A specimen is a single example of something, especially a plant, animal, or mineral, that shows what the rest of the group is like. Scientists often keep specimens for study in labs or museums.
From Latin *specimen* “example, pattern,” from *specere* “to look at.” It originally meant something to be looked at as a sample.
Calling something a *specimen* turns it into a representative of a whole group—like one pressed leaf standing in for a whole forest. Museums and labs are basically giant organized specimen collections of the world.
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