Standard Lemma guide

speckle

noun · verb · 8 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈspɛkəl/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɛkəl
  • CMU ARPABET: S P EH1 K AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A small spot or speck on the skin, plumage or foliage.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

The random distribution of light when it is scattered by a rough surface.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: natural-sciences, physical-sciences, physics

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Kind; sort.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: Scotland, countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

A cluster of interchromatin granules in a nucleus.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Topics: biology, cytology, medicine, natural-sciences, sciences

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: splicing speckle

Antonyms: none provided

5

verb

Meaning 5

To mark with speckles.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

a small contrasting part of something

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a bald spot
  • a leopard's spots
  • a patch of clouds
  • patches of thin ice
  • a fleck of red

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: spot, dapple, patch, fleck, maculation

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: marking

Narrower terms: speck, pinpoint, nebula, splash, worn spot, fret, plaque, macule, macula, parhelion, mock sun, sundog, sunspot, facula

7

verb

Meaning 7

mark with small spots

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • speckle the wall with tiny yellow spots

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: bespeckle

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: spot, fleck, blob, blot

8

verb

Meaning 8

produce a mottled effect

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • The sunlight stippled the trees

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: stipple

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: mottle, dapple, cloud

History

Etymology

The noun is from Middle Dutch spekkel; the verb was later coined from the noun, in the late 16th century.

Across languages

Translations

16 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: петънце (petǎnce) — small spot
  • Bulgarian: луничка (lunička) — small spot
  • Finnish: pilkku — small spot
  • German: Fleck — small spot
  • German: Sprenkel — small spot
  • Greek: στίγμα (stígma) — small spot
  • Greek: κηλίδα (kilída) — small spot
  • Russian: пятнышко (pjatnyško) — small spot
  • Russian: крапинка (krapinka) — small spot
  • Turkish: benek — small spot
  • Ottoman Turkish: بكك (beñek) — small spot
  • Bulgarian: разсеяна светлина (razsejana svetlina) — physics: random distribution of scattered light
  • Finnish: epäkoherentti sironta — physics: random distribution of scattered light
  • Finnish: täplittää — to mark with speckles
  • Māori: pure — to mark with speckles
  • Russian: крапить (krapitʹ) — to mark with speckles