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• spica
  spica

  noun

  spike.
• Spica
  Spica

  noun

  the brightest star in the constellation Virgo. Distance: 260 light years

spica

American  

[spahy-kuh] / ˈspaɪ kə /

noun

plural

spicae, spicas

1. spike.

2. a type of bandage in the shape of a figure eight, extending from an extremity to the trunk.

3. Astronomy. Spica, a first-magnitude star in the constellation Virgo.

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spica ¹ British  

/ ˈspaɪkə /

noun

1. med a spiral bandage formed by a series of overlapping figure-of-eight turns

2. botany another word for spike 2

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Spica ² British  

/ ˈspiːkə /

noun

1. the brightest star in the constellation Virgo. Distance: 260 light years

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Spica Scientific  

/ spī′kə /

1. A bright bluish-white binary star in the constellation Virgo, with an apparent magnitude of 0.96. Scientific name: Alpha Virginis.

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Etymology

Origin of spica

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin spīca literally, “ear of grain”; cf. spike ²

Example Sentences

“I like it because it’s tasty, and mostly because it’s good,” the 8-year-old said, though he rated a new roll with spica tuna he recently tried a “negative million.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026

Spike.—French oil of lavender, which is procured from the Lavandula spica, is generally called oil of spike.

From The Art of Perfumery And Methods of Obtaining the Odors of Plants by Piesse, George William Septimus

It is also the botanical name of the Lavandula spica, or spikenard, from which a white, aromatic and highly inflammable oil is distilled, called huile d’aspic.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 7 "Arundel, Thomas" to "Athens" by Various

The most commonly known species are L. vera, L. spica and L stæchas.

From Scientific American Supplement, No. 799, April 25, 1891 by Various

The pins are then locked in each other's loops—the punctures and skin protected by lint or adhesive plaster,—and the whole is retained by lint and a spica bandage.

From A Manual of the Operations of Surgery For the Use of Senior Students, House Surgeons, and Junior Practitioners by Bell, Joseph