Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “specks” come from?

Specks derives from Middle English spekke, Old English specca and spic, Proto-Germanic spikką, and Proto-Indo-European spēy-, tracing a word for small marks or particles through Germanic languages.

specks (English): plural of speck

Definitions

  1. plural of speck

Ancestry of “specks”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishspeckA tiny spot, especially of dirt etc; A very small...
2Middle EnglishspekkeA splotch or stain; a mark or zone of aberrant...
3Old Englishspeccasmall spot, stain
Every word from Old English specca →