piqued 1 of 2

adjective

as in infuriated

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piqued

2 of 2

verb

past tense of pique
1
as in annoyed
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts her seat companion piqued her by repeatedly poking her in the ribs

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in provoked
to rouse to strong feeling or action their sarcastic comments piqued him to respond in kind

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in prided
to think highly of (oneself) she piques herself on her considerable musical abilities

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of piqued
Verb
The Chinese government’s interest may have been piqued by Rogers’ behavior on dating apps. — Eamon Javers, CNBC, 30 Sep. 2026 Indeed, most people seemed to use the panels as a chance to sit quietly and reply to emails or put the final touches on a working paper, only emerging from their absorption when a specific presentation piqued their curiosity. — Bartolomeo Sala, The Dial, 29 Sep. 2026 The secrecy surrounding Google’s work piqued the interest of experts and spurred them to openly reproduce the result. — Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 22 Sep. 2026 But watching her now-husband buy a house piqued her interest in the industry. — Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 21 Sep. 2026 The unusual circumstances that piqued the interest of casual players was hailed as a once-in-a-lifetime gift that would widen the playing field for gaming consumers. — Jennifer Maas, Variety, 10 Sep. 2026 Learning about his great grandmother, Sarah Miller, whom his mother had known as a child, piqued his interest. — Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 6 Sep. 2026 European interest in the island was piqued by its location along prime commercial shipping routes. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 Aug. 2026 My journalistic interest in the world’s favorite dessert was first piqued on a gloomy December day in 2009, when a friend and I toured a chocolate factory. — Kendra Nordin Beato, Christian Science Monitor, 21 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piqued
  1. outraged
  2. annoyed
  3. provoked
  4. prided
  5. angry
  6. bothered
  7. encouraged
  8. congratulated
Adjective
  • After a concertgoer died in the audience at a Carson music festival on Saturday, an artist is outraged the show continued while the deceased was still on-site.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Its students arrive morally outraged, a priori puritans, while its professors are enervated and dissatisfied.
    — Zain Khalid, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of outraged
Verb
  • Stewart was annoyed that a game against the Washington Mystics earlier in the year took nearly three hours to complete.
    — Ryan Gaydos OutKick, FOXNews.com, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Part of me is annoyed that the process didn’t hand me a neat solution.
    — Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of annoyed
Verb
  • Even in a country with one of the highest murder rates in the world, the scale of the killings in such a short space of time has provoked shock.
    — Nimi Princewill, CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Ayer came on board the film after reading Cameron Alexander’s script, which provoked such a strong emotional response that the director couldn’t resist taking the material on.
    — Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of provoked
Verb
  • The special administrative region has long prided itself on minimal government intervention in the economy, even as officials have increasingly referenced Beijing’s vision for the city.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Parton prided herself on the success of her Imagination Library, which has given more than 330 million books to children around the world.
    — Rachel DeSantis, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of prided
Adjective
  • Carmella is also still mad at Vicki for saying that Danny is raising her kids, and Heather is angry after learning that Vicki called her fake in Palm Springs.
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Henriette Reker, who served two terms as the mayor of Cologne, Germany, until last year, survived an assassination attempt, in 2015, by a far-right assailant angry about migration.
    — Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of angry
Verb
  • And he cannot be bothered with mentioning any of them even when discussing Watson's history.
    — Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Thomas has been estranged from the organization for months over a social media faux pas that bothered him and a lawsuit over sales of his jersey.
    — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of bothered
Verb
  • Doe’s attorney, Thomas Giuffra told CNN his client remains committed to working with Attorney General Letitia James’ investigation and is encouraged by her appointment.
    — Rebekah Riess, CNN Money, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Many of these culture-creating behaviors have been observed in 2026 Anthropic studies of multi-agent systems this year that encouraged complex collaboration.
    — Michael Morris, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of encouraged
Verb
  • Last week, Mancini congratulated Flanagan on his series adaptation of King’s 1974 debut novel.
    — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026
  • The French Academy of Sciences, of which Kagan is a member, congratulated the two scientists and expressed its pride in the prize.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of congratulated

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Cite this Entry

“Piqued.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piqued. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.

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