piqued
Americanadjective
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(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.
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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.
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(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
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of piqued
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Tolo’s introduction to Johnson came in 2016: She saw a quote of his featured in a newsletter about the evolution of humans and AI, and it piqued her interest.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
The FBI agent from Connecticut piqued investigators’ interest, as did another man thought to have ties to the CIA, but that line of inquiry went nowhere.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
That success has piqued the interest of lawyers and academics in Northern Ireland, who are trying to find ways to support the restoration of Lough Neagh.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026
His Uncle Frank telling jokes from behind the bar in one of these taverns first piqued Dreesen’s interest in comedy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026
Neylan had been a regent for nearly a decade when the Harvard offer piqued his curiosity and brought him to the door of the Rad Lab.
From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik
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.
