piqued

[peekt]

adjective

1. (of interest, curiosity, etc.) excited or aroused.

   By the end of the talk the audience had tons of questions, and left with a piqued interest in the world of lion research.

2. irritated and resentful, especially because of an injury to one’s pride.

   The Act triggered President Truman's piqued reaction: he found the bill "un-American" and vetoed it, but to no avail.

3. (of pride, vanity, etc.) wounded.

   Unimaginable horrors often result from nothing more than a move to second place, a public embarrassment, or a piqued ego.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of pique.

Other Word Forms

• unpiqued adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of piqued¹

pique ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

“It was just something that piqued my curiosity,” she said.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Other topics of conversation have piqued the firm’s interest.

Read more on Barron's

In a state of exhaustion, my curiosity piqued.

Read more on Salon

For over a decade, Superchief has established itself as a place where punk rockers, graffiti writers, street photographers, homegrown fine artists and anyone with a piqued interest in counterculture gather to celebrate art.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Sir Ben says that is what first piqued his interest, with the script being a final clincher.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• annoyed 
• bitter 
• enraged www.thesaurus.com
• exasperated 
• furious 
• heated 
• impassioned 
• indignant 
• irate 
• irritable 
• irritated 
• mad 
• offended 
• outraged www.thesaurus.com
• resentful 
• sullen 
• uptight