pique

C2+ Topic:Emotions & Feelings

US /pik/ UK /piːk/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
a feeling of irritation or resentment; to stimulate interest or arouse

The mysterious headline was designed to pique the reader's curiosity.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a feeling of irritation or... irritation resentment annoyance umbrage offense huff arouse stimulate

Opposites

pleasure gratification appease

Word family

Derived forms piqued

Related forms piquant piquancy

Etymology

From French pique ('a prick, sting, resentment'), from piquer ('to prick, sting'), of imitative or uncertain origin.

piquer Middle French

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Emotions & Feelings

External links

# pique

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /pik/
**IPA (UK):** /piːk/

## Meanings
1. a feeling of irritation or resentment; to stimulate interest or arouse

## Examples
- The mysterious headline was designed to pique the reader's curiosity.

## Synonyms
- irritation
- resentment
- annoyance
- umbrage
- offense
- huff
- arouse
- stimulate

## Antonyms
- pleasure
- gratification
- appease

## Derived Forms
- piqued

## Related Forms
- piquant
- piquancy

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: piquer

## Etymology
From French pique ('a prick, sting, resentment'), from piquer ('to prick, sting'), of imitative or uncertain origin.

## AI Etymology
Pique comes from French pique ('a prick, sting, resentment'), from piquer ('to prick, sting'), of imitative or uncertain origin. The form is best read as a historical transfer or inheritance, with its older language material carrying the main semantic load. As a noun and verb, it denotes "a feeling of irritation or resentment; to stimulate interest or arouse", keeping the historical idea close to its dictionary sense. Relevant historical forms include Middle French piquer. Derivative forms include piqued; related words include piquant, piquancy.

## Topics
- Emotions & Feelings

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