special case

Speech parts

1. special case - Noun

2. special case - Verb

Meaning

a class of phenomena that is a subset of a more general class

a theorem or other statement that follows directly from a more general statement

special case (third-person singular simple present special cases, present participle special casing, simple past and past participle special cased)

(transitive, intransitive, chiefly programming) To treat something as a special case; to handle in an explicitly different way.

special-case (third-person singular simple present special-cases, present participle special-casing, simple past and past participle special-cased)

Alternative form of special case (“treat specially”)

Alternative names

special-case

Synonyms

Antonyms

Examples

The art of doing mathematics consists in finding that special case which contains all the germs of generality. David Hilbert

The psychology of committees is a special case of the psychology of mobs. Celia Green

Goats," said Maxwell Hyde, "are a special case. Mad as hatters, all of them. Diana Wynne Jones

Design is really a special case of problem solving. Edward de Bono

Tibet is a special case. Tibet was deliberately set aside by the Empire as free and neutral territory, a Switzerland for the spirit where there is no extradition, and Alp-Himalayas to draw the soul upward, and danger rare enough to tolerate. Thomas Pynchon

The real world is a special case. Latin Proverb

Close letter words and terms