“Peaked” is commonly used as an adjective meaning, well … having a peak, as in a peaked hat. It can also refer to reaching a peak or other high point: “Smith’s knowledge about European history peaked with the Weimar Republic era.”

It can sometimes be correctly used when referring to someone’s interest in a subject, as in “My interest in the Star Wars movies peaked with the third one,” if it’s intended to indicate that the interest reached a high point then and declined thereafter.

“Piqued,” however, is the proper term when stating that something newly provoked, aroused, or attracted one’s interest. “The new Walther PDP has piqued my interest.”

Piqued can also indicate a feeling of irritation or resentment: “I was piqued by his obvious failure to attempt to understand my post before criticizing me.” That is a less common use of the word, but correct.

I am guilty of unknowingly using those two words interchangeably.


Thanks for that tip !

It will only get worse. I certainly don’t throw 5 dollar words around casually but I read a lot and went to an ok school so I have a decent vocabulary. We know lots of school teachers. I’m always surprised when they have no idea what fairly common words mean. Let alone how the6 are spelled.

quote:

Originally posted by pedropcola:

Let alone how the6 are spelled.

Sorry, nothing personal, but I had to lol giggle snort and guffaw. The devil made me do it.
.

quote:

Originally posted by pedropcola:
I certainly don’t throw 5 dollar words around casually but I read a lot and went to an ok school so I have a decent vocabulary.

That's the thing... Reading is the best way to build vocabulary.

But reading just isn't cool or all that common these days. (Unless it's 60 characters or less with some emojis sprinkled throughout, or it's the words in the title of a Youtube video. )

We're reaching the point where more and more (mainly younger) folks out there have heard certain words or phrases used in verbal conversation, but they have never actually read them before. So they end up using the wrong word, or misspelling the word, when they attempt to use it in a written/typed format.


"Walla"/"Wallah"/"Wala"/etc. is the one that really grinds my gears. I figure nearly everyone's heard it used in conversation at one point or another, even if only in a movie. But many (most?) folks don't know how to spell voilà, because they've never read it before. That doesn't stop them from trying to type it out, though.

I put this in the “rant” section because I believed it wasn’t really appropriate anywhere else, but I do understand how it’s possible to be confused by things like this, and I’ve seen the confusion at least a couple of times recently.

Long ago a cartoon character (of all things) commiserated with another who mispronounced a word that he had only seen in writing. That’s something I’ve experienced personally many times because I read a lot. Now, though, I suspect the opposite is becoming true more often: hearing a word on the TV or other visual source, but without seeing it in print. It would be perfectly natural to assume that piqued was spelled peaked, because that’s the way it’s pronounced.

Anyway, just a public service announcement for those interested.

(Drafted as RogueJSK was posting much the same.)

[QUOTE]Originally posted by sigfreund:

"mispronounced a word that he had only seen in writing. That’s something I’ve experienced personally many times because I read a lot. Now, though, I suspect the opposite is becoming true more often: hearing a word on the TV or other visual source, but without seeing it in print."

I've often done the same, finding out in a high pressure meeting that "segue" sounds like the thing you ride (Segway).
I've often bemoaned falling literacy rates in this country; especially among youngsters, Just thinking about it makes me feel, well...peaked.

I agree wholeheartedly.

Now, waiting with bated breath for the one guy who always comes in these threads with “as long as you know what they meant, it doesn’t matter”

Yes, dammit, it does.

nobody can pick just one....

Piqued is a word that I’ve long thought only a small fraction of the population knows.

Very rarely do I see it used properly (instead of ‘peaked’).

I piqued into peak while assenting a peek near Walla Walla WA. In the end, I losed interest in the manor with witch people right.

Ever since Apple added the numbers on the top of the keys it has screwed me up. Apparently my favorite word is 5he. Wtf Apple.

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
I piqued into peak while assenting a peek near Walla Walla WA. In the end, I losed interest in the manor with witch people right.

That was painful to read.

Then there are those who write "peeked" when they mean "piqued."

Funny, I was just thinking about 'peak vs pique' the other day. Peak is used in place of pique so frequently, that I believe the definition of the pique will be absorbed by peak. We've already seen this happen w/ literally vs figuratively. Literally now can mean literally or figuratively, which ironically defeats the purpose of the word.

'Click vs clique' and 'trooper vs trouper' are a couple others. So few ppl understand the differences that clique & trouper will be absorbed by their homophones.

I recall a bit of southern colloquialism with regards to the word "peaked". Old-timers would would say something or someone was peaked but pronounced peek-ED. It meant worn out or tired.

A bit of context; the old timers to whom I refer would be people in their fifties in the fifties.

Peaked (pronounced pea-ked), meaning tired, wan, pale, etc., isn't a Southern term. I'm from the North and have heard it there many times, and also from citizens of England.

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
I piqued into peak while assenting a peek near Walla Walla WA. In the end, I losed interest in the manor with witch people right.

Here we have an example of blatant obfuscation, which will probably be explained next.

quote:

Originally posted by rsbolo:
Old-timers would would say something or someone was peaked but pronounced peek-ED. It meant worn out or tired.

In that sense, it is pronounced ˈpē-kəd.
For example, press the speaker icon under Adjective(2), here https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/peaked

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
I piqued into peak while assenting a peek near Walla Walla WA. In the end, I losed interest in the manor with witch people right.

I see what you did their.