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say it: spahyk
spike is a noun and verb meaning "a transient variation in voltage or current". It is pronounced /ˈspaɪk/ — spahyk. It carries 17 recorded senses.
a transient variation in voltage or current
sports equipment consisting of a sharp point on the sole of a shoe worn by athletes
“spikes provide greater traction”
(botany) an indeterminate inflorescence bearing sessile flowers on an unbranched axis
botany
a sharp rise followed by a sharp decline
“the seismograph showed a sharp spike in response to the temblor”
a very high narrow heel on women's shoes
a sharp-pointed projection along the top of a fence or wall (or a dinosaur)
any holding device consisting of a rigid, sharp-pointed object
“the spike pierced the receipts and held them in order”
Forms marked · are formed by the regular rule rather than recorded in the source data. English keeps a few hundred irregulars and the rest follow the pattern, so the rule is right far more often than not — but it is a rule, and the mark says so.
Definitions, synonyms and semantic relations for spike come from Princeton University’s WordNet. The pronunciation comes from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. Commonness is measured against a corpus of everyday English. Full sources and licences.