as in speck
a very small piece
surreptitiously removed a flyspeck of dirt from the china
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Recent Examples of flyspeck
That’s a flyspeck in a galaxy that measures 100,000 light years across and a universe that is a staggering 94 billion light years.
—
Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 21 Dec. 2022
Sooty blotch looks like a brown or black blotch on the fruit; sooty blotch, unlike flyspeck, will wipe off the fruit.
—Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 June 2022
Travelers jumping into the West Texas badlands from Mexico through Candelaria, a flyspeck village 50 miles up two-lane blacktop northwest of Presidio, might be deceived by the prevailing verdant quiet.
—Dudley Althaus, San Antonio Express-News, 26 June 2021
To those who grew up with Duncan in the U.S. Virgin Islands, their friend’s voyage from a picturesque flyspeck in the middle of the ocean to the basketball Hall of Fame was equal parts preordained and inconceivable.
—Jeff McDonald, San Antonio Express-News, 14 May 2021
But with a thousand islands scattered along their country’s jade-green Adriatic coast, from deserted flyspecks to hipster outposts, there’s no shortage of places to lick one’s wounds—or bask in silver-medal glory.
—Anja Mutić, WSJ, 19 July 2018
That is why presidential candidates hire squads of lawyers to flyspeck donations during a campaign.
—The Editorial Board, WSJ, 3 May 2018
Compared to this, Comcast is a flyspeck, and Charter hasn’t even gotten started.
—David Dayen, The New Republic, 30 Apr. 2018
Amid these forces, Fed rate hikes are a relative flyspeck, says Doug Duncan, chief economist of Fannie Mae.
—Paul Davidson, USA TODAY, 14 June 2017
Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 21 Dec. 2022
Sooty blotch looks like a brown or black blotch on the fruit; sooty blotch, unlike flyspeck, will wipe off the fruit.
—Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 June 2022
Travelers jumping into the West Texas badlands from Mexico through Candelaria, a flyspeck village 50 miles up two-lane blacktop northwest of Presidio, might be deceived by the prevailing verdant quiet.
—Dudley Althaus, San Antonio Express-News, 26 June 2021
To those who grew up with Duncan in the U.S. Virgin Islands, their friend’s voyage from a picturesque flyspeck in the middle of the ocean to the basketball Hall of Fame was equal parts preordained and inconceivable.
—Jeff McDonald, San Antonio Express-News, 14 May 2021
But with a thousand islands scattered along their country’s jade-green Adriatic coast, from deserted flyspecks to hipster outposts, there’s no shortage of places to lick one’s wounds—or bask in silver-medal glory.
—Anja Mutić, WSJ, 19 July 2018
That is why presidential candidates hire squads of lawyers to flyspeck donations during a campaign.
—The Editorial Board, WSJ, 3 May 2018
Compared to this, Comcast is a flyspeck, and Charter hasn’t even gotten started.
—David Dayen, The New Republic, 30 Apr. 2018
Amid these forces, Fed rate hikes are a relative flyspeck, says Doug Duncan, chief economist of Fannie Mae.
—Paul Davidson, USA TODAY, 14 June 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flyspeck
Noun
-
When dishes air-dry, especially in a dishwasher or on a drying rack, the water evaporates, and these minerals remain on the surface, forming those unsightly white or grayish specks.—
Nafeesah Allen,
Better Homes & Gardens,
2 June 2025
-
Her path had been ambitiously charted to include a refuelling stop on Howland Island, a speck between Hawaii and Australia.—
Laurie Gwen Shapiro,
New Yorker,
2 June 2025
Noun
-
Santo My Palo can best be described as an otherworldly nude shade with multicolored glittery flecks suspended in the gel that reflect light for a mega-watt sparkle.—
Fiona Embleton,
Glamour,
27 May 2025
-
The formula—which sparkles in the bottle with rose-gold flecks of glitter—is made more indulgent yet with its gourman, coconut-milk scent.—
Jenny Berg,
Vogue,
23 May 2025
Noun
-
From its cute-fake soundstage-town setting to the authoritative yet chummy voice-over narration (courtesy of Nick Offerman), The Life of Chuck works doggedly to give you the warm fuzzies—and a little bit of that fuzz goes a long way.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
6 June 2025
-
Not only is sitting on the potty all by yourself a little bit scary, but nobody likes putting play to a stop to use the potty, either.—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
6 June 2025
Noun
-
The science transparency rule in the first Trump administration was intended to limit the EPA’s ability to consider epidemiologic studies like those that established the health harms from exposure to secondhand smoke and to PM2.5, fine particles often from pollution.—
H. Christopher Frey,
The Conversation,
5 June 2025
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Large particles from Sahara dust can also cause skin and eye irritation, the CDC said.—
Leah Sarnoff,
ABC News,
4 June 2025
Noun
-
Chase is the arena sponsor for the Golden State Warriors, while Rakuten has a patch on the team’s jersey.—
Lillian Rizzo,
CNBC,
5 June 2025
-
Some cancer patients with intractable pain use a fentanyl patch or fentanyl lozenge, for example.—
Katia Hetter,
CNN Money,
5 June 2025
Noun
-
Women can supplement magnesium, but Messer says the best food sources of it are nuts (especially almonds and cashews), pumpkin and chia seeds, whole grains and dark chocolate.—
Daryl Austin,
USA Today,
7 June 2025
-
Hemp's federal legalization would apply to products such as grains, oil, nuts, fiber and some edible leaves but not cannabinoid products.—
James Bickerton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 June 2025
Noun
-
In 2018, inspired by this culture of bricolage, curator Danni Friedman and designer Jean Lee gathered a group of designers in Havana for a ten-day workshop, turning them loose in an old shipyard factory filled with clay, concrete mix, scrap metal, and assorted junk.—
Glenn Adamson,
Artforum,
1 June 2025
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Wang Cong Closing out the UFC 316 early prelims is a women’s flyweight scrap between Ariane da Silva (17-10) and Wang Cong (7-1).—
Trent Reinsmith,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2025
Noun
-
Such a life of snippets from childhood to young adulthood shows the initial foundation of a journey driven by great wine and fantastic food, shared in an atmosphere of generosity and wonderment.—
Cathrine Todd,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2025
-
The most potent moments tend to occur on the periphery of the action, in snippets featuring the billionaires’ downstairs courtier class, the assistants and lawyers who hustle at the corners of Hugo’s mansion.—
Kyle Chayka,
New Yorker,
4 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Flyspeck.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flyspeck. Accessed 13 Jun. 2025.
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