Meaning and Origin
What does the name Spike mean? Keep reading to find the user submitted meanings, dictionary definitions, and more.
Origin and Meaning of Spike
User Submitted Origins
English
67%
Hindu
13%
Islamic/Muslim
7%
Native American
7%
Slavic
7%
User Submitted Meanings
- According to a user from Alabama, U.S., the name Spike means "Helper/Defender/Caretaker".
International Interest
Also see international interest
Webster's Unabridged Dictionary
noun Spike
Senses
- A sort of very large nail; also, a piece of pointed iron set with points upward or outward.
- Anything resembling such a nail in shape."He wears on his head the corona radiata . . . ; the spikes that shoot out represent the rays of the sun." [Addison.]
- An ear of corn or grain.
- [Bot] A kind of flower cluster in which sessile flowers are arranged on an unbranched elongated axis.
Etymology: Akin to LG. spiker spieker, a large nail, D. spijker, Sw. spik, Dan. spiger, Icel. spīk; all perhaps from L. spica a point, an ear of grain; but in the sense of nail more likely akin to E. spoke of a wheel. Cf. Spine
verb Spike
Senses
- To fasten with spikes, or long, large nails; as, to spike down planks.
- To set or furnish with spikes.
- To fix on a spike.(R)
- To stop the vent of (a gun or cannon) by driving a spike nail, or the like into it.
noun Spike
Spike lavender. See Lavender.
Etymology: Cf. G. spieke, L. spica an ear of grain. See Spikenard
Other Dictionary Sources
- Sports equipment consisting of a sharp point on the sole of a shoe worn by athletes ("spikes provide greater traction")
- A large stout nail ("they used spikes to fasten the rails to a railroad tie")
- Any holding device consisting of a rigid, sharp-pointed object ("the spike pierced the receipts and held them in order")
- A long, thin sharp-pointed implement (wood or metal) ("one of the spikes impaled him")
- A sharp-pointed projection along the top of a fence or wall (or a dinosaur)
- Each of the sharp points on the soles of athletic shoes to prevent slipping (or the shoes themselves) ("the second baseman sharpened his spikes before every game" and "golfers' spikes damage the putting greens")
- A very high narrow heel on women's shoes
- A transient variation in voltage or current
- A sharp rise followed by a sharp decline ("the seismograph showed a sharp spike in response to the temblor")
- (botany) an indeterminate inflorescence bearing sessile flowers on an unbranched axis
- Fruiting spike of a cereal plant especially corn
- Manifest a sharp increase ("the voltage spiked")
- Add alcohol to (beverages) ("the punch is spiked!")
- Bring forth a spike or spikes
- Secure with spikes
- Pierce with a sharp stake or point
- Stand in the way of
Wiktionary
From Latin spīca (“ear of grain”). In the sense of a workhouse, perhaps from the metal nail used for picking oakum.
- A sort of very large nail; also, a piece of pointed iron set with points upward/outward.
- Anything resembling such a nail in shape.
- An ear of corn or grain.
- (botany) A kind of inflorescence in which sessile flowers are arranged on an unbranched elongated axis.
- (in plural ; informal) Running shoes with spikes in the soles.
- A sharp peak in a graph.
- The long, narrow part of a high-heeled shoe that elevates the heel.
- A long nail for storing papers and, by extension, the metaphorical place where rejected newspaper articles are sent.
- (volleyball) An attack from, usually, above the height of the net performed with the intent to send the ball straight to the floor of the opponent or off the hands of the opposing block.
- (zoology) An adolescent male deer.
- A surge in power.
- (slang) The casual ward of a workhouse.
- Spike lavender.
- oil of