Meaning & use
specialize
Last updated
Meanings
verbintransitive
To concentrate your work, study or business on one particular subject, type of product or skill.
Grammar: No object; followed by 'in': she specializes in tax law.
Patterns
- specialize in something
- specialize in doing something
My uncle specializes in restoring old clocks.
The clinic specializes in treating sports injuries.
After two years of general study, students specialize in one field.
verbintransitivebiologytechnical
In biology, to develop a particular form or function suited to a specific task or environment.
Grammar: Often passive-like in meaning: cells specialize as they develop.
Patterns
- specialize as something
- specialize for something
Stem cells specialize into nerve or muscle cells as the embryo grows.
Some finches have specialized to eat only one type of seed.
The species specialized for life in deep water over millions of years.
Word forms
| third person singular | specializes |
|---|---|
| past tense | specialized |
| past participle | specialized |
| -ing form | specializing |
| British spelling | specialise |
Common combinations
- specialize in
- The shop specializes in handmade leather goods.
- choose to specialize
- Doctors choose to specialize after medical school.
- specialize in a field
- He specialized in a field few people understood.
- highly specialized
- It takes highly specialized equipment to do this.
- specialize exclusively
- The bakery specializes exclusively in sourdough.
Synonyms and how they differ
- focus on
- Focus on is more general and temporary, while specialize in suggests a long-term professional commitment.
- concentrate on
- Concentrate on stresses directing effort, whereas specialize in names a recognized area of expertise.
- major in
- Major in is limited to a university subject, while specialize works for any career or business.
- niche down
- Niche down is informal marketing slang for narrowing a service to a small market.
Opposites
Word family
- specialist noun
- a person with expert knowledge in one area
- specialization noun
- the act of focusing on one area, or the area itself
- specialized adjective
- designed for or limited to a particular purpose
- special adjective
- different from the usual, or particular
- specialty noun
- a field in which someone is expert, or a signature item
Commonly confused: specialize or specify?
specialize vs specify
Specify means to state something clearly or in detail, and is unrelated to focusing on a field.
Practice
Dr. Okafor ___ pediatric heart surgery.
Choose one answer.
Specialize takes the preposition 'in' before the field. 'On', 'at' and 'with' are tempting but not used with this verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “specialize”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.