A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
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First published 2001 (DOST Vol. IX).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1590-1633, 1691
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Specific, adj. Also: specifik, specificque. [e.m.E. specifique (a1631), specific (c1650), F. spécifique (1503 in Larousse), med. L. specificus (870 in Latham) f. speciēs; Species n.] a. Precise, exact, specif. in collocation with difference, that characteristic which distinguishes a thing from others of its kind. b. Of a remedy: Efficacious in some precise respect, ? acting upon a particular ailment or part of the body. —a. 1590-1 R. Bruce Serm. 141.
This particular application, quhilk rises … upon the feeling and sense of mercie, is the specifik difference, the chief mark and proper note quhereby our faith … is discerned fra that generall faith of the Papists a1633 Hope Major Pract. I 32.
That legacies and … pious donations … be applied to no wther use then that specificque use quherinto they wer destinat be the disponers —b. 1691 Moncreiffs 289.
For bawm water 00:08:00 … a glass of a cordial & specific mixture 01:04:00 … a glass of specific spirits 03:20:00
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"Specific adj.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 13 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/specific>
