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spiky

American  
[spahy-kee] / ˈspaɪ ki /

adjective

spikier, spikiest

  1. having a spike or spikes.

  2. having the form of a spike; spikelike.

  3. acid or peevish in temper or mood; prickly.

spiky British  
/ ˈspaɪkɪ /

adjective

  1. resembling a spike

  2. having a spike or spikes

  3. informal ill-tempered

  4. characterized by violent or aggressive methods

    spiky protestors
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Etymology

Origin of spiky

First recorded in 1570–80; spike 1 + -y 1

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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