Definitions for Special
ˈspɛʃ əlSpe·cial

Princeton's WordNet(3.57 / 14 votes)Rate this definition:

1. special(noun)

   a special offering (usually temporary and at a reduced price) that is featured in advertising

   "they are having a special on pork chops"

2. special(noun)

   a dish or meal given prominence in e.g. a restaurant

3. special(adj)

   a television production that features a particular person or work or topic

   "the last of a series of BBC specials on Iran is being shown tonight"

4. particular(a), peculiar(a), special(a)(adj)

   unique or specific to a person or thing or category

   "the particular demands of the job"; "has a particular preference for Chinese art"; "a peculiar bond of sympathy between them"; "an expression peculiar to Canadians"; "rights peculiar to the rich"; "the special features of a computer"; "my own special chair"

5. special(adj)

   for a special service or occasion

   "a special correspondent"; "a special adviser to the committee"; "had to get special permission for the event"

6. especial(a), exceptional, particular(a), special(adj)

   surpassing what is common or usual or expected

   "he paid especial attention to her"; "exceptional kindness"; "a matter of particular and unusual importance"; "a special occasion"; "a special reason to confide in her"; "what's so special about the year 2000?"

7. special(adj)

   adapted to or reserved for a particular purpose

   "a special kind of paint"; "a special medication for arthritis"

8. limited, special(adj)

   having a specific function or scope

   "a special (or specific) role in the mission"

9. particular, special(adj)

   first and most important

   "his special interest is music"; "she gets special (or particular) satisfaction from her volunteer work"

10. extra, special(adj)

    added to a regular schedule

    "a special holiday flight"; "put on special buses for the big game"

Wiktionary(1.50 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. special(Noun)

   A reduction in consumer cost (usually for a limited time) for items or services rendered.

   We're running a special on turkey for Thanksgiving.

2. special(Noun)

   Unusual or exceptional episode of a series

3. special(Noun)

   A special constable.

4. special(Noun)

   Anything that is not according to normal practice, plan, or schedule, as an unscheduled run of transportation that is normally scheduled.

   Thousands came to the special that carried the President's coffin.

5. special(Adjective)

   Distinguished by a unique or unusual quality.

   a special episode of a television series

6. special(Adjective)

   Of particular interest or value; certain; dear; beloved; favored.

   Everyone is special to someone.

7. special(Adjective)

   Retarded; mentally handicapped

   He goes to a special school.

8. special(Adjective)

   Constituting or relating to a species.

   The seven dark spots is a special property unique to Coccinella septempunctata.

Webster Dictionary(5.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Special(adj)

   of or pertaining to a species; constituting a species or sort

2. Special(adj)

   particular; peculiar; different from others; extraordinary; uncommon

3. Special(adj)

   appropriate; designed for a particular purpose, occasion, or person; as, a special act of Parliament or of Congress; a special sermon

4. Special(adj)

   limited in range; confined to a definite field of action, investigation, or discussion; as, a special dictionary of commercial terms; a special branch of study

5. Special(adj)

   chief in excellence

6. Special(noun)

   a particular

7. Special(noun)

   one appointed for a special service or occasion

Freebase(5.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Special

   "Special" is an alternative rock song written, performed and produced by Garbage, and was the third international single to be released from the band's platinum second album Version 2.0. "Special" gained much attention in the music press upon the 1998 release of Version 2.0, as it contained a vocal interpolation of a lyric taken from "Talk of The Town" by The Pretenders. A moderate hit in the United Kingdom and Australia in October 1998, "Special" became a sleeper hit in the United States the following year. The song's success was marked by becoming nominated in the Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group categories at the 2000 Grammy Awards, and winning a Wisconsin Area Music Industry award for Song of the Year and a Citation of Achievement from the BMI Pop Awards. The acclaimed sci-fi inspired music video for "Special" also received multiple nominations from music industry award panels; winning a D&AD Award, a MTV Video Music Award, and a VH1 Visionary Video award. In 2007, "Special" was remastered and included on Garbage's greatest hits album Absolute Garbage.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Special

   spesh′al, adj. of a species or sort; particular: distinctive: uncommon: designed for a particular purpose: confined to a particular subject or application.—n. any special or particular person or thing: any person or thing set apart for a particular duty—a constable, a railway-tram, &c.: a newspaper extra, a despatch from a special correspondent.—n. Specialisā′tion, the act or process of specialising: differentiation, as of organs, functions, &c.—v.t. Spec′ialise, to make specifically distinct, to limit to a particular kind of action or use.—v.i. to act in some particular way, to take a particular direction, as to devote one's self especially to some particular branch of study.—ns. Spec′ialism, devotion to some particular study or pursuit; Spec′ialist, one who devotes himself to a special subject.—adj. Specialist′ic.—n. Special′ity, the particular characteristic of a person or thing: a special occupation or object of attention.—adv. Spec′ially.—ns. Spec′ialty, something special or distinctive: any special product, article of sale or of manufacture: any special pursuit, department of study, &c.: a special contract for the payment of money; Specie (spē′shi), gold and silver coin, metallic money (abl. of L. species, kind); Spē′cies, a group of individuals having common marks or characteristics, specialised from others of the same genus to which it is subordinate: a group under a higher class, a kind or sort, a distinct constituent part, an element: an appearance to the senses, an image of an external object presented to the eye or the mind; Spē′cies-mong′er, one who busies himself with classifications only, indifferent to wider biological relations, one who makes distinctions for distinction's sake; Spēcif′ic, a remedy which has a special power in a particular disease: an infallible remedy.—adjs. Spēcif′ic, -al, pertaining to, or constituting, a species: that specifies: peculiar to: produced by some special cause: precise: infallible.—adv. Spēcif′ically.—ns. Spēcif′icalness, Spēcif′icness, the state or quality of being specific.—Special constable (see Constable); Special license (see License); Special pleading (see Plead); Special verdict (see Verdict).—Specific density, the mass of any given substance contained in unit volume; Specific gravity, the weight of any given substance as compared with the weight of an equal bulk or volume of water or other standard substance at the same temperature and pressure; Specific heat (see Heat).

Suggested Resources(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. special

   Song lyrics by special -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by special on the Lyrics.com website.

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Special' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #409

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Special' in Written Corpus Frequency: #669

3. Adjectives Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Special' in Adjectives Frequency: #43

Anagrams for Special »

1. piacles

2. plaices

How to pronounce Special?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say Special in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Special in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Special in Pythagorean Numerology is: 2

Examples of Special in a Sentence

1. Stephanie Coontz:

   Around the early 19th century, men took on this special role as providers and protectors, and with that came a whole ideology. Men began to embrace a masculine identity that was based on not doing women's work, women also began to embrace a new identity, unheard of in colonial days : We are the family expert. We know how to raise kids. We know how to change diapers. Institutions began to be organized around this idea.

2. Jorge Duany:

   Cubans on the island are increasingly concerned that the special legal status that they have under current U.S. law might be taken away.

3. George Lucas:

   A special effect is a tool, a means of telling a story. A special effect without a story is a pretty boring thing.

4. Tom Deméré:

   We early on realized that this is a special site.

5. Trey Gowdy:

   I think we’re trending perhaps towards another special counsel.

Images & Illustrations of Special

Popularity rank by frequency of use