speculum


Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
speculum /ˈspɛkjʊləm/
noun (pl. specula /-lə/)
  • 1 Medicine a metal instrument that is used to dilate an orifice or canal in the body to allow inspection.
  • 2 Ornithology a bright patch of plumage on the wings of certain birds, especially ducks.
  • 3 a mirror or reflector, especially (formerly) a metallic mirror in a reflecting telescope. ■short for speculum metal.
– origin ME: from L., lit. ‘mirror’, from specere ‘to look’.
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