piqued 1 of 2

adjective

as in infuriated

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

piqued

2 of 2

verb

past tense of pique
1
as in annoyed
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts her seat companion piqued her by repeatedly poking her in the ribs

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in provoked
to rouse to strong feeling or action their sarcastic comments piqued him to respond in kind

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in prided
to think highly of (oneself) she piques herself on her considerable musical abilities

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of piqued
Verb
With his curiosity piqued, Rabtsevich dug through the TESS archives for more data on the same star and found an additional 22 instances of dimming. — Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 14 Oct. 2026 The spotlight surrounding Mac’s love life intensified, as his relationship piqued the interest of TMZ and other tabloids, along with the watchful eyes of millions of Arianators. — Michael Saponara, Billboard, 13 Oct. 2026 But the idea piqued Cruise’s interest; the actor was a longtime fan of the director. — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 7 Oct. 2026 The Chinese government’s interest may have been piqued by Rogers’ behavior on dating apps. — Eamon Javers, CNBC, 30 Sep. 2026 Indeed, most people seemed to use the panels as a chance to sit quietly and reply to emails or put the final touches on a working paper, only emerging from their absorption when a specific presentation piqued their curiosity. — Bartolomeo Sala, The Dial, 29 Sep. 2026 But watching her now-husband buy a house piqued her interest in the industry. — Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 21 Sep. 2026 The unusual circumstances that piqued the interest of casual players was hailed as a once-in-a-lifetime gift that would widen the playing field for gaming consumers. — Jennifer Maas, Variety, 10 Sep. 2026 Learning about his great grandmother, Sarah Miller, whom his mother had known as a child, piqued his interest. — Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 6 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piqued
  1. outraged
  2. annoyed
  3. provoked
  4. prided
  5. angry
  6. bothered
  7. encouraged
  8. congratulated
Adjective
  • The alleged crime has left the neighborhood shocked, hurt and outraged.
    — Christina Fan, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Tall Paul said through an outraged mouthful of banoffee doughnut.
    — Kevin Barry, New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of outraged
Verb
  • That was the question that annoyed Steinbrenner, who is backing a system that would strip his team of a financial advantage while falling in line with other billionaire ballclub owners, who tend to vote as a unified bloc.
    — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The innkeeper is annoyed that his wife wants more conversation.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of annoyed
Verb
  • North Korea denied responsibility for the explosions and warned of strong retaliation if provoked.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 21 Oct. 2026
  • French’s post provoked social media responses calling for violence against Indians and desecrating Hindu temples.
    — Arun Brahmbhatt, The Conversation, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of provoked
Verb
  • California has long prided itself as a regulatory trailblazer, whether to preserve its coastline, reduce air pollution, protect gig workers, ensure data privacy or battle climate change.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The country that prided itself on being an oasis of democracy in the Middle East had replaced freedom of expression with the unfettered right to incite vengeance.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of prided
Adjective
  • Legend has it that sad fates befell those who made her angry and happy ones those who were kind to her.
    — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Meanwhile, angry residents continue to flood once-sleepy municipal board meetings, pressuring officials to reject data center proposals.
    — Marc Levy, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of angry
Verb
  • If they really can’t be bothered to show some respect then we shouldn’t be bothered enough to give them our attention and money.
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Blitzes also haven’t bothered USC’s passing attack much, either.
    — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of bothered
Verb
  • Alison Linder, assistant sustainability coordinator at Occidental College, which has a thrift store of its own with Halloween costumes in stock, encouraged people to organize their own swaps with neighbors, friends or school classmates.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 24 Oct. 2026
  • But Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has repeatedly dismissed previous caution of AI tools and encouraged rapid autonomous innovation at the Pentagon.
    — Chiara Eisner, NPR, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of encouraged
Verb
  • The tragedy unfolded just one day after the archdiocese congratulated Sánchez Molinari on the anniversary of his ordination, Ecuadorian news outlet Primicias reported.
    — Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Last week, Mancini congratulated Flanagan on his series adaptation of King’s 1974 debut novel.
    — Glenn Garner, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of congratulated

Browse Nearby Words

pique
piqued
piques
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Piqued.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piqued. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shindig

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All