speckle

1 of 2

noun

speck·​le ˈspe-kəl 

: a little speck (as of color)

speckle

2 of 2

verb

speckled; speckling ˈspe-k(ə-)liŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to mark with speckles

2

: to be distributed in or on like speckles

Synonyms of speckle

Noun

• fleck
• speck
• dot
• blotch
• patch

Verb

• sprinkle
• dot
• stain
• pepper
• fleck
• dye
• speck

Examples of speckle in a Sentence

Noun

a ripe banana with lots of brown speckles

the cat has a speckle of orange right at her whiskers

Verb

speckled the cookies with colored sugar

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Others show pitas and sandwiches with sauces spread in a latticed pattern, or tortillas with odd speckles that might be the computer’s attempt at natural-seeming char from a comal. — Daniel Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026

The designs include a bright orange mug, a white mug with orange dots and a to-go iced coffee cup complete with an orange straw, white speckles and a tiny orange pumpkin detail. — Carly Sauvageau, USA Today, 19 Aug. 2026

Verb

Black renders the majority of the sneaker, but red rears its head again through speckling on the midsole, TPU flyplate, full medial Swoosh and lining. — Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 24 Sep. 2026

And this image has no shortage of suns, with twinkling stars speckling the entire cosmic landscape, diffraction spikes and all. — Chelsea Gohd, Space.com, 16 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English; akin to Old English specca

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing speckle

• speckle interferometry

Rhymes for speckle

• decal
• freckle
• meckel
• shekel
• thecal

Kids Definition

speckle

1 of 2 noun

speck·​le ˈspek-əl 

: a small mark (as of color)

speckle

2 of 2 verb

speckled; speckling ˈspek-(ə-)liŋ 

: to mark with speckles