specialty
gb/spˈɛʃəlti/ us/spˈɛʃəlti/
A2
English
~ 3400
Senses
0 senses
Noun
B1
entity
1
a person's main skill or expertise
Something a person can do very well or knows a lot about.
Usage pattern:
[someone]'s specialty is [something]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse 'specialty' with 'special,' but 'specialty' refers to a specific skill or area of focus, not just something unusual.
Synonyms
expertise (Refers to a high level of skill or knowledge, often in a professional context.)
|
strength (More general; can refer to personal qualities as well as skills.)
Antonyms
weakness (Refers to an area where someone lacks skill or ability.)
Collocations
make it your specialty
|specialty area
|specialty skill
|her specialty is
|specialty field
Themes
work
|education
|skills
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- Her specialty is designing user-friendly websites.
- Cooking Italian food is his specialty.
- The lawyer's specialty is intellectual property law.
- He made negotiation his specialty over the years.
- This restaurant's specialty is fresh seafood.
Learner examples
- Drawing is her specialty.
- My specialty is making bread.
- His specialty is fixing cars.
- This shop's specialty is chocolate cake.
- English grammar is my specialty.
Noun
A2
entity
2
a unique product of a place
A food or thing that a place is famous for making or selling.
Usage pattern:
[place]'s specialty is [something]
Common mistake:
Learners may confuse 'specialty' in this sense with 'special offer,' but 'specialty' means something characteristic, not something discounted.
Synonyms
signature dish (Used mainly for food; the dish a chef or restaurant is best known for.)
|
trademark (Figurative use; something strongly associated with a person or place.)
Collocations
house specialty
|regional specialty
|local specialty
|restaurant specialty
|chef's specialty
Themes
food
|travel
|business
|food_drink
Examples
- The house specialty is spicy ramen.
- Cheese-making is a regional specialty here.
- This bakery's specialty is sourdough bread.
- Their specialty is handmade leather bags.
- The chef's specialty is grilled salmon.
Learner examples
- The restaurant's specialty is pizza.
- Fish soup is the local specialty.
- Our café's specialty is carrot cake.
- That shop's specialty is silver jewelry.
- Rice wine is the regional specialty.
Noun
technical
B2
entity
3
a specialized professional field
A special part of a job that needs extra study and skill.
Synonyms
subfield (A smaller part of a larger academic or professional field.)
|
discipline (A formal branch of knowledge or professional practice.)
Collocations
medical specialty
|surgical specialty
|legal specialty
|choose a specialty
Themes
work
|education
|health
|law
Examples
- Cardiology is her medical specialty.
- He chose criminal law as his legal specialty.
- Neurosurgery is one of the most challenging surgical specialties.
- The conference covered many different specialties in engineering.
- She decided to switch her specialty to pediatrics.
Learner examples
- My medical specialty is eye care.
- He works in the legal specialty of family law.
- Dentistry is her specialty.
- She studies the specialty of heart surgery.
- They teach many specialties at the school.
Grammar
Dictionary form
specialty
IPA
GB/spˈɛʃəlti/
US/spˈɛʃəlti/
Syllables & stress
spe - cialty (2 syllables)
Stress on 1st syllable (spe)
Word forms
Noun
- Base: specialty
- Plural: specialties
Word family
Forms
specialties
noun
Core family
Related words
Negative and opposite forms
unspecialized
adjective
Advanced or less common
specialism
noun
Expressions
house specialty
1/hˈaʊs spˈɛʃəlti/
fixed phrase
main featured dish or product
The food or thing that a restaurant or shop is most famous for making.
Examples
- The house specialty is roast duck with plum sauce.
- You should try the house specialty when you visit the café.
make it your specialty
1/mˈeɪk ˈɪt jˈʊɹ spˈɛʃəlti/
fixed phrase
to choose something as your main skill area
To decide to work hard to become very good at one thing.
Examples
- She made it her specialty to help small businesses grow.
- He made it his specialty to train rescue dogs.