in specie

adverb

In respect to kind

“Although the power of a king is lesser in degree than an emperor, it is the similar in specie.”

OriginLatin in →
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Meanings

adverbin specie (not comparable)
  1. not comparableobsoleteIn respect to kind

    Although the power of a king is lesser in degree than an emperor, it is the similar in specie.

  2. not comparablebusinessIn the actual form, especially in the context of a distribution of assets or a loan repayment.
  3. not comparablebusinessIn coin or monetary metal, in contrast to fiat currency or other paper.

    "The estate of £500 a-year I have given to you, Mr Jones: and as I know the inconvenience which attends the want of ready money, I have added £1000 in specie."

    1749, Henry Fielding, chapter VII, in The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volume (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC, book V

Origin

  1. Latinin
  2. Englishin specie

Borrowed from Latin in + specie, ablative singular form of species (“kind, form; type”).

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

in specie. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/in%20specie

MLA

“in specie.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/in%20specie. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “in specie,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/in%20specie.

Source: in specie on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.