# special

Pronunciation: say "SPESH-uhl" /ˈspɛʃ.l̩/

## Adjective

1. Marked by a quality that sets it apart as unique, particular, or unusual.
   - Simple: Different from the usual in a way that stands out.
   - _The museum keeps its most fragile artifacts in a special climate-controlled room._
   - _Engineers developed a special alloy able to survive the extreme heat of re-entry._
2. Of particular value or interest to someone, especially because the person or thing is dear to them or loved by them.
   - Simple: Loved and important to you in a way other things are not.
   - _The small lake town where she spent her summers will always hold a special place in her heart._
   - _He kept the worn letter because the friend who wrote it was so special to him._
6. Appointed for the specific purpose of examining a single event or issue.
   - Simple: Chosen to look at just one event or question, not many.
   - _Congress appointed a special prosecutor to investigate the scandal._
   - _The legislature convened a special committee to review the disputed contract._
7. Connected with disability, and in particular with difficulties in learning or intellectual disability.
   - Simple: Used for people who have a disability, especially with learning.
   - _The district expanded its special education program this year._
   - _He works as a special needs aide at the elementary school._
8. Concerning or relating to unconventional warfare and the forces that conduct it.
   - Simple: Used for unusual kinds of fighting, not regular army battles.
   - _The mission called for special forces capable of operating deep in hostile territory._
   - _Special operations rarely appear in official press briefings._
10. Stupid or unintelligent, used as a demeaning insult.
   - Simple: A mean, insulting way to say that someone is stupid.
   - _When she forgot her own phone number, her brother teased her for being a bit special._
   - _She felt humiliated when her classmates jeered that she was special._
12. Of a food, infused with a drug, especially marijuana, and prepared as an edible.
   - Simple: Made with a drug in it, usually marijuana, like a special brownie.
   - _She warned her roommate that the gummies in the fridge were special._
   - _A tray of special brownies disappeared before anyone read the label._
13. Euphemistically, relating to sexual intercourse or the genitals.
   - Simple: A polite or shy way of saying something is about sex or private body parts.
   - _Some parents use words like special parts when they talk to young children about their bodies._
   - _When the boy asked where babies come from, his mother mumbled something about a special hug between mommies and daddies._

## Noun

3. A dish a restaurant offers only at certain times rather than on its standing menu, often at a lower price or as a seasonal, unusual choice.
   - Simple: A meal a restaurant offers for a short time, not on its normal menu, often at a lower price.
   - _The waiter recommended the evening special, a seared trout with herbs._
   - _Friday's special is always cheaper than the regular entrees._
4. A temporary reduction in the price of goods or services; also the item sold at the reduced price.
   - Simple: A lower price on something for a short time, or the thing sold cheaply.
   - _The grocery chain ran a weekend special on fresh produce._
   - _She stocked up on coffee while it was on special._
5. A single television or radio program shown outside the regular schedule, often for an occasion, either a standalone show or a one-off episode of a series.
   - Simple: A TV or radio show made for one time or a special occasion, outside the usual schedule.
   - _The network produced a two-hour special to mark the show's finale._
   - _The documentary special drew record ratings on its premiere night._
9. Something that departs from normal practice, plan, or schedule, such as an unscheduled run of transportation that normally follows a fixed timetable.
   - Simple: Something done outside the normal plan or schedule, like an extra train run.
   - _The station dispatched a special to handle the holiday crowds._
   - _A late-night special ran after the concert finally let out._
11. A volunteer who serves as a part-time, usually unpaid police officer alongside the regular force; a special constable. *(colloquial, British)*
   - Simple: A person who works as a volunteer police officer to help the regular police.
   - _As a special, he had the same powers of arrest as any regular officer on duty._
   - _The force relied on specials to boost numbers during the bank holiday weekend._

## Other meanings

- (noun) A journalist dispatched to the scene of an event in order to report back.
- (noun) A report filed and transmitted back to a newspaper by a special correspondent reporting from the scene.
- (noun) A stage light focused on a specific person or area rather than providing general illumination.
- (noun) A racehorse considered certain to win; a sure thing.
- (noun) A medicine, lacking a marketing license, that is prepared or sourced for one particular patient.
- (verb) To provide continuous one-to-one supervision and care to a single patient.
- (noun) An award, usually a free game, granted to a player for reaching or completing a major objective in pinball.
- (adjective) Forming a species, or belonging to or concerning a particular species.
- (noun) A dog of mixed breed; a mongrel of no particular pedigree.

## Origin

It comes from Middle English "special", from Old French "especial", which came from Latin "speciālis" (from "speciēs"). It is a doublet of "especial".

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/special (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).