Spike (Verb)
Meaning 1
Manifest a sharp increase; "the voltage spiked".
Classification
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc..
Examples
- Food prices spiked as drought ravaged the crops and supply chains were disrupted worldwide.
- The company's profits spiked after the release of their latest innovative product.
- Inflation spiked due to shortages of critical raw materials and components.
- The popularity of outdoor activities spiked as the warm weather continued into late fall.
- Energy consumption spiked as the intense cold snap caused people to turn on the heat in their homes.
Related Words
Meaning 2
Secure with spikes.
Classification
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging.
Examples
- The fence was secured to prevent intruders by spike the bottom of the metal sheets into the ground.
- To prevent them from being moved the large metal stakes were used to spike them into the earth.
- They made sure to spike the wheels firmly into place to prevent loss during transit.
- The construction crew needed to spike each steel girder into its required position before the concrete was poured.
- In the military camp the equipment was spiked into place for added security overnight.
Hypernyms
Related Words
Meaning 3
Add alcohol to (beverages); "the punch is spiked!".
Classification
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc..
Examples
- She covertly spiked her coworker's drink, which was not caught until later that evening.
- Someone had spiked the fruit punch with vodka, and now everyone was getting more inebriated by the minute.
- After that incident, the party host made sure to monitor the beverages closely to prevent anyone from spiking them.
- The famous movie scene featured a character who had spiked her roommate's coffee with a sedative.
- Don't even think about spiking the drinks of the band members again, it's not funny and can have serious consequences.
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Meaning 4
Pierce with a sharp stake or point; "impale a shrimp on a skewer".
Classification
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging.
Examples
- She tried to spike the chicken breast with metal skewers for the barbeque, but they kept slipping out.
- The fisherman carefully had to spike the large shark that had been caught to prevent further struggling.
- Aunt Edna tried her luck at making kebabs by spiking the vegetables with a fork and threading them onto skewers.
- Due to his years of inexperience, John ended up almost spiking his hand with the metal kebab skewer.
- She learned how to spike the shrimp tail and thread them onto the bamboo skewers to make delicious seafood satay.
Synonyms
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Hyponyms
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Meaning 5
Stand in the way of.
Classification
Verbs of political and social activities and events.
Examples
- Their long-standing feud would spike any attempt at reconciliation between the two families.
- Her fear of public speaking could spike her anxiety and make presentations nearly impossible.
- The company's new policy would spike many employee benefits and perks previously enjoyed.
- Concerns about data security could spike the plans for a cloud-based system.
- High development costs would spike the proposal for a new community center.
Hypernyms
Meaning 6
Bring forth a spike or spikes; "my hyacinths and orchids are spiking now".
Classification
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc..
Examples
- My amaryllis is spiking now and should bloom soon in the greenhouse.
- The unusual weather has caused some of the flowers to spike earlier than expected this season.
- Her well-placed heat lamps caused the orchids to spike rapidly in the dead of winter.
- My bulbs are finally spiking after being stored in the cold room for several months.
- The grower applied organic fertilizers to the plants, and they promptly started spiking.