈsɪfɪk) /
explicit, particular, or definite: please be more specific
relating to a specified or particular thing: a specific treatment for arthritis
of or relating to a biological species: specific differences
(of a disease) caused by a particular pathogenic agent
physics
characteristic of a property of a particular substance, esp in relation to the same property of a standard reference substance: specific gravity
characteristic of a property of a particular substance per unit mass, length, area, volume, etc: specific heat
(of an extensive physical quantity) divided by mass: specific heat capacity; specific volume
Also (rare): specifical commerce denoting a tariff levied at a fixed sum per unit of weight, quantity, volume, etc, irrespective of value
(sometimes plural) a designated quality, thing, etc
med any drug used to treat a particular disease
Origin of specific
1Derived forms of specific
- specifically, adverb
- specificity (ˌspɛsɪˈfɪsɪtɪ), noun
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
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