# spiky

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ˈspaɪki/ · frequency rank #39,582

## Definitions
1. Of a plant: producing spikes (“ears (as of corn); inflorescences in which sessile flowers are arranged on unbranched elongated axes”).
2. Of a plant part: resembling a spike of a plant (see above).

## Etymology
From spike (“kind of inflorescence in which sessile flowers are arranged on an unbranched elongated axis”) + -y (suffix forming adjectives with the sense “having the quality of”). Spike is derived from Middle English spik, spike (“ear of grain; clove of garlic; plant having spikes; plant of the genus Valeriana, especially Valeriana officinalis; plant of the genus Lavandula, lavender”), from Latin spīca (“ear, head, or spike of grain; plant spike”) (feminine) (also rarely spīcum (neuter) and spīcus (masculine)), possibly ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *spey- (“long; sharp; thin”).

## Easily confused with
- **spy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spy)
- **spin** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spin)
- **spit** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spit)
- **spoke** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spoke)
- **spray** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spray)
- **spite** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spite)
- **spine** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spine)
- **spill** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spill)
- **spins** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spins)
- **spire** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spire)
- **spilt** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spilt)
- **spiro** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spiro)
- **spina** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spina)
- **spiny** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spiny)
- **sucky** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-sucky)
- **sticky** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-sticky)
- **spooky** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-spooky)
- **stinky** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spiky-vs-stinky)
- **sky** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sky-vs-spiky)
- **sik** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sik-vs-spiky)

## Common misspellings (8)
`psiky`, `sipky`, `spikky`, `spikyy`, `spiyk`, `spkiy`, `sppiky`, `sspiky`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/spiky