1
as in to stab
to penetrate or hold (something) with a pointed object
scorpions use their stinger-equipped tails to spike their prey
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to stimulate
to give life, vigor, or spirit to
he spiked what otherwise would have been a dry economic lecture with some jokes and anecdotes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
2
as in jump
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of spike
IEEE Spectrum, 2 Oct. 2025
Six punts have been returned for a touchdown — a dramatic spike considering that the league saw only six touchdowns scored off punt returns all of last season.
—Mike Jones, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
Alex Harring, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2025
Continue reading … TAX CREDIT SHOWDOWN – Dems in the hot seat after Obamacare’s spiking premium costs torpedo their narrative.
—FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spike
Verb
The biggest spike occurred during the 1990 World Cup semifinal.
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 Oct. 2025
Six punts have been returned for a touchdown — a dramatic spike considering that the league saw only six touchdowns scored off punt returns all of last season.
—Mike Jones, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
Noun
The group’s share of the total unemployed population spiked to its highest percentage in decades.
—Alex Harring, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2025
Continue reading … TAX CREDIT SHOWDOWN – Dems in the hot seat after Obamacare’s spiking premium costs torpedo their narrative.
—FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for spike
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spike
Verb
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The admission came the day after two Jewish worshipers were killed and three others seriously injured in a car ramming and stabbing attack outside the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue in the Manchester suburb of Crumpsall on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism.—
Peter Wilkinson,
CNN Money,
3 Oct. 2025
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One of the victims had been stabbed several times in the head and was taken to a hospital for treatment, police said.—
Harriet Ramos,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
States generally had strong revenue growth in 2021 and 2022 because of economic growth, which included federal aid to stimulate the economy.—
Bram Sable-Smith,
NPR,
5 Oct. 2025
-
The data delay comes at a time when economists were looking for signs of a rebound in the job market after months of disappointing reports and when the Fed is expected to announce at least one additional rate cut before the end of the year to stimulate growth.—
Rachel Barber,
USA Today,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Nix stood in a clean pocket and delivered a dart to Sutton at the first-down marker, and the veteran broke a tackle to gain 19 more yards.—
Nick Kosmider,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
-
The pair were seen playing darts surrounded by a film crew, according to social media posts.—
Diana Leyva,
Nashville Tennessean,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
He could be primed to make a big jump next season, though.—
Andrew Baggarly,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
-
Bunny hopping is nothing new for first-person shooters; spamming the jump button to confuse foes is a decades-old tactic.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In April, Kismet by Milka opened a London flagship at 110 New Bond Street, which spans 1,500 square feet across two floors with two piercing studios.—
Hikmat Mohammed,
Footwear News,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Touches five and six are merely the cajoling preamble to the pièce de résistance, aka touch seven, a piercing through ball which splits defender Goncalo Inacio and backtracking forward Geny Catamo like a warm bread knife through a ciabatta roll straight out of Mama’s oven.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Add corn and 3/4 teaspoon of the salt; cook, stirring often, until tender, about 4 minutes.—
Elizabeth Mervosh,
Southern Living,
5 Oct. 2025
-
Cook over medium heat until onion is tender and sausage begins to brown, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes.—
Sarah Martens,
Better Homes & Gardens,
5 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Moving backward and forward through time, the hut seems like the spear, which seems like the stone, the diorama, and the photograph, like my laptop and your magazine.—
Harmon Siegel,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
-
And Paleo Dad grumbles but goes and picks up his spear.—
Inga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
This is consistent with the upturn in the IWF/IWD ratio that also favors growth.—
Tom Aspray,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
-
But then, like how that summer’s World Cup prompted an upturn in football interest across England, 1990 also produced a wave of players who would contribute to the English national team reaching the past two European Championship finals.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spike.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spike. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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