speck Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a very small spot
    pinpoint.
    • the plane was just a speck in the sky
  2. noun (nontechnical usage) a tiny piece of anything
    particle; atom; molecule; corpuscle; mote.
  3. noun a slight but appreciable amount
    jot; hint; pinch; soupcon; touch; mite; tinge.
    • this dish could use a touch of garlic
  4. verb produce specks in or on
    • speck the cloth

WordNet

Speck noun
Etymology
Cf. Icel. spik blubber, AS. spic, D. spek, G. speck.
Definitions
  1. The blubber of whales or other marine mammals; also, the fat of the hippopotamus.
Speck noun
Etymology
OE. spekke, AS. specca; cf. LG. spaak.
Definitions
  1. A small discolored place in or on anything, or a small place of a color different from that of the main substance; a spot; a stain; a blemish; as, a speck on paper or loth; specks of decay in fruit. "Gray sand, with black specks." Anson.
  2. A very small thing; a particle; a mite; as, specks of dust; he has not a speck of money.
    Many bright specks bubble up along the blue Egean. Landor.
  3. (Zoöl.) A small etheostomoid fish (Ulocentra stigmæa) common in the Eastern United States.
Speck transitive verb
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Specked ; present participle & verbal noun Specking
Definitions
  1. To cause the presence of specks upon or in, especially specks regarded as defects or blemishes; to spot; to speckle; as, paper specked by impurities in the water used in its manufacture.
    Carnation, purple, azure, or specked with gold. Milton.

Webster 1913