peak

1 of 5

noun

ˈpēk

: a pointed or projecting part of a garment

especially : the visor of a cap or hat

The cap's peak shades his eyes.

: promontory

a steep rocky peak

: a sharp or pointed end

the peak of a roof

a(1)

: the top of a hill or mountain ending in a point

the fog hung … heavily on the peak of the hill

H. D. Skidmore

(2)

: a prominent mountain usually having a well-defined summit

: something resembling a mountain peak

Beat the cream until it forms stiff peaks.

: the upper aftermost corner of a fore-and-aft sail

: the narrow part of a ship's bow or stern or the part of the hold in it

: the highest level or greatest degree

a singer at the peak of her popularity

: a high point in a course of development especially as represented on a graph

The graph shows that murders in the city reached a peak two years ago.

: widow's peak

peak

2 of 5

verb (1)

peaked; peaking; peaks

intransitive verb

: to reach a maximum (as of capacity, value, or activity)

—often used with out

transitive verb

: to cause to come to a peak, point, or maximum

peak

3 of 5

adjective

: being at or reaching the maximum

peak levels

peak output

peak performance

operating at peak strength/efficiency

Wang thinks that groundwater was jolted free by the quake. The water then trickled down into the streams and reached a peak outpour about 30 days later.

Thomas Sumner

Air-conditioning is also one of the main contributors to peak electric power demand …

Shane Cashman

also : of, relating to, or being a period of maximum intensity or activity

And because women, as a whole, leave later for work than men, they tend to travel right smack-dab in the peak hours of congestion (and even more so in the afternoon peak hours, which is partially why those tend to be worse.)

Tom Vanderbilt

: being at the height of popularity, use, or attention

—used before the name of a product, person, cultural trend, etc.

Just when you think we've surely reached peak bourbon, someone else ups the ante. No longer is it enough to have the oldest, the rarest, or the most expensive whiskey, or even to pick a personal barrel from a distillery.

Dana McMahanAll this is to say, we are at peak Wes Anderson—or rather, we have been for a very, very long time. We have to ask: why is this style so easy to send up? And why is it so hard to dislodge?

Louis Wise

peak

4 of 5

verb (2)

peaked; peaking; peaks

intransitive verb

: to grow thin or sickly

: to dwindle away

peak

5 of 5

verb (3)

peaked; peaking; peaks

transitive verb

nautical : to set (a gaff, a yard, etc.) nearer the perpendicular

rowing : to hold (oars) with blades well raised

Did you know?

Peek vs. Peak vs. Pique

Peek, peak, and pique: they sound the same but mean very different things.

The first one we learn is peek: it has to do with looking, especially furtively or quickly or through a small space, as in "open the box and peek inside." It's both a noun and a verb; when you peek, you take a peek. Our advice for remembering this one is to keep in mind that you peek in order to see.

Peak is the verb you use to talk about reaching a maximum, or coming to a highest point, literally or figuratively, as in "The meteor shower will last for several days but will peak on Sunday." Its noun counterpart, which refers to various pointed or projecting parts, is more common: something that peaks reaches a peak. Just as every mountain has a peak, thinking of the peak—the highest point—is the way to remember that peak is the choice for reaching the highest levels. Associating the "a" in peak with the "a" in maximum or with a capital "A" (the most mountain-like of letters) can be helpful.

Pique is the oddball of this trio. We know the "ique" spelling from the likes of technique, antique, and unique, but pique nonetheless looks a little exotic. It comes from a French word meaning literally "to prick," but its earliest English use was as a noun. The noun is still used: a pique is a transient feeling of wounded vanity—a kind of resentment. As a verb, pique was (and still is, especially in British English) used to mean "to arouse anger or resentment in," as in "Their rudeness piqued me." Now, however, it's most often our interest or curiosity that gets piqued—that is to say, our interest or curiosity is aroused, as in "The large key hanging next on the wall piqued my curiosity."

Pique has another meaning too, though it's less common than any of those already mentioned. Pique sometimes is used to mean "to take pride in (oneself)," as in "She piques herself on her editing skills."

Master this trio, and you can pique yourself on your word skills.

Example Sentences

Noun a line of rocky peaks the peak of the roof The recipe says to beat the cream until it forms soft peaks. At her peak she was writing a new novel every year. Violence reached a peak just before the election. The graph shows that murders in the city declined from a peak of 173 in 2004. Adjective The factory has been running at peak capacity for the past year. the peak season for fishing See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Generally, the peak of fall color in the Sierra is around the second week of October, but the show will begin in the next week at higher elevations and continue in some places at lower elevations until late October.

Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Sep. 2022 The summer peak was 122 deaths in a week, tallied between July 31 and Aug. 6.

Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2022 This peak was easily the most extreme location filming took place.

Mackenzie Schmidt, Peoplemag, 1 Sep. 2022 The peak of the hurricane season is typically around September 10.

Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 1 Sep. 2022 The climatological peak of the season is just around the corner on Sept. 10, and things typically stay busy through the month of September.

Leigh Morgan, al, 31 Aug. 2022 The historic peak of hurricane season is mid-September, with the busiest stretch from late August to mid-October.

Molly Hennessy-fiske, Washington Post, 19 Aug. 2022 Its market value has fallen below $1 billion, from a peak of more than $17 billion a decade ago.

Ginger Adams Otis, WSJ, 4 Sep. 2022 Prices at the pump fell to $3.81 a gallon Friday from a peak of $5.02 in mid-June.

Christopher Rugaber, ajc, 2 Sep. 2022

Verb

The temperature in Woodland Hills in the San Fernando Valley was expected to peak at 113 degrees Sunday before falling to 111 on Monday, Sirard said.

Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2022 It is projected to peak at 48,867 megawatts Monday and 50,099 megawatts Tuesday — which would be close to an all-time high and reflects both the continuing heat and the fact that Californians tend to use more power on weekdays than weekends.

Kate Galbraith, San Francisco Chronicle, 4 Sep. 2022 By 2080, the world's population is expected to peak at 10.4 billion.

Jen Christensen, CNN, 30 Aug. 2022 After opening at $240, the stock rose until December 2020, fell sharply until May 2021, and then headed up to peak at $405 last November.

Peter Cohan, Forbes, 25 Aug. 2022 And after weeks of hot, steamy weather, temperatures beginning Monday are expected to peak at a comfortable high around the low 80s during the day and drop about 20 degrees at night.

Jeanne Houck, The Enquirer, 15 Aug. 2022 The temperature high Friday and Saturday is forecast to peak at 96 degrees with the low falling to 76 Friday and 75 Saturday.

Joe Mario Pedersen, Orlando Sentinel, 29 July 2022 In southwest Oklahoma along the H.E. Bailey Turnpike, the high temperature is slated to peak at around 112 degrees Tuesday afternoon.

Matthew Cappucci, Washington Post, 19 July 2022 In southwest Oklahoma along the H.E. Bailey Turnpike, the high temperature is slated to peak at around 112 degrees Tuesday afternoon.

Matthew Cappucci, BostonGlobe.com, 19 July 2022

Adjective

The peak weekly tally for the summer was between July 31 and Aug. 6, when L.A. County reported 122 COVID-19 deaths.

Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2022 September is usually peak hurricane season in the Atlantic; the Azores can be affected, but the storms are less frequent and less severe than in the Caribbean and United States' Atlantic and Gulf coasts, the CNN Weather team says.

Forrest Brown, CNN, 21 Aug. 2022 This tactic can support EV fast-charging, supplement power from the grid during peak demand times and store power from renewable energy sources.

Doron Frenkel, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2022 Sacramento high schooler with East Coast college dreams is peak relatable cinema.

Deanna Janes, Harper's BAZAAR, 8 Aug. 2022 As part of the settlement, NRG was allowed to build a more energy-efficient power plant further east on the property to run only during peak demand periods.

Phil Diehl, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 July 2022 And, on the Texas grid, miners can get paid for powering down during peak demand periods, like the one that recently hit the state.

Gretchen Morgenson, NBC News, 22 July 2022 Fran Dillard, Driscoll’s vice president of brand and product marketing, who wore a necklace with a strawberry charm on our video call, thinks their success is reflective of post-peak-Covid optimism.

Alex Beggs, New York Times, 18 July 2022 Another strategy, called precooling or preheating, encourages customers to turn on their AC units or heaters before peak demand so that their home reaches a comfortable temperature sooner and only has to be maintained later.

Wired, 16 July 2022 See More

单词	peaking
释义	peak 1 of 5 noun ˈpēk 1 : a pointed or projecting part of a garment especially : the visor of a cap or hat The cap's peak shades his eyes. 2 : promontory a steep rocky peak 3 : a sharp or pointed end the peak of a roof 4 a(1) : the top of a hill or mountain ending in a point the fog hung … heavily on the peak of the hill H. D. Skidmore (2) : a prominent mountain usually having a well-defined summit b : something resembling a mountain peak Beat the cream until it forms stiff peaks. 5 a : the upper aftermost corner of a fore-and-aft sail b : the narrow part of a ship's bow or stern or the part of the hold in it 6 a : the highest level or greatest degree a singer at the peak of her popularity b : a high point in a course of development especially as represented on a graph The graph shows that murders in the city reached a peak two years ago. 7 : widow's peak peak 2 of 5 verb (1) peaked; peaking; peaks intransitive verb : to reach a maximum (as of capacity, value, or activity) —often used with out transitive verb : to cause to come to a peak, point, or maximum peak 3 of 5 adjective 1 : being at or reaching the maximum peak levels peak output peak performance operating at peak strength/efficiency Wang thinks that groundwater was jolted free by the quake. The water then trickled down into the streams and reached a peak outpour about 30 days later. Thomas Sumner Air-conditioning is also one of the main contributors to peak electric power demand … Shane Cashman also : of, relating to, or being a period of maximum intensity or activity And because women, as a whole, leave later for work than men, they tend to travel right smack-dab in the peak hours of congestion (and even more so in the afternoon peak hours, which is partially why those tend to be worse.) Tom Vanderbilt 2 : being at the height of popularity, use, or attention —used before the name of a product, person, cultural trend, etc. Just when you think we've surely reached peak bourbon, someone else ups the ante. No longer is it enough to have the oldest, the rarest, or the most expensive whiskey, or even to pick a personal barrel from a distillery. Dana McMahanAll this is to say, we are at peak Wes Anderson—or rather, we have been for a very, very long time. We have to ask: why is this style so easy to send up? And why is it so hard to dislodge? Louis Wise peak 4 of 5 verb (2) peaked; peaking; peaks intransitive verb 1 : to grow thin or sickly 2 : to dwindle away peak 5 of 5 verb (3) peaked; peaking; peaks transitive verb 1 nautical : to set (a gaff, a yard, etc.) nearer the perpendicular 2 rowing : to hold (oars) with blades well raised Did you know? Peek vs. Peak vs. Pique Peek, peak, and pique: they sound the same but mean very different things. The first one we learn is peek: it has to do with looking, especially furtively or quickly or through a small space, as in "open the box and peek inside." It's both a noun and a verb; when you peek, you take a peek. Our advice for remembering this one is to keep in mind that you peek in order to see. Peak is the verb you use to talk about reaching a maximum, or coming to a highest point, literally or figuratively, as in "The meteor shower will last for several days but will peak on Sunday." Its noun counterpart, which refers to various pointed or projecting parts, is more common: something that peaks reaches a peak. Just as every mountain has a peak, thinking of the peak—the highest point—is the way to remember that peak is the choice for reaching the highest levels. Associating the "a" in peak with the "a" in maximum or with a capital "A" (the most mountain-like of letters) can be helpful. Pique is the oddball of this trio. We know the "ique" spelling from the likes of technique, antique, and unique, but pique nonetheless looks a little exotic. It comes from a French word meaning literally "to prick," but its earliest English use was as a noun. The noun is still used: a pique is a transient feeling of wounded vanity—a kind of resentment. As a verb, pique was (and still is, especially in British English) used to mean "to arouse anger or resentment in," as in "Their rudeness piqued me." Now, however, it's most often our interest or curiosity that gets piqued—that is to say, our interest or curiosity is aroused, as in "The large key hanging next on the wall piqued my curiosity." Pique has another meaning too, though it's less common than any of those already mentioned. Pique sometimes is used to mean "to take pride in (oneself)," as in "She piques herself on her editing skills." Master this trio, and you can pique yourself on your word skills. Synonyms Noun alp hump mount mountain See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Noun a line of rocky peaks the peak of the roof The recipe says to beat the cream until it forms soft peaks. At her peak she was writing a new novel every year. Violence reached a peak just before the election. The graph shows that murders in the city declined from a peak of 173 in 2004. Adjective The factory has been running at peak capacity for the past year. the peak season for fishing See More Recent Examples on the Web Noun Generally, the peak of fall color in the Sierra is around the second week of October, but the show will begin in the next week at higher elevations and continue in some places at lower elevations until late October. Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Sep. 2022 The summer peak was 122 deaths in a week, tallied between July 31 and Aug. 6. Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2022 This peak was easily the most extreme location filming took place. Mackenzie Schmidt, Peoplemag, 1 Sep. 2022 The peak of the hurricane season is typically around September 10. Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 1 Sep. 2022 The climatological peak of the season is just around the corner on Sept. 10, and things typically stay busy through the month of September. Leigh Morgan, al, 31 Aug. 2022 The historic peak of hurricane season is mid-September, with the busiest stretch from late August to mid-October. Molly Hennessy-fiske, Washington Post, 19 Aug. 2022 Its market value has fallen below $1 billion, from a peak of more than $17 billion a decade ago. Ginger Adams Otis, WSJ, 4 Sep. 2022 Prices at the pump fell to $3.81 a gallon Friday from a peak of $5.02 in mid-June. Christopher Rugaber, ajc, 2 Sep. 2022 Verb The temperature in Woodland Hills in the San Fernando Valley was expected to peak at 113 degrees Sunday before falling to 111 on Monday, Sirard said. Los Angeles Times, 5 Sep. 2022 It is projected to peak at 48,867 megawatts Monday and 50,099 megawatts Tuesday — which would be close to an all-time high and reflects both the continuing heat and the fact that Californians tend to use more power on weekdays than weekends. Kate Galbraith, San Francisco Chronicle, 4 Sep. 2022 By 2080, the world's population is expected to peak at 10.4 billion. Jen Christensen, CNN, 30 Aug. 2022 After opening at $240, the stock rose until December 2020, fell sharply until May 2021, and then headed up to peak at $405 last November. Peter Cohan, Forbes, 25 Aug. 2022 And after weeks of hot, steamy weather, temperatures beginning Monday are expected to peak at a comfortable high around the low 80s during the day and drop about 20 degrees at night. Jeanne Houck, The Enquirer, 15 Aug. 2022 The temperature high Friday and Saturday is forecast to peak at 96 degrees with the low falling to 76 Friday and 75 Saturday. Joe Mario Pedersen, Orlando Sentinel, 29 July 2022 In southwest Oklahoma along the H.E. Bailey Turnpike, the high temperature is slated to peak at around 112 degrees Tuesday afternoon. Matthew Cappucci, Washington Post, 19 July 2022 In southwest Oklahoma along the H.E. Bailey Turnpike, the high temperature is slated to peak at around 112 degrees Tuesday afternoon. Matthew Cappucci, BostonGlobe.com, 19 July 2022 Adjective The peak weekly tally for the summer was between July 31 and Aug. 6, when L.A. County reported 122 COVID-19 deaths. Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2022 September is usually peak hurricane season in the Atlantic; the Azores can be affected, but the storms are less frequent and less severe than in the Caribbean and United States' Atlantic and Gulf coasts, the CNN Weather team says. Forrest Brown, CNN, 21 Aug. 2022 This tactic can support EV fast-charging, supplement power from the grid during peak demand times and store power from renewable energy sources. Doron Frenkel, Forbes, 16 Aug. 2022 Sacramento high schooler with East Coast college dreams is peak relatable cinema. Deanna Janes, Harper's BAZAAR, 8 Aug. 2022 As part of the settlement, NRG was allowed to build a more energy-efficient power plant further east on the property to run only during peak demand periods. Phil Diehl, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 July 2022 And, on the Texas grid, miners can get paid for powering down during peak demand periods, like the one that recently hit the state. Gretchen Morgenson, NBC News, 22 July 2022 Fran Dillard, Driscoll’s vice president of brand and product marketing, who wore a necklace with a strawberry charm on our video call, thinks their success is reflective of post-peak-Covid optimism. Alex Beggs, New York Times, 18 July 2022 Another strategy, called precooling or preheating, encourages customers to turn on their AC units or heaters before peak demand so that their home reaches a comfortable temperature sooner and only has to be maintained later. Wired, 16 July 2022 See More Word History Etymology Noun, Verb (1), and Adjective perhaps alteration of pike Verb (2) origin unknown Verb (3) from apeak held vertically First Known Use Noun 15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3 Verb (1) 1887, in the meaning defined at transitive sense Adjective 1903, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Verb (2) 1605, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Verb (3) 1626, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Phrases Containing peak widow's peak peak season off-peak peak flow meter widow's peak peak season off-peak peak flow meter Kids Definition peak noun ˈpēk 1 : a prominent mountain We saw a snowy peak rising from the plain. 2 : the pointed top of a hill or mountain I climbed all the way to the peak. 3 : a sharp or pointed end The roof rises to a peak. 4 : the highest point of development He is at the peak of his career. peaking verb present participle of peak as in cresting Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance cresting surging increasing proliferating escalating mushrooming intensifying snowballing swelling ballooning accumulating multiplying mounting heightening expanding bourgeoning burgeoning enlarging skyrocketing waxing appreciating rocketing soaring zooming building up shooting (up) Antonyms & Near Antonyms falling plunging plummeting slumping tumbling decreasing collapsing waning diminishing dropping nose-diving lessening contracting See More
随便看	acataleptic acataleptics acatalexes acatalexis acataphasiae deafed deafen deafened deafening deafeningly deafenings deafens deafer deafest deaffed deaffing deafing deafish deafly deafness deafnesses deafs deaired deairing deairs

peak

noun

verb (1)

adjective

verb (2)

verb (3)

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

Phrases Containing peak

Kids Definition

noun

verb