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specialty

Syllabification: (spe·cial·ty)
Pronunciation: /ˈspeSHəltē/

(British also speciality /ˌspeSHēˈalitē/)
Translate specialty | into French | into German | into Spanish
Definition of specialty

noun (plural specialties)

  • 1a pursuit, area of study, or skill to which someone has devoted much time and effort and in which they are expert:his specialty was watercolors
  • a particular branch of medicine or surgery.
  • a product, especially a type of food, that a person or region is famous for making well:the local specialties are all seafood
  • [as modifier] meeting particular tastes or needs:specialty potatoes for salads
  • 2 Law a contract under seal.

Origin:

Middle English (denoting special affection or attachment): shortening of Old French especialte, from especial (see special)

Spelling help

Remember that specialty ends with -lty. The spelling speciality, with an i between the l and the t, is British.

specialty in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of specialty in the British & World English dictionary