spike

¹ American  

[spahyk] / spaɪk /

noun

1. a naillike fastener, 3 to 12 inches (7.6 to 30.5 centimeters) long and proportionately thicker than a common nail, for fastening together heavy timbers or railroad track.

2. something resembling such a nail; a stiff, sharp-pointed piece or part.

   to set spikes in the top of a cement wall.

3. a sharp-pointed piece of metal set with the point outward, as on a weapon.

4. an abrupt increase or rise.

   a chart showing a spike of unusual activity in the stock market; a sudden spike of electrical current.

5. a rectangular or naillike metal projection on the heel and sole of a shoe for improving traction, as of a baseball player or a runner.

6. spikes, a pair of shoes having such projections.

7. the unbranched antler of a young deer.

8. Botany. a flower stalk.

9. a pointed portion of a continuous curve or graph, usually rising above the adjacent portion.

   a spike in the value of the voltage.

10. Volleyball. a hard smash, hit close to the net, almost straight down into the opponent's court.

11. Slang. a hypodermic needle.

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verb (used with object)

• spikes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• spiked,
  past participle,  past
• spiking
  present participle

1. to fasten or secure with a spike or spikes.

2. to provide or set with a spike or spikes.

3. to pierce with or impale on a spike.

4. to set or stud with something suggesting spikes.

5. to injure (another player or a competitor) with the spikes of one's shoe, as in baseball.

6. Volleyball. to hit (a ball in the air) with a powerful, overarm motion from a position close to the net so as to cause it to travel almost straight down into the court of the opponents.

7. Football. to slam (the ball) to the ground in the end zone, after scoring a touchdown.

8. to render (a muzzle-loading gun) useless by driving a spike into the touchhole.

9. to make ineffective; frustrate or thwart.

   to spike a rumor; to spike someone's chances for promotion.

10. Informal.

    1. to add alcoholic liquor to (a drink).

    2. to add (a chemical, poison, or other substance) to.

       The cocoa was spiked with cyanide.

11. Journalism Slang. to refuse (a story) by or as if by placing on a spindle.

verb (used without object)

• spikes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• spiked,
  past participle,  past
• spiking
  present participle

1. to rise or increase sharply (often followed byup ).

   Interest rates spiked up last week.

idioms

1. spike someone's guns. gun.

spike ² American  

[spahyk] / spaɪk /

noun

1. an ear, as of wheat or other grain.

2. Botany. an inflorescence in which the flowers are without a stalk, or apparently so, along an elongated, unbranched axis.

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spike ¹ British  

/ spaɪk /

noun

1. a sharp point

2. any sharp-pointed object, esp one made of metal

3. a long metal nail

4. physics

   1. a transient variation in voltage or current in an electric circuit

   2. a graphical recording of this, such as one of the peaks on an electroencephalogram

5. (plural) shoes with metal projections on the sole and heel for greater traction, as used by athletes

6. the straight unbranched antler of a young deer

7. slang another word for dosshouse

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verb

1. to secure or supply with or as with spikes

2. to render ineffective or block the intentions of; thwart

3. to impale on a spike

4. to add alcohol to (a drink)

5. journalism to reject (a news story)

6. volleyball to hit (a ball) sharply downwards with an overarm motion from the front of one's own court into the opposing court

7. (formerly) to render (a cannon) ineffective by blocking its vent with a spike

8. to thwart someone's purpose

spike ² British  

/ spaɪk /

noun

1. an inflorescence consisting of a raceme of sessile flowers, as in the gladiolus and sedges

2. an ear of wheat, barley, or any other grass that has sessile spikelets

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spike Scientific  

/ spīk /

1. An elongated indeterminate inflorescence in which the flowers are attached directly to a common stem, rather than borne on individual stalks arising from the stem. The gladiolus produces spikes. The distinctive spikes of grasses such as wheat or barley are known as spikelets.

2. See illustration at inflorescence

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• spikelike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• spiking
  present
• spiked
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• spike
  simple
• spikes
  simple
• have spiked
  perfect
• has spiked
  perfect
• am spiking
  progressive
• are spiking
  progressive
• is spiking
  progressive
• have been spiking
  perfect progressive
• has been spiking
  perfect progressive

Past

• spiked
  simple
• had spiked
  perfect
• was spiking
  progressive
• were spiking
  progressive
• had been spiking
  perfect progressive

Future

• will spike
  simple
• will have spiked
  perfect
• will be spiking
  progressive
• will have been spiking
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of spike¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English noun spik(e), from Old Norse spīkr “nail”; akin to Old Norse spīk “splinter,” Middle Low German spīker “nail”

Origin of spike²

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English spik(e), spika, probably special use of spike ¹, influenced by Latin spīca “ear of grain”

Explanation

A spike is a sharp point, often made of metal or wood, but not always. Hedgehogs have long skinny spikes that keep them from being eaten by predators. The wide metal nails that fasten railroad ties to rails are called "rail spikes." A spike can be big like those rail spikes, or small like the ones on the bottom of a cleat. And, extremely high-heeled shoes are sometimes called "spike heels." When something increases and abruptly decreases, like the price of sugar or a fever, it spikes. To spike a volleyball, smash it over the net. Spike shares a root with the Latin spina, for "spine or thorn."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

spike spikes spiked spiking

The spike in oil prices fanned inflation fears again and put fresh upward pressure on government bond yields to multi-year highs.

From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026

The UK's data watchdog is investigating a spike in complaints about "robo calls" - where a recorded voice asks you to add them on WhatsApp - that are suspected to lead to a recruitment scam.

From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026

Such truckers work load to load and often can’t raise rates when fuel prices spike, the way their larger competitors can.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Prior to this latest episode, investors hadn’t seen such a large spike in the number of negative beta stocks since shortly after the dot-com bubble peaked.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026

A person having a strong emotional reaction is going to "spike" a conductivity meter.

From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman

The fires have created severe haze locally, with tens of thousands of cases of respiratory illnesses, and also caused regional air pollution spikes in Singapore and Malaysia.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

“It’s no surprise that at the end of the quarter, there’s spikes one way or another because people want to look good, people want to hedge their losses,” Lescure said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 7, 2026

The recent sudden spikes in fuel prices are making it trickier.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026

Shortly after 6am, an analyst at the University of Utah Seismograph Stations sees a series of sharp spikes interrupting the usually quiet wavy lines recorded by Yellowstone’s earthquake monitors.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026

Thick horns curved like an elaborate headdress around their lumpy faces and rows of short spikes ran across their sand-colored bodies.

From "Dactyl Hill Squad" by Daniel José Older

Then, in an 0-and-2 count to Ozzie Albies, Glasnow spiked a curveball in front of the plate.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

But when rents spiked after the pandemic, the East Lansing native watched longtime friends in the area move out of town.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026

The tensions spiked after a court in the early hours of Sunday cleared the march by the Orange Order to go ahead.

From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026

The number of women who died after an ectopic pregnancy has spiked in recent years, a ProPublica analysis found.

From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026

With that, the giant spiked sphere was released and dropped down a chute.

From "The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge" by M.T. Anderson and Eugene Yelchin

A growing parade of companies—from Anthropic to Dunkin’ owner Inspire Brands—have revisited their listing plans as spiking bond yields, volatile oil prices and an intensifying debate around AI safety dent investor enthusiasm.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026

And they forecast that this year’s event could be the strongest on record, spiking sea temperatures far above normal.

From Slate ● Sep. 28, 2026

Despite higher bond yields and spiking energy prices, there’s still a case for keeping your equities, according to Barclays.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026

That’s just one of countless reasons why energy prices are predicted to keep spiking.

From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026

Don Hume was still in bed, his fever spiking once again, and Al Ulbrickson had decided he could not row.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown