Result from Foreign Dictionaries (5 entries found)

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]: Spike \Spike\, n. [Akin to LG. spiker, spieker, a large nail, D. spijker, Sw. spik, Dan. spiger, Icel. sp[imac]k; 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}.] 1. A sort of very large nail; also, a piece of pointed iron set with points upward or outward. [1913 Webster] 2. Anything resembling such a nail in shape. [1913 Webster] He wears on his head the corona radiata . . .; the spikes that shoot out represent the rays of the sun. --Addison. [1913 Webster] 3. An ear of corn or grain. [1913 Webster] 4. (Bot.) A kind of flower cluster in which sessile flowers are arranged on an unbranched elongated axis. [1913 Webster] {Spike grass} (Bot.), either of two tall perennial American grasses ({Uniola paniculata}, and {Uniola latifolia}) having broad leaves and large flattened spikelets. {Spike rush}. (Bot.) See under {Rush}. {Spike shell} (Zool.), any pteropod of the genus {Styliola} having a slender conical shell. {Spike team}, three horses, or a horse and a yoke of oxen, harnessed together, a horse leading the oxen or the span. [U.S.] [1913 Webster] From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]: Spike \Spike\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Spiked}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Spiking}.] 1. To fasten with spikes, or long, large nails; as, to spike down planks. [1913 Webster] 2. To set or furnish with spikes. [1913 Webster] 3. To fix on a spike. [R.] --Young. [1913 Webster] 4. To stop the vent of (a gun or cannon) by driving a spike nail, or the like into it. [1913 Webster] [1913 Webster] From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]: Spike \Spike\, n. [Cf. G. spieke, L. spica an ear of grain. See {Spikenard}.] (Bot.) Spike lavender. See {Lavender}. [1913 Webster] {Oil of spike} (Chem.), a colorless or yellowish aromatic oil extracted from the European broad-leaved lavender, or aspic ({Lavendula Spica}), used in artist's varnish and in veterinary medicine. It is often adulterated with oil of turpentine, which it much resembles. [1913 Webster] From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]: spike n 1: a transient variation in voltage or current 2: sports equipment consisting of a sharp point on the sole of a shoe worn by athletes; "spikes provide greater traction" 3: fruiting spike of a cereal plant especially corn [syn: {ear}, {spike}, {capitulum}] 4: (botany) an indeterminate inflorescence bearing sessile flowers on an unbranched axis 5: a sharp rise followed by a sharp decline; "the seismograph showed a sharp spike in response to the temblor" 6: a very high narrow heel on women's shoes [syn: {spike heel}, {spike}, {stiletto heel}] 7: 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"; "golfers' spikes damage the putting greens" 8: a sharp-pointed projection along the top of a fence or wall (or a dinosaur) 9: a long, thin sharp-pointed implement (wood or metal); "one of the spikes impaled him" 10: any holding device consisting of a rigid, sharp-pointed object; "the spike pierced the receipts and held them in order" [syn: {spike}, {spindle}] 11: a large stout nail; "they used spikes to fasten the rails to a railroad tie" v 1: stand in the way of 2: pierce with a sharp stake or point; "impale a shrimp on a skewer" [syn: {transfix}, {impale}, {empale}, {spike}] 3: secure with spikes 4: bring forth a spike or spikes; "my hyacinths and orchids are spiking now" [syn: {spike}, {spike out}] 5: add alcohol to (beverages); "the punch is spiked!" [syn: {spike}, {lace}, {fortify}] 6: manifest a sharp increase; "the voltage spiked" From The Jargon File (version 4.4.7, 29 Dec 2003) [jargon]: spike v. 1. To defeat a selection mechanism by introducing a (sometimes temporary) device that forces a specific result. The word is used in several industries; telephone engineers refer to spiking a relay by inserting a pin to hold the relay in either the closed or open state, and railroaders refer to spiking a track switch so that it cannot be moved. In programming environments it normally refers to a temporary change, usually for testing purposes (as opposed to a permanent change, which would be called {hardwired}). 2. [borderline techspeak] A visible peak in an otherwise rather constant graph (e.g. a sudden surge in line voltage, an unexpected short ?high? on a logical line in a circuit). Hackers frequently use this for a sudden short increase in some quantity such as system load or network traffic.