noun / verb

spot

SPAHT/spɑːt/

A small localized mark or area.

A small brown spot marks the otherwise clean white shirt.

A single small brown stain on an otherwise clean white cotton shirt, illustrating the concrete mark-or-stain sense of spot.

Etymology

Spot probably comes partly from Old English splott, “blot, patch of land,” and partly from or through a relationship with Middle Dutch spotte. Its early stain and patch senses were later joined by “a particular place.”

In context

Dwell Hawaii3:27

camp moua which is a great camping spot I used to come to with my family it's a wonderful place to be quiet and to get away

Waialua, Hawaii | Low Key Living on Oahu's North Shore

More examples

The ladybug has black spots on its back.
A red spot appears on her cheek.
Drops of grease spot the paper bag.

Forms

spot · spots · spotted · spotting

spotless adjective — Completely free from marks or stains.

Similar words

stain: A discolored mark, often difficult to remove and not necessarily small.
speck: An especially tiny mark or particle on a surface.
dot: A small round mark, often deliberately drawn or printed.