Meaning of specific in English

specific

adjective

/spəˈsɪf.ɪk/ us

/spəˈsɪf.ɪk/

specific adjective (PARTICULAR)

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relating to one thing and not others; particular:

The virus attacks specific cells in the brain.

The money is intended to be used for specific purposes.

formal The disease seems to be specific to (= only found in) certain types of plant.

Is there anything specific you want from the shops?

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The regional editions of the paper contain specific information for that area.
We're looking for a very specific sort of person and this woman seems to fulfil all of our criteria.
Some of the children have specific learning difficulties.
They nailed him down to a specific time and place.
Several subcommittees will be set up to deal with specific environmental issues.

SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Particular and individual

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specific adjective (EXACT)

clear and exact:

No specific allegations have yet been made about the prison officers' behaviour.

Can you be more specific about where your back hurts?

Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples

complete and true in every detail

exactWhat is your exact location?
preciseIt was a mathematically precise model of how the wind would affect the structure.
accurateWe need accurate measurements before we can begin the building project.
superaccurateScientists use a superaccurate atomic clock to measure time.
specificPlease make your questions as specific as possibile.

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SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases

Accurate and exact

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(Definition of specific from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

specific | American Dictionary

specific

adjective

/spɪˈsɪf·ɪk/

specific adjective (PARTICULAR)

Add to word list Add to word list

relating to one thing and not others; particular:

The virus attacks specific cells in the body.

The meeting is for the specific purpose of discussing the merger.

specific adjective (EXACT)

clear and exact:

The report makes specific recommendations.

Can you be more specific?

(Definition of specific from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

specific | Business English

specific

adjective

/spəˈsɪfɪk/ us

Add to word list Add to word list

relating to one particular thing and not others:

A specific provision in the agreement stated that research materials should not be used for commercial purposes.

clear and exact:

He wouldn't give a specific estimate of how much the company would make.

(Definition of specific from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of specific

specific

Rather, these specifics flow from the surrounding discourses of gender.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

They show ways of grasping the specifics of a political culture, and many methodological routes to interpretation.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The specifics of the current experiments suggest some of the factors that may be involved as children proceed from more item-based to more wordgeneral constructions.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

At the cognitive level, all made reference to systems modulating fear behavior however few articulated the specifics of these systems in detail.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

In order to mitigate emissions, problem areas must be identified with attention to farm specifics; subsequently, coordinated measures and strategies must be elaborated.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

There seemed to be no problem as long as one kept in mind the specifics behind any general statement.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Not surprisingly, if the incident happened in the more distant past, the clients are less likely to include such specifics.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Certainly compared to some explorations of conservationist ideas, this discussion is embedded in the specifics of a production system.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The second, later entry begins the day in the realm of the object and of everyday specifics, and gets no further.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Because most of their specifics concerned comprehension processes, our contribution will emphasize the added value of an appeal to production processes.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

The specifics of this idea are not yet developed.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

However, since these specifics would tend to mask the relationships illustrated by the example used here, this parameterization is left to future work.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

However, the specifics of the relational equation are yet to be detailed.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

Not only sensorimotor specifics but explicit cognition is organized close to the somatic shell.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

However, existing and developing target fabrication capabilities and technologies must take into account the specifics of reactor-scaled target production.

From the Cambridge English Corpus

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These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

What is the pronunciation of specific?

Translations of specific

in Chinese (Traditional)

特有的, 特定的, 確切的…

Meaning of specific in English

specific adjective (PARTICULAR)

specific adjective (EXACT)

specific | American Dictionary

specific adjective (PARTICULAR)

specific adjective (EXACT)

specific | Business English

Examples of specific

Translations of specific

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