Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Speculum |
SpeculumNoun1. A mirror (especially one made of polished metal) for use in an optical instrument. 2. A medical instrument for dilating a bodily passage or cavity in order to examine the interior. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "speculum" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1509. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Health | An instrument used to widen an opening of the body to make it easier to look inside. (references) |
Medicine | Any instrument used in the inspection of a normally closed tube or passage. Source: European Union. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Meanings of speculum include:
The titles of a number of medieval books also include the word speculum:
- A medical tool used for examing body cavities; see Speculum (medical).
- A small metal mirror used for telescopes.
- The secondary feathers on the inner part of a duck's wing which are often brightly coloured; see speculum feathers.
- A journal of medieval studies, published by the Medieval Academy of America; see Speculum (magazine).
- Speculum metal is an alloy containing copper and tin at least.
- Ophrys speculum is a species of ground orchid.
- Speculum alchimiae, written by Roger Bacon.
- Speculum astronomiae, written by Albertus Magnus.
- Speculum ecclesiae, written by Edmund Rich.
- Speculum historiale, written by Vincent de Beauvais.
- Speculum judiciale, written by Guillaume Durand.
- Speculum meditantis, written by John Gower.
- Speculum perfectionis, written by Brother Leo.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Speculum."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
A speculum is a medical tool for investigating body cavities.Its form is dependent on the body cavity for which it is designed. Ear specula resemble a funnels, and come in a variety of sizes.
Nasal specula have two relatively flat blades with handle. The instrument is hinged so that when the handles are squeezed together the blades spread laterally, allowing examination.
A vaginal speculum consists of a hollow cylinder with a rounded end that is divided into two hinged parts, somewhat like the beak of a duck. The speculum is inserted into the vagina to dilate it for examination of the vagina and cervix.
A specialized form of vaginal speculum is the weighted speculum, which consists of a broad half tube which is bent at about a 90 degree angle, with the channel of the tube on the exterior side of the angle. One end of the tube has a roughly spherical metal weight surrounding the channel of the speculum. A weighted speculum is placed in the vagina during vaginal surgery with the patient in the lithotomy position. The weight holds the speculum in place and frees the surgeon's hands for other tasks.
Vaginal specula are also used for anal surgery, although several other forms of anal specula exist. One common form resembles a tube that has a removable bullet shaped insert. When the specula is inserted into the rectum the insert dilates the rectum to the diameter of the tube. The insert is then removed, leaving the tube to allow examination of the rectum. This style of anal speculum is one of the oldest designs for surgical instruments still in use, with examples dating back many centuries,
All specula were formerly made of metal, and sterilized after use. However, many, especially those used in Emergency Departments and Doctor's offices, are now made of plastic, and are sterile, disposable, single-use items. Those used in surgical suites are still commonly made of metal.
Vaginal and anal specula are also sometimes used as sex toys.
Compare with:
- endoscope
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Speculum (medical)."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
The speculum feathers are the inner (secondary) flight feathers of a duck. They are often brightly coloured, especially in dabbling ducks, and can help to identify a duck in flight.Examples are:
- Common Teal: green
- Green-winged Teal: green
- Blue-winged Teal: blue
- Mallard: purple-blue edged white
- American Black Duck: purple-blue ( not edged white)
- Northern Pintail: greenish black, edged white at back and orange in front
- Gadwall: small and white, but only obvious in male
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Speculum feathers."
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Similarity | Adverb: as if, so to speak; as it were, as if it were; quasi, just as, veluti in speculum. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Speculum |
| English words defined with "speculum": Cassegrainian telescope ♦ Herschelian telescope ♦ Meatoscope ♦ Newtonian telescope ♦ reflecting telescope ♦ Silvering, Specula ♦ velvet duck. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "speculum": Angelical Stone ♦ Dee ♦ Scriptores Tres. (references) |
| Non-English Usage: "Speculum" is also a word in the following language with English translations in parentheses. Latin (copy, imitation, looking glass, mirror, reflector, specula, speculum). |
| Domain | Usage | |
Movie/TV Titles | ||
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books |
| ||
Music |
| ||
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | A numbing drop will be placed in your eye, the area around your eye will be cleaned, and an instrument called a lid speculum will be used to hold your eyelids open. A ring will be placed on your eye and very high pressures will be applied to create suction to the cornea. (references) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Speculum" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 94.44% of the time. "Speculum" is used about 36 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 94.44% | 34 | 59,261 |
| Noun (proper) | 5.56% | 2 | 245,945 |
| Total | 100.00% | 36 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "speculum": speculum metal ♦ veluti in speculum. Additional references. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "speculum"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | pasqyrë metalike, pasqyrë kirurgjie. (various references) | |
Arabic | المنظار الطبي, المنظار (spyglass), العاكس (reflector, reverberator). (various references) | |
Bulgarian | рефлектор (illuminator, reflector, reverberator), око (eye, optic, orb, winker), металическо огледало. (various references) | |
Chinese | 鐩 , 燧 (fire). (various references) | |
Czech | lékařské zrcátko. (various references) | |
Danish | spekulum, spejl (looking-glass, mirror), speculum. (various references) | |
Dutch | spiegel (looking-glass, mirror, poop, poopdeck, stern), speculum. (various references) | |
French | spéculum. (various references) | |
German | Spiegel (escutcheon, glass, lapel, level, looking-glass, mirror, mirrors, panel, reflector, tab, type area). (various references) | |
Greek | κάτοπτρο (glass, lens, reflector), σπέκουλα, μητροσκόπιο (hysteroscope), διαστολέασ. (various references) | |
Hungarian | vizsgálótükör. (various references) | |
Italian | speculum, specchio (glass, looking glass, looking-glass, mirror), catottro. (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 鼻鏡 (nasal speculum). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | びきょう (nasal speculum), はなかがみ (nasal speculum). (various references) | |
Manx | scarthane (line spacer), scaane (mirror). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | eculumspay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | espéculo. (various references) | |
Romanian | oglindã (glass, image, looking glass, mirror). (various references) | |
Russian | расширитель (bougie, dilator, enhancer, expander, extender, widener), глазок (bull's-eye, eye, occelli, occellus, peep hole, peep-hole, spyhole). (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | spekulum, metalno ogledalo. (various references) | |
Spanish | espéculo. (various references) | |
Turkish | spekulum, madeni ayna. (various references) | |
Ukrainian | рефлектор (reflector, reverberator), дзеркало (glass, looking glass, mirror). (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | speculum. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Language | Date | Source | 1 Corinthians Chapter 13, Verse 12 |
| Greek (transliterated) | 250 BC | Septuagint | Blepomen gar arti di esoptrou en ainigmati tote de proswpon proV proswpon arti ginwskw ek merouV tote de epignwsomai kaqwV kai epegnwsqhn |
| Latin | 405 | Vulgate | Videmus nunc per speculum in enigmate tunc autem facie ad faciem nunc cognosco ex parte tunc autem cognoscam sicut et cognitus sum |
| Middle English | 1395 | Wyclif | And we seen now bi a myrour in derknesse, but thanne face to face; now Y knowe of parti, but thanne Y schal knowe, as Y am knowun. |
| Renaissance English | 1526 | Tyndale | Now we se in a glasse even in a darke speakynge: but then shall we se face to face. Now I knowe vnparfectly: but then shall I knowe even as I am knowen. |
| Jacobean English | 1611 | King James | For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. |
| Victorian English | 1833 | Webster | For now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. |
| Basic English | 1964 | Ogden | For now we see things in a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now my knowledge is in part; then it will be complete, even as God's knowledge of me. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | 1 Corinthians Chapter 13, Verse 12 |
| Cebuano | Kay sa karon, kita nagasud-ong sa mga hanap nga panagway daw pinaagi ug salamin, apan nakita ra nato kini unya sa laktud nga nawong ug nawong. Sa karon, bahin lamang ang akong nahibaloan, apan unya masabtan ko ra ang tanan, maingon nga ang tanan kanako nahisabtan na. |
| Croatian | Doista, sada gledamo kroza zrcalo, u zagonetki, a tada - licem u lice! Sada spoznajem djelomièno, a tada æu spoznati savršeno, kao što sam i spoznat! |
| Danish | Nu se vi jo i et Spejl, i en Gåde, men da skulle vi se Ansigt til Ansigt; nu kender jeg stykkevis, men da skal jeg erkende, ligesom jeg jo blev erkendt. |
| Dutch | Want wij zien nu door een spiegel in een duistere rede, maar alsdan zullen wij zien aangezicht tot aangezicht; nu ken ik ten dele, maar alsdan zal ik kennen, gelijk ook ik gekend ben. |
| Finnish | Sillä nyt me näemme kuin kuvastimessa, arvoituksen tavoin, mutta silloin kasvoista kasvoihin; nyt minä tunnen vajavaisesti, mutta silloin minä olen tunteva täydellisesti, niinkuin minut itsenikin täydellisesti tunnetaan. |
| French | Aujourd`hui nous voyons au moyen d`un miroir, d`une manière obscure, mais alors nous verrons face face; aujourd`hui je connais en partie, mais alors je connaîtrai comme j`ai été connu. |
| German | Wir sehen jetzt durch einen Spiegel in einem dunkeln Wort; dann aber von Angesicht zu Angesicht. Jetzt erkenne ich's stückweise; dann aber werde ich erkennen, gleichwie ich erkannt bin. |
| Hungarian | Mert most tükör által homályosan látunk, akkor pedig színrõl-színre; most rész szerint van bennem az ismeret, akkor pedig úgy ismerek majd, a mint én is megismertettem. |
| Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hari | Apa yang kita lihat sekarang ini adalah seperti bayangan yang kabur pada cermin. Tetapi nanti kita akan melihat langsung dengan jelas. Sekarang saya belum tahu segalanya, tetapi nanti saya akan tahu segalanya sama seperti Allah tahu segalanya mengenai diri saya. |
| Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama | Karena sekarang ini kita nampak di dalam cermin muka kelam; tetapi pada masa itu kelak muka bertentang dengan muka. Maka sekarang pengetahuanku belum sempurna, tetapi pada masa itu aku akan mengetahui sebagaimana aku juga telah diketahui. |
| Latvian | Tagad mçs redzam mîklaini kâ atspulgâ, bet tad - vaigu vaigâ; tagad es atzîstu nepilnîgi, bet tad es atzîðu tâ, kâ arî es esmu atzîts. |
| Maori | Inaianei hoki he titiro pouriuri ta tatou i roto i te whakaata, ko reira ia he kanohi, he kanohi: inaianei e matau ana ahau ko tetahi wahi anake; ko reira ia ahau mohio ai me ahau i mohiotia ra. |
| Norwegian | For nu ser vi i et speil, i en gåte; men da skal vi se åsyn til åsyn; nu kjenner jeg stykkevis, men da skal jeg kjenne fullt ut, likesom jeg også fullt ut er kjent. |
| Portuguese | Porque agora vemos como por espelho, em enigma, mas então veremos face a face; agora conheço em parte, mas então conhecerei plenamente, como também sou plenamente conhecido. |
| Rumanian | Acum, vedem ca kntr`o oglindq, kn chip kntunecos; dar atunci, vom vedea fayq kn fayq. Acum, cunosc kn parte; dar atunci, voi cunoawte deplin, awa cum am fost wi eu cunoscut pe deplin. |
| Shuar | Núnisrik Yamái ju nunkanam Yus paant Wáintsuji. Ispik kusurunam iimsatniua aintsankete. Antsu ukunam mai métek paant wainniaikiattaji. Yamaikia aya ishichik nékajai. Nui antsu Yus winia nékara aintsanak nekaattajai. |
| Spanish | Ahora vemos oscuramente por medio de un espejo, pero entonces veremos cara a cara. Ahora conozco en parte, pero entonces conoceré plenamente, así como fui conocido. |
| Swahili | Tunachoona sasa ni kama tu sura hafifu katika kioo, lakini hapo baadaye tutaona uso kwa uso. Sasa ninajua kiasi fulani tu, lakini hapo baadaye nitajua yote kikamilifu, kama vile Mungu anavyonijua mimi. |
| Swedish | Nu se vi ju på ett dunkelt sätt, såsom i en spegel, men då skola vi se ansikte mot ansikte. Nu är min kunskap ett styckverk, men då skall jag känna till fullo, såsom jag själv har blivit till fullo känd. |
| Uma | Apa' tempo toi, kita' hewa tauna to mponaa lence hi pampewao' to mogawu, apa' ko'ia ta'incai hawe'ea-na hante kanoto-noto-na. Mpeno-damo pai' lako' tapaha hawe'ea-na, apa' tahilo-i Alata'ala wingke-ngkawingke. Tempo toi, ko'ia hono' pe'inca-ku. Mpeno-damo pai' lako' ku'inca mpu'u, hewa Alata'ala wo'o mpo'inca-a. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "speculum": speculums. (additional references) | |
| |
"Speculum" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: saeculum, seculum, speclum, spectlum, specul, speculem. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "c-e-l-m-p-s-u-u" | |
-1 letter: cupules. | |
-2 letters: clumps, cupels, cupule, muscle, plumes. | |
-3 letters: clues, clump, culms, cupel, luces, lumps, lupus, mucus, mules, plume, plums, puces, pules, pulse, sculp, slump, spume. | |
-4 letters: cels, ceps, clue, cues, culm, cups, cusp, ecus, elms, emus, luce, lues, lump, lums, mels, mule, muse, pecs, plum, plus, puce, pule, puls, scum, scup, slue, slum, spec. | |
| Words containing the letters "c-e-l-m-p-s-u-u" | |
+1 letter: speculums. | |
+2 letters: operculums, uncrumples. | |
+5 letters: impecuniously. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Crosswords 3. Usage: Modern 4. Usage: Commercial | 5. Images: Slideshow 6. Quotations: Non-fiction 7. Usage Frequency 8. Expressions | 9. Expressions: Internet 10. Translations: Modern 11. Translations: Ancient 12. Bible Trace | 13. Derivations 14. Anagrams 15. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
