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
-
After drying, Messinger meticulously cleans the artifacts with delicate animal-hair brushes and painstakingly removes rust, fleck by fleck, with a dental pick.—
Tammy Ljungblad,
Kansas City Star,
22 Apr. 2025
-
The blue is speckled with some white flecks, which reminds me of blue enamelware pots and pans for a down-home aesthetic.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
26 Mar. 2025
Noun
-
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
-
During a typically silent week of the NFL offseason, football fans and bettors got a a rare bit of early-June fodder with the report this week that Aaron Rodgers will be signing a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers.—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
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
-
Large particles from Sahara dust can also cause skin and eye irritation, the CDC said.—
Leah Sarnoff,
ABC News,
4 June 2025
Noun
-
Some cancer patients with intractable pain use a fentanyl patch or fentanyl lozenge, for example.—
Katia Hetter,
CNN Money,
5 June 2025
-
The disease causes the soft tissue in the corals to slough off, leaving behind white patches of exposed skeleton.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
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
-
Meanwhile, in the UFC Atlanta co-main event, former two-time UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas faces the rising Miranda Maverick in a flyweight scrap.—
Trent Reinsmith,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2025
-
Authorities were able to track down the suspect thanks to fingerprints on the bag covering the woman and a scrap of a tent like ones provided to people without shelter, the newspaper said.—
Colleen Barry,
Los Angeles Times,
13 June 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 19 Jun. 2025.
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