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specere

Specere is a Latin verb meaning to look at, behold, or observe. It appears primarily as an infinitive form in classical and later Latin, where it serves as the base for a number of prefixed verbs that shade the sense of looking or examining. Common compounds include conspicere (to catch sight of), inspicere (to inspect or look into), respicere (to look back at or regard), and perspicere (to look through, to discern clearly). Through these prefixes, specere gives rise to a family of related terms that describe various modes of looking or examining.

In Latin morphology, specere functions as a nonstandalone base used to create verbs with directional or evaluative

Etymology and cognates: Specere derives from an older Proto-Italic root meaning “to look.” This root has given

See also:

- Latin verbs and conjugation

- Indo-European roots related to sight

- English derivatives from Latin spect- and spec-

Notes: Specere is primarily of interest in linguistic and Latin-language contexts as a morphological base rather

meanings,
often
focusing
aspects
of
perception
such
as
looking,
examining,
or
recognizing.
The
precise
forms
of
these
derivatives
vary
by
verb,
with
each
prefixed
form
contributing
its
own
nuance
to
the
core
idea
of
“looking.”
rise
to
a
broad
set
of
Latin
and
Romance-language
words
related
to
seeing
and
appearance,
and
it
underpins
a
large
family
of
English
derivatives.
Words
in
English
such
as
spectacle,
spectator,
inspection,
and
perspective
trace
their
semantic
field
back
to
this
same
root
associated
with
looking
and
observing.
than
as
a
frequently
used
standalone
verb
in
everyday
Latin
prose.