Synonyms

piqued

American

[peekt] / pikt /

adjective

(of interest, curiosity, etc.) excited or aroused.

By the end of the talk the audience had tons of questions, and left with a piqued interest in the world of lion research.
irritated and resentful, especially because of an injury to one’s pride.

The Act triggered President Truman's piqued reaction: he found the bill "un-American" and vetoed it, but to no avail.
(of pride, vanity, etc.) wounded.

Unimaginable horrors often result from nothing more than a move to second place, a public embarrassment, or a piqued ego.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of pique.

Other Word Forms

unpiqued adjective

Etymology

Origin of piqued

pique ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. )

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Kian's mum said his interest was initially piqued by one of his teachers.

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

As California’s water crisis worsened, recalling the constant swish of sprinklers throughout her childhood piqued her interest in native plants.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 9, 2026

Eventually, I figured out that “walking” and “ambient” were useful search terms to find what I was looking for, along with whatever destination piqued my curiosity at the moment.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 4, 2026

Acai's active ingredients piqued the interest of food and cosmetic companies worldwide.

From Barron's • Jan. 28, 2026

But she had piqued his interest, in a way he says likely wouldn’t have happened, absent her intervention.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023