A Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue (up to 1700)
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First published 2001 (DOST Vol. IX).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
Quotation dates: 1554, 1645-1681
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Specificatio(u)n, n. [e.m.E. specification (1615), med. L. specification- f. specificāre Specify v., or OF specification (1341 in Larousse).] a. Specific mention or statement. b. A specific character or nature. c. The formation of a new property from materials belonging to another. Bell's Dictionary and Digest of the Law of Scotland (1890) s.v. Specification.— a. c1554 Misc. Bann. C. II 28.
Na specificatioun is maid that Harbargary wes ane burgh or wes ordanit to be erectit in ane burgh —b. 1645 Rutherford Tryal Faith (1743) 32.
God's rod … taketh its nature and specification from the intention and mind of God: … so as an intention to take satisfactory vengeance on the reprobate, [He] specifieth his rod, and maketh it punishment of black wrath —c. 1681 Stair Inst. ii i § 41.
That appropriation which is by specification, whereby, of materials belonging to other owners, a new species is produced
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"Specification n.". Dictionary of the Scots Language. 2004. Scottish Language Dictionaries Ltd. Accessed 13 Dec 2025 <http://www.dsl.ac.uk/entry/dost/specificatioun>
